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8th July 2024
05:20pm BST
There have been countless articles, social posts, books and podcasts recounting the state of the Irish housing situation, with particular attention, lent to just how bad the rental situation is. If you haven't experienced black mould, broken appliances, screaming neighbours and evasive money-grabbing landlords you are considered to be a lucky inhabitant of this land. Ireland is awash with horror stories about every aspect of the rental process, from finding somewhere to live to co-inhabiting with housemates to having to deal with landlords. Hopefully aiming to help out at least one aspect of that diabolic process, a new website allowing tenants to "rate the landlord" is launching in the coming weeks.
The idea for 'Rate The Landlord' originated in Canada when two battle-worn renters met through Reddit and set about increasing transparency in the process in the hope that it put some power back to the renter.
Alongside a review, landlords are rated 1-5 on a range of criteria, from Repair Responsiveness, Health and Safety, Rental Stability, Tenant Privacy and Respect. The site is anonymous and users just need to submit the name of their landlord or property management company to submit their review. The impending rolling out of this website has sparked some criticism from landlords about potential retaliation against tenants, however, the founders emphasise the importance of transparency and advise tenants to leave reviews after their tenancy to minimise risks.
This website will operate in the same spirit as Airbnb, and FreeNow, which allows the customer to review the experience but also the provider, ensuring a level of accountability is met.
Have some thoughts? Give us a shout on hello@Lovin.com