The changes should help with a shortage of private rental homes on the market.
Rents have risen to new historic highs in recent months, with many blaming an exodus of private landlords for the rising prices and the shortage of homes to rent right across the country.
Here in Cork the average rent has risen by 9.9% in the past year with rents in the county now standing at €1,217 euro, while rents in the City are now at €1,529 a month
Minister Darragh O'Brien says good landlords need to be retained and he confirmed that the tax treatment of rental income is under review.
The Minister says changes to the Fair Deal scheme will potentially see thousands of new rental properties come onto the market:
"We recognize about 8000 homes empty because of that. It's quite punitive if someone decides to rent that out and have agreement with the Department of Health, that we're making changes to those regulations through legislation that re going to make sure that it will be easier with the permission obviously, from the owner of the house that properties can be rented out. So even if we get a third of those properties back, you think about that's about two and a half 3000 homes, I think we can do more that and that change will happen this year."
