Woman asked for sex in exchange for rent in Waterford

A young woman moved out of her accommodation after she was asked for sex in exchange for rent in Waterford City.

Reported in the Irish Examiner today, the incident occurred after she responded to an advertisement for a room in October 2021.

The woman was asked for €55 rent per week for a single room, and a €200 deposit but after she moved in, she realised the landlord was sub-letting the room to her.

He then told her that he had told his landlord that his girlfriend was moving in with him.

According to the report, he told the woman that the €55 and €200 deposit was for bills, and that sex would be a part of the arrangement so she would not have to pay rent.

He also told her that he did not want her long-term boyfriend visiting the house and initially refused her a key to the room.

The woman moved out immediately.

The man tried to contact her several times by phone that night and the following day he turned up at her workplace.

The woman said "I personally think if I was at the house alone I could have got raped or something."

According to the Irish Examiner, the woman is one of a number of other women who have come forward to say they have been offered reduced rents in exchange for sex or bed-sharing at an accommodation.

Four international students in their early 20's had a similar experience in Limerick.

The women were led to believe they were being offered a private room but it soon became clear that they would be sharing their landlord's bed.

It's unclear whether it was the same man who contacted the students as messages came from different social media accounts but pictures of the room and location were the same.

The man first offered them a room for a short time but after arranging a viewing, he would tell them the room was his and they would have to share.

One of the women said on the morning she was due to view the house, she woke up to over 20 missed calls from the man, all of which were made after 2am.

The man had also sent her photos of herself that he had taken from Facebook with several "creepy" comments attached.

None of the women viewed the room.

On Thursday, Minister for Justice Helen McEntee told the Dáil there was no current legislation in place to deal with this but was seeking advice from attorney general Paul Gallagher on the issue that has become more prevalent. 

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