COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

MEETING OF SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

Monday, February 09, 2026

MOTION NO. 4.

MOTION: Councillor K. Keane

That this council requests that any review of the differential rents scheme is based on fairness, not revenue -raising and must include consultation with tenants ,tenants unions such as CATU and organisations with expertise in tackling poverty and inequality.

REPORT:

We are currently awaiting the publishing of 'An Overview of Local Authorities Differential Rent Schemes and Rent Reviews' prepared by the Value for Money Unit, Local Government Audit Service. This report will provide a strong evidential basis for strategic adjustment of our differential rent scheme to address inequities in the current rent scheme along with ensuring that sufficient funding is in place to meet future social housing management and maintenance costs.

Each local authority has autonomy in determining how social housing rents are set through a differential rent scheme which is a function of the council’s executive. We are very conscious that any adjustments to the scheme must first and foremost be equitable and affordable for our tenants, while also being sufficient to meet all of the costs involved in managing, maintaining and upgrading our social homes now and into the future. Accordingly, we will present our housing stock investment programme to the Housing Strategic Committee in February for review along with the analysis supporting a review of the current differential rent scheme to ensure the long-term sustainable funding for the management and maintenance of our housing stock.