Luxembourg landlord Marc Godart renting beds to refugees in premises without fire certificate

The Luxembourg-based landlord Marc Godart is renting beds in a Dublin property that does not have a fire certificate to refugees who are paying him in cash and using their receipts to be reimbursed by the State.

The property is a converted former commercial space on the ground floor of an apartment development near Talbot Street, Dublin 1. The Dublin Fire Brigade has warned Godart it is going to take legal action because he has failed or refuses to confirm that the property, which does not have a fire safety certificate, is not being used for residential purposes. The property is owned by one of Godart’s companies, Green Label Property Investments Ltd.

When The Irish Times called to the property recently, two young men standing outside said they were from Nigeria and had arrived in Dublin less than a week earlier. They said they were renting beds in the property and paying for them in cash in Nigerian currency to the person who they said had helped them find the beds and whom they did not want to identify. They did not want to give their names and ended the interview after just a few questions.

The Irish Times has written extensively about Godart’s property and letting business in Ireland because of successful complaints to the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) by tenants whose compensation awards against Godart companies have gone unpaid.

Godart companies have also been the subject of charges in the District Court in relation to letting out rooms in properties that have been the subject of Fire Safety Notices or without the required permission for short-term letting. Asked about the Dublin 1 property that does not have a fire safety certificate, a spokesperson for Dublin City Council, on behalf of the Fire Brigade, said the matter was “under investigation” and it could not comment.

[ Landlord Marc Godart still letting rooms in house he told High Court he stopped renting from in 2022 ]

A new investigation into Godart’s Irish property operation by The Irish Times has established that he is renting beds in the Dublin 1 property, and in apartments in Reuben House, Dublin 8, to refugees, and still letting out rooms in a house in Dublin 8 where he told the High Court he had ceased operations almost two years ago. Email and telephone requests to Godart for comment have not been responded to.

The refugees are paying between €175 to €200 per week for beds in rooms with multiple beds. They are paying in cash and being issued with receipts in the name of an entity called Home Away, Barley House, Cork Street, Dublin 8. The receipts are being used to secure refunds from the Department of Social Welfare, according to sources.

The refugees are being asked to sign contracts or agreements that purport to deny them tenant rights and purport to give their landlord – who is not identified – a right of surveillance on them.

“The individual(s) referred to as guest(s) in this agreement are applicants for International Protection, registered with the International Protection Office in Ireland. As such, their stay at the property is under special considerations and does not constitute a typical rental or tenancy agreement,” the contracts say.

[ Luxembourg landlord Marc Godart ‘believes he can defy the laws of this country’, judge says ]

“The provision of lodgment to the guest(s) at this property is a charitable and social contribution by the property owner(s). This arrangement supports individuals awaiting the determination of their International Protection status and should not be construed as creating a landlord-tenant relationship under local tenancy laws. The accommodation is provided to assist in the welfare and support of these individuals, recognising the unique circumstances and needs associated with their status. Any payments made by the guest(s) are soley [sic] for the purpose of covering the maintenance and management costs associated with the upkeep of the property.”

The contracts contain detailed descriptions of the purported obligations of the tenants, such as not removing equipment from the kitchen, unplugging electrical implements when not in use, and limiting showers to 10 minutes.

“Only one person is allowed per bed, and guests must adhere to bed numbering and allocations without unauthorised changes,” the contracts say. “Cameras cover the main entrance, hallways, kitchen and garden. Private areas like bedrooms and bathrooms are excluded. Surveillance is managed under strict privacy standards. Footage is secure, with access limited to authorised personnel only … Guests consent to monitoring by signing this agreement. Privacy impact evaluations are regularly conducted.”

[ Legal fees mount in Marc Godart’s High Court dispute with former tenant over €15,000 RTB award ]

Godart, who invested in Irish commercial and residential property in and around 2014, operates Irish companies that are in turn owned by a holding company he owns in Luxembourg called Itzig Sarl. In an affidavit to the High Court in relation to one of the companies, Green Label Short Lets Ltd, Godart said the Irish group of companies were obliged to send their revenue to Itzig in Luxembourg. Godart’s parents, Rene and Denise Godart, are also involved in the operation of the corporate structure.

Sources have explained that money from Godart’s Irish operations, much of which is collected in cash, is being transferred directly to Luxembourg and that Itzig is paying people resident here and in countries such as Nigeria to run his Irish letting operation.

Tenants including refugees, short-stay tourists, non-refugee foreign nationals, and people who have fled the war in Ukraine are among those having their tenancies managed in this way.

[ Former Godart tenant says residents paid rent in cash to live-in agent of landlord ]

Payments to people running the Godart operation are being transferred from Itzig via the personal accounts of some workers, using Revolut, Western Union and other payment services, according to multiple accounts and records seen by the Irish Times. The system of distributing payments through intermediaries does not appear to have any formal link with Godart’s corporate structure. Documentary evidence to support these claims has been seen by The Irish Times. The purpose of the arrangement appears to be to avoid employment and other obligations. There is no evidence the recipients of the money are having any tax or social contributions deducted.

Among the commercial and residential properties owned by Godart’s companies are 11 apartments in a 12-apartment complex on Main Street, Borrisokane, Co Tipperary, bought by Green Label Property Investments Ltd in December 2014. When The Irish Times visited recently, all the tenants spoken to were from Ukraine, said they did not know who their landlord was and that they had secured the accommodation via Helping Irish Hosts (HIH).

HIH was set up in response to the war in Ukraine “to empower and support individuals and communities in Ireland to host displaced people in their homes, safely and sustainably”. It is supported by a number of charities, has a service agreement with the Irish Red Cross, and puts Ukrainians seeking accommodation in contact with property owners who contact the service.

The tenants said the rent on their apartments was being paid by the State, via the Accommodation Recognition Payment scheme, which was put in place in response to the invasion of Ukraine. According to Gov.ie, the payment is €800 per month per property and is not taxable. The tenants pay their own electricity and rubbish bills, they said.

Asked who they contacted if there was a problem, one tenant said they contacted a woman called Salome over Whatapp using a number that has a Nigerian country code. When The Irish Times called, the woman who answered said she did not want to comment. Documentary evidence seen by The Irish Times shows a payment earmarked for Salome sent from from Itzig Sarl via an intermediary account.

It is not known if this is the same woman. The tenants said that when Salome is contacted about a problem, two men from Dublin come down to fix it.

[ Surge in number of migrants arrested and prosecuted after arriving in Republic without travel documents ]

HIH did not wish to comment. A spokesperson for the Irish Red Cross said they could not comment on individual properties but that all properties used in the scheme were assessed and that caseworkers conducted regular checks with guests and those who pledged properties.

The properties owned by Godart’s companies include commercial premises on the ground floor of apartment complexes, houses, apartments, parking places, Cleary’s pub on Sarsfield Road, Kilmainham, Dublin (with short stay rooms overhead), and development sites, all of which were bought when property prices were low and some of which were bought in lots at auction. Godart is also involved in the letting of commercial and residential property that belongs to others.

Godart is a director and/or secretary of 52 Irish companies, all owned by Itzig Sarl in Luxembourg. Some of the companies appear not to trade, others act as letting agents and a number own property. The most important company is Green Label Property Investments Ltd, incorporated in May 2014. Its latest accounts show it had investment property worth €2.7 million at the end of 2020.

Godart’s parents have frequently been named as directors or secretaries of the Irish companies, and the family also operates several Luxembourg companies including Itzig Sarl, Hesper SA and Syren SA.

A Godart company called Green Label Short Lets Ltd has been taken to the High Court by a former tenant of a house at Vintage Court, Cork Street, Dublin 8, who secured awards from the RTB for more than €15,000 after she was illegally evicted in 2022. The debt remains unpaid and Godart, the sole director of the company, has told the High Court in an affidavit it has no money and ceased operations in and around the end of the year the tenant was evicted.

The legal team representing the former tenant, Lizet Pena-Herrera, have successfully argued before Mr Justice Brian Cregan that Godart, who lives in Luxembourg, should be ordered to give evidence in person about the finances of Green Label Short Lets. The company has engaged a legal team to fight the request.

Godart has said on affidavit that Green Label Short Lets ceased operations because of Covid and new laws on short-let accommodation, but The Irish Times has established that rooms in the Vintage Court house, which is not owned by Godart, are still being let on short stay platforms. Godart is giving free accommodation in one of the four bedrooms in the house to a young foreign student in return for the student letting his name and Irish bank account be used to transact dealings with Airbnb and Booking.com, sources have confirmed.

[ Analysis: What effect will the Government’s scattergun approach to managing migrants have? ]

Green Label Short Lets has been the subject of other RTB awards to complainant tenants that remain unpaid. In March, it pleaded guilty in the District Court to failing to comply with a fire safety notice in June 2023 in respect of letting accommodation in a property in Dublin 1, adjacent to the property where refugees are now staying. The case concluded with no conviction on condition the company made a €500 payment to a charity and paid the council’s costs. Mr Justice Cregan has noted the company entered a guilty plea to the letting of property in June 2023, yet Godart has told his court, by way of affidavit, the company had no income during 2023 as it had ceased operations.