News 'Everyone needs to get the f**k out' - Up to 40 tenants living in slum-like conditions threatened with eviction In one house 18 tenants live with only one bathroom between them Close 1/2 The tenants and (inset) an image from inside one of the houses 2/2 An image from inside one of the houses Gallery 2 The tenants and (inset) an image from inside one of the houses

Up to 40 tenants living in two overcrowded houses in Dublin’s north inner city were told to pack their belongings and “get the f**k out” within one day.

The incident happened in Summerhill on Thursday when a young man, who claimed to be acting on behalf of the owner, came and told the tenants there was a “fire safety issue” and they needed to leave.

Tenants were told the owner would return their deposits of up to €500 personally at a later date.

However, the tenants said they have never met the owner and had been paying their rent to a Brazilian man believed to be subletting the property.

Gallery 2 An image from inside one of the houses

One tenant provided a copy of email correspondence with a company called Golden Rose Accommodation.

Nobody is listed as a director of the company and its contact number is no longer in use.

The company description says “Any students who come from abroad to study”.

Tenants were in a distressed state outside the house with the majority having nowhere to go.

Pedro Martinez (25) has been living in a tiny box room in the attic of one of the houses since August.

“We were told originally that there would only be six people in the house but there are five in the basement, eight in the middle floor and five up in the attic,” he said.

“An Irish guy came around earlier saying everyone needs to get the f**k out. I had to leave my job to come back here to see what was happening. We had been raising concerns about the lack of emergency exits and fire safety stuff and then suddenly, the guy comes along saying we need to get out.

“Unfortunately, we have no choice but to live in these conditions.”

Independent.ie viewed one of the houses, where 18 tenants live with only one bathroom between them.

The man trying to evict the tenants would not respond to questions about whose instructions he was acting on.

Representatives of Dublin Central Housing Action, a voluntary organisation supporting those affected by the housing crisis, were there in support of the tenants.

The law sets out the following as the minimum period of notice which must be given to tenants to move out:

Less than 6 months tenancy - 28 days notice

6+ months, but less than 1 year - 35 days

1+ year, but less than 2 years - 42 days.

Online Editors