COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL
MEETING OF SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL
Monday, June 08, 2026
QUESTION NO. 11
QUESTION: Councillor K. Keane
To ask the Chief Executive what data the Council holds on levels of poverty and deprivation among its social housing tenants, including tenants under HAP and Ras arrangements and whether the Council has considered this data in the drafting of the Differential Rent Scheme.
REPLY:
The Council does not maintain a single composite measure of “poverty” or “deprivation” specific to social housing tenants. However, it holds and routinely analyses a range of relevant indicators, primarily centred on verified household income data across all tenancy types, including Council, RAS, Leased and HAP-supported households.
This income data, together with analysis of rent levels and rent-to-income ratios, formed a central evidence base in the development of the Differential Rent Scheme "Scheme"
In preparing the Scheme, we undertook a detailed assessment of:
- Household income distribution across all tenancy types, including HAP and RAS
- Rent levels relative to net household income (i.e. rent as a percentage of income)
- Local and national rent trends
- Future maintenance and investment requirements arising from ongoing stock condition surveys
This approach provides a practical method for assessing affordability and financial pressure on households, allowing the Council to evaluate rent burden across household income bands.
The analysis demonstrates that:
- The majority of households are in lower to moderate income bands, with a significant concentration below €40,000 per annum
- Rent increases under the amended Scheme are structured progressively, with minium increases applied to the lowest income households
- Across all tenancy types, rent as a proportion of income remains well below commonly recognised affordability stress thresholds (generally 30%), thereby limiting financial burden on lower-income tenants
The tables below set out:
- The distribution of households across tenancy types (Table 1)
- The breakdown of household incomes across Council, RAS, Leased and HAP tenancies (Table 2)
- The projected impact of the amended Scheme, including rent changes and rent-to-income ratios (Table 3)
Overall, the Scheme has been designed having regard to the income profile of tenants and the need to balance:
- Affordability – protecting lower-income households and minimising financial hardship
- Equity – ensuring those with greater means contribute proportionately more
- Sustainability – supporting ongoing investment in housing stock and services
Table 1: Tenancy Type
| Tenancy Type | Number |
| SDCC Social Housing | 10,512 |
| Approved Housing Bodies | 4,961 |
| Leased Units | 603 |
| Rental Accommodation Scheme | 451 |
| Housing Assistance Payment | 1,749 |
| Homeless Housing Assistance Payment | 2,027 |
| Total | 20,303 |
Table 2: Household Income Bands
|
Annual Household Income |
No. of Tenancies |
||||
|
COUNCIL |
RAS |
LEASE |
HAP |
Homeless HAP |
|
|
€0 - €10,000 |
37 |
2 |
5 |
33 |
31 |
|
€10,001 - €20,000 |
2,273 |
65 |
138 |
587 |
873 |
|
€20,001 - €30,000 |
1,996 |
61 |
135 |
624 |
647 |
|
€30,001 - €40,000 |
1,689 |
75 |
125 |
409 |
364 |
|
€40,001 - €50,000 |
1,237 |
64 |
63 |
77 |
82 |
|
€50,001 - €60,000 |
971 |
55 |
41 |
10 |
21 |
|
€60,001 - €70,000 |
636 |
29 |
37 |
4 |
8 |
|
€70,001 - €80,000 |
452 |
21 |
19 |
5 |
1 |
|
€80,001 - €90,000 |
292 |
20 |
17 |
0 |
0 |
|
€90,000+ |
576 |
45 |
24 |
0 |
0 |
Table 3: Rent to Income Ratio
|
Weekly Household Income Category |
Tenancy Type |
No. of Households |
Average Net Annual Income € |
Average Net Monthly Income € |
Average Weekly Rent Increase € |
Average Monthly Rent € |
Rent as % of Monthly Net Income |
% of Overall Tenancies |
|
Up to €1,000 net per week ( no change arising from DR Scheme) |
Council |
105 |
16,640.00 |
1,386.67 |
0.00 |
151.70 |
10.9% |
0.9% |
|
RAS |
2 |
17,263.00 |
1,438.58 |
0.00 |
155.50 |
10.8% |
0.0% |
|
|
Lease |
5 |
16,820.00 |
1,401.67 |
0.00 |
153.00 |
10.9% |
0.0% |
|
|
Up to €1,000 net per week |
Council |
7,367 |
28,302.78 |
2,358.57 |
7.90 |
266.00 |
11.3% |
65.8% |
|
RAS |
274 |
31,684.81 |
2,640.40 |
8.10 |
290.90 |
11.0% |
2.4% |
|
|
Lease |
471 |
44,603.13 |
3,716.93 |
7.20 |
427.10 |
11.5% |
4.2% |
|
|
Between €1,000 and €1,500 net per week |
Council |
1,760 |
61,617.40 |
5,134.78 |
43.00 |
701.10 |
13.7% |
15.7% |
|
RAS |
95 |
61,970.38 |
5,164.20 |
40.40 |
689.80 |
13.4% |
0.8% |
|
|
Lease |
81 |
59,488.90 |
4,957.41 |
32.10 |
643.30 |
13.0% |
0.7% |
|
|
Between €1,500 and €2,000 net per week |
Council |
596 |
86,210.79 |
7,184.23 |
81.40 |
1,086.60 |
15.1% |
5.3% |
|
RAS |
39 |
87,518.80 |
7,293.23 |
83.60 |
1,115.90 |
15.3% |
0.3% |
|
|
Lease |
32 |
87,042.62 |
7,253.55 |
89.50 |
1,103.70 |
15.2% |
0.3% |
|
|
Greater than €2,000 net per week |
Council |
331 |
112,030.72 |
9,335.89 |
87.90 |
1,464.30 |
15.7% |
3.0% |
|
RAS |
27 |
116,297.90 |
9,691.49 |
81.60 |
1,541.70 |
15.9% |
0.2% |
|
|
Lease |
15 |
105,090.93 |
8,757.58 |
66.00 |
1,360.30 |
15.5% |
0.1% |