A group of tenants living in a development in Dublin’s docklands say they feel “hopeless” and are living in “shared misery” after receiving eviction notices connected to the National Asset Management Agency’s (Nama) wind-down in operations.
Tenants living in apartments in Spencer Dock, which were developed by Spencer Dock Development Company, a subsidiary of the bust property developer Treasury Holdings, received notices of termination in October.
Treasury Holdings, previously headed by Johnny Ronan and Richard Barrett, went into liquidation in 2012 after the economic crash.
The notices of termination, seeking vacant possession for sale, were signed by appointed liquidators Michael McAteer and John Boland, of Grant Thornton.
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Tenants across various blocks of the Spencer Dock complex, which has more than 600 apartments in total, received the notices with vacation dates beginning in April.
Through canvassing, the group identified eight units that have received official notices.
Those affected have questioned whether the Tyrrelstown Amendment, a law introduced to prevent the termination of 10 or more tenancies in a property at the same time to sell, applies.
Some tenants, who did not receive official notices in writing, were offered financial incentives by Madison Property Management, Grant Thornton’s in-house asset management team, to leave.
In an email seen by The Irish Times, a Madison agent told a tenant they had been instructed to serve a notice of termination for sale, before outlining how long the tenants would have to vacate.
The tenant had queried the possibility of subletting a room.
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In the email sent in September, the agent went on to say the liquidator has “offered” to give them a month “rent free” should they vacate their apartment by the end of October.
Another tenant who queried subletting a room, who also did not receive an official notice in writing, said they secured alternative accommodation after being told of the intent to sell.
Neither Grant Thornton nor Madison responded to requests for comment on the offer of a “rent-free” month in exchange for vacating.
They also declined to comment on the number of notices issued or the number of apartments managed.
The tenant group says it has identified 18 units managed by Madison.
In a statement, a spokeswoman for Grant Thornton said the apartments were held by Nama until September 2025, when they were released into the “liquidation estate” as part of its wind-down programme.
“The liquidators are legally obliged to maximise the value of Spencer Dock Development Company’s assets for the benefit of its creditors and have taken independent advice, which has indicated that the properties should be put on sale on the open market with vacant possession.
“The liquidators have appointed licensed professionals to manage and dispose of the properties in accordance with regulatory requirements and have no further comment,” she said.
A spokesman for Nama confirmed it no longer has any assets in the company, and has “no involvement in this matter”.
Most of the affected tenants did not wish to be named over concerns about securing alternative housing.
One man aged in his 30s, who is among several to lodge a dispute with the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) over the notice, said the “success” of Nama, which in December said it had reached “substantial completion” of its wind-down programme, is “framed entirely in financial terms” and “not in terms of tenant outcomes”.
The notices have resulted in “uncertainty” and “low-level panic” among tenants at the complex, he said.
“Many initially thought they were the only ones being evicted,” he said.
“It feels like evictions like this have become so commonplace that a lot of people have very little faith that the systems meant to protect them are actually working in their favour any more, and that shared sense of hopelessness is the part I find most upsetting.”
Another tenant of an apartment managed by Madison, aged in his 40s, who has not received a notice of termination, said the looming prospect is “hanging over my head”, adding: “It’s particularly distasteful that it’s a Government agency that are putting us in this position.”
Ellie Solomons, who received an eviction notice in October, about six weeks after she moved in, said tenants have been left “disheartened” and are living in “shared misery”.
“Nobody wants to leave. Nobody wants to be back on Daft looking for something,” she said.
Originally from Sydney, Australia, the 26-year-old said she moved from “one housing crisis to another” to work at an engineering firm, saying in her experience, the shortage of housing in Dublin is worse than in Sydney.
“I was totally unprepared for how difficult it would be to find something,” she said.
“It really feels like a losing battle when you’re on Daft, because you send what feels like hundreds of emails every day, and you’re lucky to get a response from five of them.”
She ultimately secured a room in an apartment at Spencer Dock, describing it as a “rare gem”, but was “shocked” to receive the eviction notice soon after.
“I couldn’t believe it. There was a huge drop in mood,” she said.
“I don’t feel mentally ready to put myself back into the position of finding places, and looking on Daft. It’s just very bleak.”
