The introduction of the new stamp duty rate of 9 per cent for investors is counter-productive and will "cut off the supply of much-needed rental accommodation", the Irish Auctioneers' and Valuers' Institute has warned.
Calling the increase "a severe deterrent for investors", the institute said it was "at a loss to understand why Government has totally undermined the work of the commission that it set up to report on the private-rented residential sector". One of the commission's terms of reference had been to suggest incentives for private investment, a spokesman added.