TWO properties belonging to former garda Kevin Galvin have been declared fit for habitation after Galvin furnished the fire authority with certificates ensuring their safety.

The poor state of the two properties, which are located in Dublin's Cabra Park, previously resulted in Galvin's expulsion from his job in IT in the Garda headquarters in the Phoenix Park.

He recently secured High Court permission to bring a legal challenge against the decision to dismiss him.

According to a spokesman for Dublin City Council, issues regarding the first of the two properties have now been resolved. "Certification was furnished to the Fire Authority in respect of the premises."

The council also says an undertaking has been given to ensure the second property at 73 Cabra Park will henceforth only be used as a single dwelling house. High Court proceedings in relation to the property are now at an end.

"An undertaking was given to the court to use the premises as a dwelling house occupied as a single dwelling and it therefore falls outside the remit of the Fire Authority as long as it is so used," the spokesman said. "The High Court proceedings in respect of the premises are at an end."

A High Court judge previously ordered that two properties be vacated after being informed by the Fire Service that they were "a clear and present danger" to their occupants. Galvin was also found to be housing two adults and a baby in a shed near these premises.

A former tenant of Galvin's, Nathan Howard, has hit out at the landlord, saying his time living in his property was "a total nightmare".

"It started off with something as slight as the dryer not working and fusing the house, but escalated into a nightmare for each of us. We were refused a copy of the lease and a rent book. There was no access to TV or internet. I wasn't provided with an adequate bed. I was provided with a double mattress without a base. The mattress was filthy and it had a giant stain that was disgusting."

Howard also said Galvin allowed potential tenants to view the rented premises in Furry Park, Killester, without informing him beforehand.

"One day I was not attending work, I found the landlord entering the house without prior notice to take photos of the interior which we would later discover was to put the house back up for rent. The house was then later advertised and we only happened to come across it out of coincidence."

Howard said he confronted Galvin about the issue and was told that Galvin wanted to charge a higher rent.

The tenant also tried to contact Daft and Property.ie to prevent Galvin from advertising and said: "Everyone should be aware of cowboys like Kevin Galvin and sites like Daft need to be preventing advertisements for places like that." Galvin did not respond to queries from the Sunday Tribune.