Cork Simon has warned that it's seeing a rising number of people turning for them to help as the housing assistance payment is not enough to secure rental accommodation in the city and county
A report by the Simon Communities of Ireland shows that in a three day period of March there were no properties available to rent on the HAP scheme in Cork city or its suburbs
Cork Simon says a cap on rent increases and a rise in the housing assistance payment would have a powerful impact on addressing the rental crisis in Cork
Speaking to RedFM News Paul Sheehan of Cork Simon says the crisis in rental accommodation is forcing some people into homeless:
"Quite often they would end up sleeping on a friend's couch, what we sometimes call sofa surfing; it sounds a lot nicer than it is. And they might go from friend to friend for a few weeks until they feel their welcome has run out. And then either our outreach team meets them sleeping rough or the knock on the door of our emergency shelter. There's also an emergency accommodation for families although quite often that is full capacity. There are the family hubs that are dotted around the city, but they are quite often at their full capacity as well. Sometimes the family ends up being split apart, either for short term or that can end up being unfortunately longer term too."
