To rent or not to rent – that is the question! There has been a lot of discussion in the media lately about the question of whether families should consider renting the private home in circumstances whereby it will be left vacant after the owner takes up residence in a nursing home.
Renting Vacant Properties
There are many advantages to renting the vacant property:
- The income will be a source of additional revenue to go towards the maintenance of the property itself and any residual can be for the benefit of the nursing home resident.
- Having someone living in the property is the best way to secure the property day to day.
- Properties last better when they are lived in by being regularly aired, heated and decorated.
- Neighbours prefer to see a property occupied and lived in rather than lying vacant and a potential attraction for vandalism and other unsociable activity.
Of course, the downside is that under current legislation, 80% of the rental income earned from the property will be allocated towards the residents personal nursing home fee contribution where the prospective nursing home resident is a single person. Where the home is owned by a couple only 40% of any rental income earned will be allocated towards the Fair Deal contribution.
As such the remaining 20% of the total rental income may be available to the resident and used to maintain the property or be available for discretionary spending. Because of this situation, the majority of families choose not to take on the risk, hassle and potential expense of renting the vacant family home and choose to leave it lying vacant and unused instead.
This anomaly has resulted in thousands of perfectly functional family homes belonging to nursing home residents lying vacant and unused across the country during a time that has now been formally declared by the Oireachtas as a period of “National Emergency” in relation to our housing crisis.
Surely it is a simple decision on the part of the Government to recognise the totally counterproductive nature of this scheme requirement and to implement a change to encourage the rental of these properties as soon as possible.