Estate agents who are members of the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland (SCSI) believe that changes introduced to the rental market in June will lead to an increase in the number of small landlords leaving the market.
That is according to the SCSI Residential Market Monitor survey which showed that 71% of respondents believe more landlords will leave the market following the introduction of the changes, which included the extension of Rent Pressure Zones across the country.
The research found that 29% of current residential sales are from landlords looking to sell their investment, down from 40% in 12 months.
"Our survey shows that the three top reasons why rental units are coming to the market for sale are overly complex rent legislation, low returns and properties recovering from negative equity," said President of the SCSI, Gerard O’Toole.
"While agents say sales instructions from landlords are down to 29% from a high of 40% a year ago, the figure has remained around the 30% mark for many years," Mr O'Toole said.
"We believe landlords will continue to leave the market, exacerbating the lack of rental supply, unless they can see better returns and that is why we are calling for increased tax incentives for small landlords."
"But we also believe the rental market needs increased auditing by the RTB to ensure regulatory compliance and address unauthorised short-term lettings," he added.
In its pre-budget submission, the SCSI has proposed a range of measures aimed at unlocking housing supply and addressing blockages across the construction, property and land sectors.
Proposals include the introduction of targeted supports to help unlock previously developed land, known as brownfield sites; compact growth targets for local authorities; and the establishment of a national database for vacant and derelict buildings.
The survey was conducted in June and July 2025 and received 175 responses.
