Today, buying a property in Ireland is much more than just owning a house. With shortages in housing the market is becoming more unstable and buying a propert is becoming more difficult. However, at Keenan and Company Solicitors we want to help you have a smooth, stress free process of buying a property. But first of all let's take you through the legal process that is involved in purchasing a property in Ireland.
According to Irish Law, conveyancing deals with purchasing and ownership of a property. The whole legal process consists of various steps and decisions to make. A good solicitor understands the law better than anyone and can help you with a smooth process.
Legal steps to follow when buying a property in Ireland:
1. Choose the property
Factors that determine your choice can be the type of property, the budget and bank loan credibility. Also, you must consider if the house is worth your investment or not with parameters like connectivity to major cities, motorway proximity, etc.
2. Sale or Auction
Apart from sales, many properties are sold through public auction. Here, the purchaser might not be familiar with the process. However, a solicitor can ease the job by attending the auction and helping you with the best bid.
3. Title registry
In Ireland, there are two types of land titles - Land Registry title (Registered) and Registry of Deeds title (Unregistered). The first case includes the complete documentation related to the property that has to be shown while selling the property. The latter consists of properties where the title is built over the years. It includes Deeds of conveyance for selling/transferring of freehold-unregistered land or Deeds of Assignment.
4. Lease/Freehold
Freehold property is available in high interests with the complete liberty of the owner. Whereas a freehold property incurs much less interest and the ownership lasts for a limited term where we get to see a landlord-tenant relationship.
5. Contract
According to Section 2 of the Statute of Frauds (Ireland) Act, 1695, a written contract is mandatory for the land sale. The agreement deals with various documents dealing with names and addresses of parties, price and deposit, date, etc.
6. Enquiry
Most solicitors recommend some essential inquiries before and after signing the contract. The pre-contractual ones are:
- Planning Search
- A Licensing Search
- A compulsory order search
On the day of closing:
- A land registry search
- A company search
- A Judgement Search
- Bankruptcy Search
- Sheriff and Revenue Sheriff Searches
- Registry of Deeds Searches
7. Costs
Apart from the house cost, there are several other charges you must pay.
- Stamp Duty
- Search Fees
- Solicitors Fees
- Surveyor’s Fees
- Registration Fee
- Insurance
Buying a property consists of decision-making along with legal compliances. That’s why consulting a trusted solicitor is the best way to deal with the whole conveyance. We can ease your journey of legal process to your dream home.