Charity raises concerns over new plans for modular homes

Housing charity Threshold has expressed concern at plans to allow people to build modular homes without planning permission in their back gardens.

In a submission to the Oireachtas Committee on Housing, the charity said it is concerned that "these regulations will result in a new category of renter that sits outside the protections of the Residential Tenancies Act."

Threshold has told the committee how renters of these "garden homes" may find themselves living in self-contained accommodation but without any of the rights and protections that tenants have come to rely on, including security of tenure, protections from excessive rent increases, and access to dispute resolution through the Residential Tenancies Board.

Threshold believes the regulations could force people into difficult circumstances.

"The creation of additional accommodation outside the established tenancy framework risks increasing the number of people living in similarly precarious circumstances", it said.

The charity also believes safeguards are needed to protect vulnerable groups, especially elderly people.

"Insufficient protections may lead to legal uncertainty, greater strain on local and public infrastructure and increased risks for vulnerable groups, including older people", the submission states.

"Threshold believes that moving ahead with the proposed exemptions, without appropriate safeguards, could generate a range of complex challenges that outweigh the intended benefit", it concluded.

Minister of State at the Department of Housing John Cummins said he expects new legislation in relation to houses erected in back gardens will come into force on 27 July.

Speaking on RTÉ's Today with David McCullagh, he said the aim was to remove red tape and bureaucracy and make it easier for people who want to carry out reasonable changes to their homes.

He said that the measures have been broadly welcomed and "the perfect cannot be the enemy of the good here".

Mr Cummins said: "I trust people to be able to make suitable modifications to their properties.

"I want to give people a fair crack at the whip."

Mr Cummins is due to appear before the committee this evening.