The Dáil has begun debating the second stage of the Residential Tenancies Bill 2026.
Housing Minister James Browne said the legislation was finely balanced between the interests of tenants and the need to build more supply.
Minister Browne said there were protections in place to ensure that rent would not rise past 2% or the rate of consumer price inflation.
"The Government recognises that rents are already too high, we simply need more rental accommodation however, and in particular more apartments."
He said landlords would be allowed to reset rents for new tenancies only.
"There's a very fine balance to be struck; we aim to attract investment, but we know both tenants and landlords deserve and need fair treatment."
He said there needed to be better enforcement to monitor the enhanced protection of tenants and that was why the Residential Tenancies Board had enhanced powers and funding.
He said the bill should be viewed as part of a process of improving supply.
Minister Browne pointed to the increase of almost 40% in the delivery of apartments last year.
Minister Browne said the private sector would be freed up to provide housing at a much greater scale by rezoning land for housing.
"We are determined to deliver the homes that people need...and our plan is already starting to show momentum."
Bill is 'a vicious assault on private renters' - SF
Sinn Féin TD Eoin Ó Broin said this was the most profound change to the rental sector for over a decade.
"At the core of this bill is nothing short of a vicious assault, a vicious assault on private renters who are already living in the most expensive and insecure form of housing in the State."
He said rents would go up and cause more and more people to be locked out of the housing market.
Deputy Ó Broin said it would also lead to an increase in family homelessness.
He said while Rent Pressure Zones (RPZs) would continue for over six years, then renters would see their rents go up.
Mr Ó Broin said a quarter of tenancies registered annually are new, first-time tenancies, and he predicted that up to 60,000 tenancies would be affected by higher rents every year.
"How much extra is this going to cost those renters?"
Answering his own question, Deputy Ó Broin said renters in Dublin would see their rents rise by €3000 annually, €3500 outside Dublin and in Galway specifically, €4500.
"I just don't know how you...can describe that as fair and balanced," he said.
He said the bill ignores the regular churn in the rental sector and said the real consequences would be people putting off having children or changing jobs.
"To make matters even worse, you are proposing a level of complexity...that is just perplexing," pointing to the five different sets of renters and four different sets of tenure rules.
"Security of tenure is no damn good if you cannot afford the rent," Deputy Ó Broin said.
Mr Ó Broin said the only supply that would increase was high-end, high-rent apartments in Dublin and Cork.
"The only guarantee from this legislation is rip-off rents are going to be hiked ever higher for ever greater number of renters, many of whom cannot afford them."
