I’m renting a studio apartment in Dublin (1500 euros pm) and I’m genuinely unsure how to handle this situation.
My fixed‑term lease ended a while ago, and I’ve continued living here as a Part 4 tenant. I pay rent on time every month. I did give notice once earlier this year, but the place I found didn’t work out. I immediately told the landlord I would stay and keep looking, and that I’d give him a month’s notice once I secure something. He replied confirming he was completely fine with that. I also have written messages from June where he agreed I could stay until I find a new place. I’m trying to move because of issues with his daughter, but with the housing crisis, I haven’t been able to find anywhere yet.
The apartment is in poor condition for the rent: no BER rating, a non‑working power shower and chimney, and a fridge that was replaced with another broken unit. After that exhausting experience, I don’t have the energy to push them again to fix anything else.
Beyond the apartment issues, the landlord’s adult daughter (late 40s) lives in the building and behaves as though she has authority over tenants. She prints and posts new “house rules” all over the common areas..every wall is covered with fresh instructions each week. The latest one is “no scent boosters in the washing machine.” None of these rules are in my tenancy agreement, and none were issued by the landlord
She also monitors the shared washing/drying area, which is in a shed in the basement directly opposite her unit. I live on the first floor. The machines run on credit, as we top up with money before each use, so no one else is paying for the energy usage.
She shows up almost every time I do laundry. In the past year, she has appeared in the shed about nine out of ten times I’ve used the machines.
When I first moved in, I noticed my cycle had been stopped midway, my clothes were left wet on the floor, and my credit was used . She was hovering around at the time, so I asked her, and she immediately suggested it was the tenant next to me. The next time it happened, she asked if I thought “someone new had moved in,” even though she would absolutely know as she stays indoors all day and seems to keep an eye on everything.
The dryer/ washing cycle continues to get stopped mid‑way. This has happened repeatedly. When I ask, she always blames other tenants, but I’m certain it’s her. There are no cameras, so I have no proof, but the pattern is obvious.
Today, as I entered the shed to do my washing, she appeared again and announced “no scent boosters.” At this stage, I honestly can’t comprehend how she always knows when I’m doing laundry. A one hour wash and dry cycle regularly turns into a three hour ordeal because she stops the cycle midway and I have to restart it multiple times. I live on the first floor, so I have to keep going up and down to check whether the machine is still running. Some weekends I can’t make plans because getting laundry done becomes a whole‑day task.
Today I finally told her that these rules aren’t part of my rental agreement, and asked why the laundry cycles keep getting stopped and why credit keeps disappearing. She told me I should apologise for “suggesting she was tampering.” Shortly afterwards, the dryer was stopped again (twice), and there was no one else in the building except the two of us. She also told me I “gave notice earlier but I’m still here,” which is unfair ..she has no right to question my tenancy, and I don’t understand why she thinks she can. I pay rent every month; she isn’t paying anything on my behalf.
The landlord agreed in writing that I could stay until I find somewhere else.
I’ve texted the landlord about these issues multiple times, but he’s elderly and doesn’t seem to want to get involved. He’s polite, but he avoids addressing her behaviour.
Most tenants in the building are barely home. In a full year, I’ve only seen a few of them a handful of times. I’m not even sure how many have machines in their units versus how many use the shed. I’ve never seen anyone else in the common laundry area except her, and once, a guy. I assume many use launderettes instead. I tried that too, but without a car it’s a chore.
My questions are:
• How do I deal with a landlord’s family member who acts like she has authority but doesn’t?
• Has anyone dealt with something similar in Dublin, especially with the housing crisis making it impossible to move quickly?
Any advice would be appreciated. I’m just trying to keep things calm and figure out the best way to handle this.