Take some time out of your day and watch this.
“I’ve been contacted by hundreds of people over the last few weeks. People in their 20s, 30s, 40s and 50s even, who are stuck in housing they can’t afford. They feel hopeless. I’ve been shocked at how people feel ashamed about their housing situation. They feel like it’s somehow their fault. I think it’s really important that the message goes out there, that people are in these situations, they cannot afford a home not because of something that’s their own fault. It’s because of Government policy. It is absolutely because of Government policy.”
The above is a quote from Dr Rory Hearne, a Lecturer in Social Policy in the Department of Applied Social Studies in Maynooth University, who wants the public to understand how exactly Ireland’s housing crisis came about and what can be done to fix it.
Dr Hearne has been a leading voice in highlighting Ireland’s housing issues for a number of years and his book, Housing Shock, is a must-read for anyone who wants to educate themselves on the topic.
Housing was one of the defining issues of the last general election and although the current Covid-19 pandemic has grabbed the headlines in recent months, the public eye is once again turning towards the problem that successive governments have failed to solve.
In fact, according to Dr Hearne, they have actually encouraged and incentivised the practice of vulture funds buying up housing. Vulture funds who “want you renting property for your life at their rents so that they have permanent wealth creation off your back”.
Dr Hearne spoke to JOE this week to break down in simple terms how Ireland’s housing situation has deteriorated over the last decade or more, what lies ahead if we continue on the same path and how the Government has all the tools to fix it.
Watch the full video below.
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