Kerry TD Danny Healy-Rae has raised the issue of 14 Killarney families who face the prospect of homelessness after receiving eviction notices from a foreign landlord.

All residents of Loreto Convent Estate in Killarney have been served with Notices of Termination by Xerico Ltd, a company registered in Cyprus. More than 40 people — including infants, schoolchildren, and people with disabilities — are affected by the move.
Deputy Healy-Rae told the Dáil that he has contacted the Minister for Housing and urged immediate Government action to prevent the families from losing their homes. He criticised recent changes to rent control legislation, arguing that they have worsened the situation for both landlords and tenants.
“These 14 families are in a desperate situation,” Deputy Healy-Rae said. “They’ve built a community in Killarney over the years, and now they’re being forced out. The new rent control laws are having the opposite effect of what was intended and landlords are getting out before the March deadline, and tenants are being left with nowhere to go.”
Responding on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Marian Harkin said the upcoming Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Bill, due to take effect in March 2026, is designed to balance protections for tenants with the need to keep landlords in the rental market. She said existing tenancies will not be affected by the new six-year rental rule, and landlords will still be able to terminate leases under defined circumstances.
Deputy Healy-Rae said he will continue to press the Government to address the crisis facing the Loreto families and others in similar situations across Kerry.
Many people, including me do not believe it is fair to lock a landlord into a rental agreement for six years. This failed in Scotland, where the authorities have gone back to the arrangement they had in 2016,” added Healy Rae
“I am concerned about the Minister of State’s figures because, to me, having been a public representative in Kerry for over 20 years, I have never seen the like of what is happening, including to the 14-house estate in Killarney, and there are many more of those.”

Killarney Chamber of Tourism and Commerce has expressed condolences following the death of Dick Henggeler, the well-known owner of The Rose Hotel in Tralee.

Mr Henggeler passed away peacefully at his home in Baltimore, USA surrounded by his Aghadoe-born wife Eibhlin (née Moriarty), their son Franz, and other family members.
Dick and Eibhlin purchased The Rose Hotel in 2015 in tribute to their late daughter Dorothy, who represented Washington DC in the 2011 Rose of Tralee Festival.
The Chamber said Mr Henggeler would be remembered for his warmth, good nature and positive approach, as well as for being a forward-thinking and knowledgeable businessman.
“He knew how to run a good hotel and that was and still is very obvious at The Rose Hotel, which is a great success story,” the Chamber said.
It added that continuity of ownership will remain in place, with Eibhlin, Franz, daughter-in-law Amber, and grandchildren Conrad and Rowan continuing to honour Dick’s legacy and vision for the hotel.
“Dick took enormous personal pride in Tralee and all of Kerry and he was always available to generously support any community initiative or endeavour undertaken in Killarney,” the Chamber said.
“He will be greatly missed by all that knew him but he leaves a wonderful legacy.”

He will repose at O’Shea’s Funeral Home, Killarney, on Friday (October 17), from 4:00pm to 6:00pm. The funeral will arrive at St Mary’s Cathedral on Saturday morning at 10:00am for Requiem Mass at 10:30am, with burial afterwards in Aghadoe Cemetery. The Requiem Mass will be live streamed at https://www.churchservices.tv/killarneycathedral.