Sligo Councillor hits out at ‘perverse situation’ where 'tourists are staying in homes and families are staying in hotels'

By Philip Rooney, The Sligo Champion

The number of houses and apartments being offered for short term lets on websites such as Airbnb was raised at the December meeting of Sligo County Council with Labour Party representative, Cllr Ann Higgins, highlighting the difficulties created and asked the local authority what actions are being taken or planned against illegal short term lets.

In her motion before the meeting Cllr Higgins stated, “A recent report by the ESRI highlighted that 80% of short term lets listed on Airbnb in Sligo are entire property listings. This accounted for 428 entire units being listed in Sligo which was a 30% increase between 2019 and 2013.

Cllr Higgins’ motion noted, “The Residential Tenancies Act 2019 requires short term lets hosts in rent pressure zones to apply for change of use planning permission where they rent out their own principal private residence for more than 90 days per year or they let out any non-private principal residence for more than 90 days per year or they let out any non principle private residence property.”

Addressing the meeting, Cllr Higgins said she was informed, “I note that in the Sligo Drumcliffe area there were 16 applications and 11 were granted. I would suggest that the reality is completely different and there are multiples of that number operating across the county.”

Outlining her personal experience, Cllr Higgins recalled, “On a recent canvas with my colleagues I was struck by the number of apartments with lock boxes, indeed there was one row with five houses all short term lets. When we knocked on the door one gentleman was from Belfast and was in Sligo for one week. Another house was a gentleman over from London for two weeks work. While the owners of some of these properties may have be indeed be complying with legislation and have planning permission, I personally visited more than 11 houses in the Sligo Borough area alone that fall under this category so there is no doubt more owners are avoiding, I believe, their legal requirements.”

Cllr Higgins continued, "However, I appreciate that there is currently not a short term letting register in operation and it is not due until May 2026 and that will be under the agency of Fáilte Ireland. While I welcome this measure to regularise the short term letting market I am a bit concerned that it might be too little and too late. We still have landlords who are obviously making more money on the short term lets and they are choosing that market over renting their property to those who are living here for any length of time. As a former head of tourism I am keenly aware of the importance of tourism as a key driver of the regional development. However, even the most ardent supporter of our tourism industry sees the perverse situation that this government has created where we have tourists staying in homes and we have families staying in hotels. In the middle of a housing catastrophe and Christmas just around the corner there are 5,274 children who will be spending it in emergency accommodation.

“Last week’s figures show there are 16,766 people living in homelessness, that’s 4,000 short of the population of Sligo town. It’s a galling indictment of the government’s failed housing policy. That's not to mention the multiples of thousands who are stuck on local authority housing lists, the hidden homeless who are couch surfing and those who are stuck in their childhood bedrooms. In terms of the short term lets, I wait to see if any will come back on the regular rental market and how the register will work and the enforcement measures once they come into effect in 2026.”

Cllr Michael Clarke raised his concerns regarding the property market when he said, “From talking to a lot of estate agents, the six year rule will prevent people getting into the property market and making homes available to families because of issues they see ahead of them because they are losing a lot of control and rights to their property.

“A lot of estate agents and auctioneers are saying there is going to be a huge exodus from the rental market because of issues they see ahead of them.” Cllr Clarke said the solution to the housing shortage is, “We need more homes built and more land made available.”

Sligo County Council Director of Service Emer Concannon said, “We will be complying with the changes in the planning regulations in 2026. The guidelines that are being issued by the Minister in 2026 and we will be adhering to those guidelines but they haven't been issued yet so we will have to wait and see.”

Article Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.