Ireland’s biggest landlord is a little known Real Estate Investment Trust, known as Irish Residential Properties Reit- IRES.
A real estate investment trust is a North American concept whereby rich people pool their money into buying an assets that guarantees them regular, long term profit.
IRES is a Canadian firm run by one David Ehrlich.
They bought up Irish property at knock down prices over three years ago and are now turning in fantastic profits.
Last year they made profits of €65 million on their rents. This is because they charge an average rent of just under €1,500 per tenant.
Ehrlich cannot believe his luck.
“It’s a great market,’ he says. “We’ve never seen rental increases like this in any jurisdiction that we’re aware of.”
But, shockingly, Ireland’s biggest landlord pays hardly any tax. They were given special tax treatment by the former Fine Gael Finance Minister Michael Noonan and get away almost scot free.
IRES’s Independent Non-Executive Chairman is Declan Moylan. He from the legal firm Mason Hayes which facilitates tax avoidance for large companies.
Fine Gael and Fianna Fail think that paying taxes is only for the little people. That is why they protect landlords like David Ehrlich and let him take millions in profit from the suffering of tenants.
