I’m 23 and I work, but my own chances of finding a house to rent look bleak

Two of us shared a small room at the front of the house with twin beds just a few feet apart.

There was not enough storage space in the kitchen for the six tenants, so we had to store our groceries in plastic containers in the utility room.

We cleaned the house on the weekends when the landlord’s children came home to stay.

During my freshman year at Sligo in 2017 I lived in student accommodation on campus and commuted from home for the remaining two years. It was a 30 minute drive on a good day in my 00 Toyota Yaris.

I moved to Galway in September 2020 to complete my college education and rented a lovely terraced house with two good friends for €1,700 a month. I came across this on a website called Galway House Hunting For Sound People and that was it.

With nearly 72,000 members, it felt like we hit the jackpot. But finding accommodation in Dublin is a whole different ballgame, especially in the current livelihood crisis.

There are currently 530 available Dublin rental properties on any given apartment search site. However, if I filter my search for a maximum monthly rent of 1,500 euros, this number drops to 77 – the lowest value in recent weeks.

This figure is doable for two people. And while it’s a very significant amount to spend each month, I’ve been told it’s a tight budget.

The thought of paying that much for a one bedroom flat gives me a headache, especially when my sister and her partner are paying a total of €1,300 a month for a four bedroom semi detached house in Loughrea, Co. Galway.

When I started my search in Dublin I capped the monthly price at €1,300 but quickly realized that this was wishful thinking. The number of properties available continues to dwindle when excluding all BER-exempt ones.

The Building Energy Rating (BER) evaluates the energy efficiency of the property on a sliding scale from A to G.

And with rising energy costs, who would take such a risk?

I’ve lost count of the number of properties I’ve expressed interest in, but I’ve only secured two viewings so far.

I know demand is extremely high, but as always, the issue of limited availability remains.

There’s also a range of “studio apartments” for more than €1,000, where the bed is the focal point of the kitchen.

Would you like to watch the pot cook, but don’t want to struggle to get out of bed? say no more

Figures from the Residential Tenancies Board last month show a sharp increase in the number of landlords exiting the rental market in the last quarter of 2021.

According to RTB, the number of notices given to tenants rose last year from 352 in the first quarter of the year to 958 in the final quarter.

According to Daft.ie, rents also increased by 10.3 percent year-on-year in the last quarter of 2021. So the prospects are bleak. I’m excited to start a new chapter in my life and finally be able to work in an office environment, but the lack of housing is currently getting in the way.