Resources
Common delays in selling your property
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Starting and getting your team in place
There is a lot of official documentation needed to sell a property. Knowing what you need and gathering the appropriate documentation as early as possible will help avoid delays later. Appointing and instructing the team who will help you with the sale (solicitor and estate agent) as soon as you decide to sell will start the official process and help avoid delays.
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Getting the title deeds to your solicitor
The legal process of selling a property cannot begin until your solicitor has the title deeds for the property (proof of ownership). If your property has a mortgage, then your bank usually holds the title deeds and any delay in getting them to your solicitor will delay the start of the process.
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Planning permission is not in place
To complete a sale it is a legal requirement to examine the planning history of a property over a period of almost sixty years in order to determine whether or not there is any unauthorised development (e.g. an extension without planning permission). If you have to apply for retention of an unauthorised development, it will delay the sale significantly.
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Confirmation of who looks after the maintenance of roads and services
To complete a sale you need documentation from the Local Authority and service providers, such as Uisce Éireann, to establish whether the roads and services (water and sewage) leading up to, and into, the property are maintained by them (this is known as ‘in charge’). Depending on where you live the timeframe for getting this documentation can vary significantly, causing delays.
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Paying property taxes
Before you finalise the sale you must have confirmation from the Revenue Commissioners that all outstanding taxes have been paid. Local Property Tax (LPT), the Household Charge, Residential Zoned Land Tax (RZLT) and the Fair Deal scheme are all charges on real estate which, if not paid in full, cause delays.
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Sale ‘subject to probate’
If the property is being sold following the death of the owner, then the purchase could be conditional or ‘subject to probate’. Probate is the official process of agreeing how the inheritance of the property and possessions of the deceased person is to be distributed. If this has not been finalised in advance of the property sale it can cause very significant delays.
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Finance is not in place
If the buyer of the property does not have the money or finance in place to complete the purchase (either they are waiting on the sale of their own property or mortgage approval), the sale cannot be completed. Delays can also be caused if the seller does not have the final redemption figure from their bank to settle the existing mortgage.
