Ireland’s Housing Crisis Is Trapping Women in Abusive Relationships

Grace* had been dating her boyfriend for 2 years when she moved in with him. The move wasn’t out of a deep desire to cohabit, it was out of necessity. She had no job or apartment at the time, he owned his place: it made perfect sense. That is, until he started being verbally abusive. Grace’s boyfriend made constant comments about her weight, laughed at her when she exercised in the garden and prevented her from seeing her friends, “he basically tried to put me down and control me.”

“He basically tried to put me down and control me.”

Luckily, Grace eventually managed to get a job and move out, but moved on to a new kind of hell: a shared Airbnb with strangers coming and going at all hours, no privacy, no stability, and every waking moment spent refreshing Daft.ie in a desperate search for a place to call home. Her ex blackmailed and threatened her after she left, and Grace was unable to return to get her things, “I mourned my personal items for a long time.”

Sadly, Grace’s story is not uncommon. 35% of women in Ireland have now experienced psychological, physical and or sexual abuse from an intimate partner. Like Grace, many women are finding that an unstable housing situation is compounding and exasperating abuse, trapping them in situations which are dangerous. 

35% of women in Ireland have now experienced psychological, physical and or sexual abuse from an intimate partner.

This was what Woman’s Aid discovered in their 2020  “Hidden Housing Crisis” report. The report noted that survivor’s concerns about their future housing options “make it difficult for women experiencing domestic abuse to leave their partners.” The report also noted that “survivors are sometimes weighing up staying in a home shared with an abusive partner or leaving for another potentially unsafe situation due to a lack of housing options.” 

Last year, Woman’s Aid recorded the highest rate of reports of domestic abuse on record (from 2023), with Sarah Benson, Woman’s Aid CEO noting that “The nightmare of violence and abuse most commonly will be at the hands of a current or former intimate male partner.”

​​In the Woman’s Aid survey of survivors still in abusive relationships, 68.4% of 38 respondents cited future housing concerns as a major barrier to leaving. They detailed challenges such as lacking funds for rent, deposits, and bills—often due to financial dependence on a controlling partner—fears of homelessness and unsafe housing, denial of help from local housing teams, and difficulties finding landlords who accept state benefits.

Meath Women’s Refuge and Support Services has said today that they were unable to accommodate 429 women experiencing domestic violence and their children, last year. The organisation has released its figures for last year ahead of International Women’s Day on Saturday. The charity said the figures for 2024 show how, “the housing crisis and systemic barriers continue to leave women subjected to abuse at home with limited options”.

For some victims, being unable to move out can escalate abuse to a physical level. Hannah* was 19 years old when she was randomly allocated the same student accommodation flat as her then-boyfriend. “The relationship became controlling and emotionally abusive only after moving in together prematurely,” she tells District. Hannah’s boyfriend would tell her what to wear and dictate which friends she could see. On one occasion he threatened to gouge her male friend’s eyes out after he spoke to her at a party. Hannah’s boyfriend threatened to spread rumours about her around campus if she ever confided in a friend about the abuse.

“The relationship became controlling and emotionally abusive only after moving in together prematurely”

University accommodation was full, the term had started, and Hannah couldn’t afford to move out. The emotional abuse got worse and they broke things off – but she still couldn’t afford to move out. “After I broke up with him he came into my room in the middle of the night saying he was worried he’d relapse into self harm because of the breakup.” That’s when things got physical. On a night out, he aggressively pushed her onto the floor in The Academy. “If I had been able to move out when I wanted, I don’t think it would have gotten to that point.”

“If I had been able to move out when I wanted, I don’t think it would have gotten to that point.”

With nowhere to go, many women are forced to stay with their abuser, knowing that leaving could mean homelessness. The housing crisis is not just a social issue—it’s a safety issue. Women now make up 41% of homeless adults in Ireland, a figure significantly higher than the European average of 30%. Between 2015 and 2019, women’s homelessness surged by 158% (Focus Ireland, 2019), and the link between domestic abuse and housing insecurity is undeniable. A European study by FEANTSA found that 92% of homeless women had experienced some form of violence or abuse in their lifetime. Without stable housing options, survivors are often left trapped in dangerous situations, forced to choose between enduring abuse or facing the terrifying uncertainty of life without a home.

Between 2015 and 2019, women’s homelessness surged by 158%

Dr. Brooke Keels, therapist and Chief Clinical Officer of Lighthouse Recovery, explains that the housing crisis creates dangerous power dynamics in abusive relationships. “Emotional abuse and the threshold to withstand it increases when the victim cannot secure stable housing to move to.” Dr. Keels noted that financial strain can intensify tensions and trigger more frequent abuse. Dr. Keels has seen this pattern repeatedly in her work, with victims developing learned helplessness as they find no viable escape route—something abusers exploit.

“Knowing you should leave for your safety but having nowhere to go creates profound anxiety and depression, especially for mothers who have children they must take care of,” she tells District.

The very place where survivors should feel safest is often one of the biggest barriers to their escape. No one should have to choose between abuse and homelessness. Yet, for countless survivors, the housing crisis turns what should be a path to safety into a dead end. Without affordable, accessible housing, women are forced to stay in dangerous situations, their freedom held hostage by financial barriers and bureaucratic red tape. With rapidly rising rents, lack of viable accommodation and the potential end of rent pressure zones, the system that should protect them instead makes escape feel impossible. If we truly care about ending domestic abuse, we must stop treating housing as a privilege and start recognising it as a lifeline. 

If you or anyone you know is experiencing abuse, call Woman’s Aid 24 Hour Free Helpline: 1800 341 900

Visit their website to see how to spot the signs, learn more about different types of abuse, and get the support you need.