Mayo County Council criticised over delayed response to illegal short-term lets investigation
Mayo County Council has now responded to an Irish Independent investigation into the number of unauthorised short-term lets in the county since 2023.
The Irish Independent conducted a nationwide investigation into unauthorised short-term lets over the past three years, contacting every local authority to gather data.
Each council was asked to provide the number of investigations that were commenced into unauthorised short-term lets in 2023, 2024, and so far in 2025.
Additionally, they were asked for the number of planning applications submitted to legally change the use of a property into a short-term let.
Mayo County Council initially failed to respond to multiple requests from the Irish Independent, prompting criticism from local representatives.
The council has since confirmed that it did not meet the original deadline but has now provided a full response.
According to Mayo County Council, a total of six investigations were commenced in 2023, 2024, and 2025, following written complaints to Planning Enforcement.
Out of these six investigation, in 2023, one warning letter was issued, in 2024, one enforcement notice was issued, and to date in 2025, three warning letters have been issued.
Just one planning application has been lodged with the council by an applicant to let their property on Airbnb during this time.
The council said it remains committed to engaging with and responding to media queries both locally and nationally.
Criticism came from the Cathaoirleach of the Westport and Belmullet Municipal District, who spoke to the Irish Independent before Mayo County Council had issued its response.
Cllr Peter Flynn expressed disappointment at the council's initial lack of engagement, especially given that Westport has one of the highest percentages of Airbnbs in the country.
"It's really disappointing that Mayo County Council did not have the courtesy or good manners to respond to a really important request," he said.
"Given that Westport has been designated a Rent Pressure Zone (RPZ) since 2023 and was included in the ERSI report as having the highest percentage of Air BnBs in the entire county,
"It's incredible to understand how Mayo County Council hasn't taken action on the back of both the RPZ designation in 2023 and the fact that the ERSI has highlighted the substantive issue in the Westport town area."
Westport, designated a RPZ since 2023, has one of the highest concentrations of Airbnb listings in the country.
The Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) found that roughly one in three privately rented properties in the town, 31.5pc, are listed on Airbnb, based on 2023 data from InsideAirbnb.
Elsewhere in Mayo, Castlebar was designated an RPZ in May 2025. In June, the government extended RPZ status nationwide, meaning all property owners offering short-term lets for more than 90 days a year must now apply for planning permission.
Despite the high number of Airbnb listings in Westport, very few planning applications have been submitted to legally convert properties for short-term accommodation.
Cllr Flynn continued: "This is having a detrimental impact on so many people who cannot either rent a house or purchase a house. Mayo County Council has a statutory responsibility to ensure that anyone who is renting a house on a short-term let basis over 90 days, has planning permission, and clearly that is not happening."
At yesterday’s council meeting, Cllr Flynn reiterated his concerns, he called for immediate action and an update from planning enforcement.
Referring to the original article, Cllr Flynn said: "I suppose it brought home the current issue with Airbnbs around the country. I was disappointed to see that Mayo County Council had been contacted on a number of occasions and hadn't [responded]."
"I don't know the rationale behind it, but, in relation to Airbnb, I'm guessing Mayo is similar to other counties around the country where very little has been done in relation to tackling the blight of Airbnb."
He said that with Westport being a designated RPZ since 2023, he expected to see more progress in addressing the issue.
"I would have expected some significant movement in relation to that, but I haven't seen anything. The ERSI report came out earlier this year and showed Westport as the biggest blackspot in the country in terms of Airbnb, with one in three residential properties designated as Airbnbs."
Cllr Flynn clarified that his concerns are focused on the impact of short-term lets in urban areas, rather than on rural hosts.
"My issue is not in relation to people who are renting out rooms, or a part of their house, a chalet or an apartment, or people in rural areas where there aren't hotels or hostels. My issue is very much focused on town centres in our county, where we cannot find locations for people to rent,
"I make no apology for that, and I will continue to fight the fight in relation to getting people permanently living in our town centres and not having a transient community who use other forms of accommodation."
He concluded by asking for an update on where county stands regarding Airbnb numbers and enforcement.
The meeting was informed that, from May next year, new regulations on short-term letting will require anyone advertising their property on platforms such as Airbnb to register with Fáilte Ireland.
Individuals operating short-term lets for more than 90 days annually will then need to obtain planning permission.
This article has been funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.