Families facing eviction in Bridgetown?

By Dan Walsh in Bridgetown

Last Friday, 36 families in Hazelwood Estate, Bridgetown, south Wexford, were given notices ending their tenancies because the landlord plans to sell the properties.

Speaking to WexfordLocal.com this afternoon, Cllr AoifeRose O’Brien said; “It is utterly devastating to see a mass eviction taking place in my home village of Bridgetown. I have been working tirelessly with the 36 families affected this weekend to help answer their questions and support them in disputing the served notices and ultimately help them prevent this nightmare.”

“Behind those 36 doors are families who are integrated into our community: children attending local schools, youths representing our local teams and adults working in our local establishments.

“Those families do not deserve to have their lives ripped to shreds and turned upside down, at no fault of their own.”

“At this time, I have been advised that these notices are unlawful. In the coming days the RTB (Residential Tenancies Board) will be in touch with the residents following the disputes we registered today, to investigate this. We live in hope that this decision can be reversed.”

“I have called for an emergency district meeting which will take place on Wednesday morning to thoroughly discuss what options can be made available from Wexford County Council,” concluded Cllr O’Brien.

Labour TD for Wexford, George Lawlor says uncertainty remains: “There’s 36 of them have received notices of termination issued by one individual landlord.

“I think the government must immediately intervene in this scenario, because here we have a situation where 36 families are now left without a home or will be left without a home when their notice runs out.”

A Department of Housing spokesperson confirmed Minister for Housing James Browne has been in contact with the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) over the weekend in relation to the matter. Browne understands the RTB is directly engaging with Wexford County Council to ensure the tenants’ rights are protected.

It is understood properties are owned by a developer, Patchflow Ltd, which has been contacted for comment.

An emergency information meeting is to be held by Wexford County Council on Monday.

The Department spokesperson also said under Section 34 of the Residential Tenancies Act, a landlord must state a reason for termination in any “Part 4 tenancy termination notice served”. They added the termination will not be valid unless copied to the RTB and the stated reason must comply with regulatory guidelines.

The tenants received the notices ahead of the Government’s new rental rules, which came into effect today (Sunday).

Under the new rules, landlords will have to keep rent-price increases capped at 2 per cent, or the rate of inflation, annually. However, in the cases of new tenancies, owners can reset it to the market rate with no limit.

Tenancies started after Sunday will have a minimum duration of six years and there will also be more stringent grounds for eviction.