Rent Query

whodafunk

Hi,

Spoke with landlord recently and he is talking about increasing monthly rent because and only because of the local property tax - something along the lines of the amount of tax he claims or pays. Does this make sense to anyone or has anyone any experience with this? Sorry don't have full specific details.

Cheers

gaius c

In theory he's not allowed to pass on "costs" but he is allowed to increase the rent in line with market rent and right now, in urban areas, rents are increasing because supply is a bit tight. Are you in a fixed-term lease or part 4?

magoko101

Point out if you move they will have to re-advertise etc which should add up to near enough the cost of the LPT.
Best bet then is to agree to the increase next year.

Of course they can increase and you will have the choice to pay or move.

djimi

If thats the line that he is taking then do your research and estimate how much the charge is going to be for your property. Chances are its only about €30-€40 a month, so dont let him take you for a ride with it.

whodafunk

Thanks very much for all the feedback guys.

I think I'll check into how much the actual property tax is on the property and then divide it over 12months and see how much it equates to.

Cheers

murphaph

djimi wrote: »

If thats the line that he is taking then do your research and estimate how much the charge is going to be for your property. Chances are its only about €30-€40 a month, so dont let him take you for a ride with it.

Depending on the rate at which the landlord pays tax he might have to increase the rent by around double the rate of property tax because it's not clear that it will be deductible. If the tax could be passed on directly (as it is in Germany for example) the tenant would actually pay less.

murphaph

whodafunk wrote: »

Thanks very much for all the feedback guys.

I think I'll check into how much the actual property tax is on the property and then divide it over 12months and see how much it equates to.

Cheers

See above. Not that simple. Landlord has to pay tax on the increased rent before he can use it to pay the property tax. Apparently that's what most tenants want.

The_Conductor

Correct- its not tax deductible- so it'll cost him at very least twice the rate of the tax in gross rental income to cover it (possibly more even- with the other deductions).

Rents are going up in Urban areas- because of limited demand- and continuing to fall in rural areas (because of a large number of vacancies). If the landlord can point and say- look market prices are going up in the area (which if its an urban area- inevitably he can do) all he has to do is mirror the increase- he doesn't have to explain his reasoning)

Note- a rent review can happen a maximum of once a year.

StillWaters

He can only increase rent annually, so if you are there less than a year, he can't up the rent.

If it is an annual rent increase, conductor is right, he doesn't have to tell you it's for property tax/ to put his child through college/ to pay for a holiday. All it has to be is an increase in line with the Market rate.

Victor

Note that for most properties that LPT is less than the previous NPPR and Household Charge costs. Ask for a reduction.