The income poverty level among Dublin City Council tenants is three times that of the general population, according to a new survey. The profile of 24,073 tenant households in the greater Dublin area shows that six out of 10 live on incomes of less than half the national average. This compares to two in 10 of the general population.
Dublin City Council tenants have become poorer relative to the general population since the mid-1990s, according to the study of council data collected in 2001.
The internal report says the levels of income poverty among households accommodated by Dublin City Council in 2001 are surprising considering that this year marked the peak of the "Celtic Tiger" economic boom.
The average income of a city council tenant household last year was €313.24 a week. This is significantly less than the national average of €666.96 during 1999-2000, although this figure includes some additional income sources not included in the council data.
Out of the nine city council housing districts, the highest level of poverty was in Ballyfermot, where 68 per cent of tenant households had incomes below half of the national average. The average total weekly household income in Ballyfermot was €310.85.
This was followed by the north-east inner city, where 65.6 per cent of tenant households lived on less than half the national average income.
Tenant households in the south-east inner city were the least poor of the nine districts, with 57.6 per cent living on less than half the average income.
Overall, some 62.5 per cent of tenants in the council's nine housing districts lived on less than half the average income, compared to 20.4 per cent of the general population.
The highest income poverty levels were recorded in households of two adults and four or more children, although single-adult and lone-parent households also had income poverty levels. The report says three factors can account for the high levels of income poverty identified, as well as the widening gap between tenants compared to the general population.
These include the fact that Dublin City Council's tenant population contains a lower proportion of households which have seen their incomes rise since the mid-1990s, the "multiple disadvantages" experienced by such households and the higher rate of unemployment among its tenants.