A tenant has said she “felt sick all day with worry” after receiving an eviction notice in the apartment she has lived in for seven years. 

Meghann Scully is a journalist with the Limerick Leader and in recent weeks has been busy covering housing issues. 

The eviction ban is due to end on March 31st and Housing Minister Darragh O’Brien has conceded “in the short-term we will probably see an increase in homelessness”.

It was a call from her roommate that alerted Ms Scully to the news that the end of the eviction ban was now a personal issue for her as well.  

“I knew straight away because I could see the stamps on them, I could see the express stamp and my heart sank because I was like, ‘This is it, this is the letter,’” she told Lunchtime Live.  

The news was particularly gut-wrenching because, as a long-term tenant, she is very fond of her apartment. 

“I love it, it’s my home, there’s almost a decade's worth of possessions - my life is in here,” she said. 

“Every corner I look in, I can see my plants and all the stuff that I’ve bought. 

“I’ve actually probably spent so much money in those seven years to make this place my home and now it’s actually just floored me to be honest. 

“I have just felt sick all day with worry.” 

G2MYRF Aerial view, Downtown Limerick on the River Shannon with the city of St. John's, Limerick, COUNTY CLARE, Limerick, Ireland,

Unlike some who will require emergency accommodation from the State, Ms Scully will be able to stay with friends in Limerick or commute from her family home in Galway. 

Despite this, the lack of affordable accommodation in the city is something that upsets her. 

“I love Limerick so much,” she said. 

“I’m from Galway originally [but] Limerick has always been a more affordable city. 

“I’ve found the lifestyle down here has been brilliant; even though I’m from Galway, I’m a champion for Limerick and this county - I’m a walking advertisement for it. 

“This is my home and I love it down here but I’ve seen the way that the rent and the cost of living is going up and up; we can’t have a situation like Dublin city [with] a hundred people queueing up outside an open viewing. 

“But unfortunately, things are going that way.” 

House prices in Ireland are currently at the same level they were at the peak of the Celtic Tiger and homelessness in January was at record levels. 

Main image: A set of keys. Picture by: Alamy.com