The cost of renting in Dublin has passed the levels at the peak of the boom for the first time.

The Private Residential Tenancies Board (PRTB) said rents in Dublin were now almost half a percent higher than they were in 2007, after a rise of nearly 2% in the last quarter of 2015.

In Dublin, the average cost of renting a home is now more than €1,400, or €1,300 for an apartment.

Nationally, rents rose by almost 10% last year, but rents outside Dublin are still 14.5% lower than they were at their peak.

The PRTB said that, overall, the rate of growth in rental prices eased in the last part of the year.

Niamh Randall of the Simon Communities said the current political uncertainty was not helping to resolve the housing crisis:

She said: "Urgent action really needs to be taken…We need to look at full rent certainty, a plan for the private rental sector and an increase in rent supplement.

"We're calling on those tasked with forming a new Government to see homelessness as a red-line issue."

David Duffy, economist with ERSI says the report is evidence that it is more difficult to secure a rental property.

"All the anecdotal evidence is that it is more diofficult to secure a rental property," he said. "The demand for a rental properties remains very strong."