A guide to buying Residential Property

Mortgage Approval in Principle

Talk to your Mortgage Broker or the bank/Building society as early as possible. You are looking for Mortgage Approval in principle at this stage. There is no point in viewing properties before you know what a lender is prepared to loan you and how much the repayments will be.

Factor in Costs of Purchasing

Factor in 1% of the purchase price of the property for Stamp Duty (2% for properties over €1 million). A structural survey, carried out by an engineer, will be anywhere between €300-€500 plus vat. You will also have to pay for the mortgage valuation which will be approx €110 plus vat. Finally your solicitor costs will vary but expect approx 1% of the sale price plus vat. To sum up a good rule of thumb for costs associated with purchasing is 2.5-3% of the house price.

Local Property Tax (LPT)

Arising from Budget 2013 home owners are liable to an annual tax on Irish residential properties from 1 July 2013. A residential property means any building or structure which is in use as, or is suitable for use as, a dwelling. It includes any shed, outhouse, garage or other building or structure and any yard, garden or other land, appurtenant to or usually enjoyed with that building. However, any yard, garden or other land that exceeds one acre shall not be taken into account for the purposes of this definition.

Home Renovation Incentive Scheme (HRI)

The Home Renovation Incentive (HRI) scheme provides tax relief for you by way of an income tax credit at 13.5% of qualifying expenditure on:

• repair
• renovation
• improvement works

These works must be carried out on your main home by qualifying Contractors. The amount of your HRI tax credit depends on the amount you spend on qualifying works. You must spend over €4,405 (before VAT) to qualify for the tax credit. You can spend as much as you like but you can only claim the tax credit up to €30,000 (before VAT).

Mortgage - Standard Requirements

• Completed salary certificate stamped by company – if self-employed last 3 years financial accounts
• Last P60
• Last 3 – 4 payslips to verify existing salary.
• Last 6 months bank statements.
• Copy of savings a/c’s.
• Copies of loan statements.
• Details of property.