Selling a property in Ireland involves more legal steps than most vendors realise. Understanding the process means fewer delays, fewer surprises, and a smoother transaction. Your solicitor manages the legal side — but knowing what to expect puts you in control.
When you decide to sell, your solicitor's first task is to investigate the title to your property — checking the Land Registry folio, any mortgages, planning history, and any other matters that could affect the title. This title investigation often reveals issues that need to be resolved before contracts can issue.
Common pre-contract issues include: unregistered rights of way or easements, planning conditions that were never signed off, extensions built without proper permission, outstanding management company charges, or a title that has not been updated to reflect inheritance. Resolving these before contracts issue saves time — trying to fix them mid-sale is far more stressful.
Once contracts are prepared and signed by both parties, the buyer's solicitor carries out their searches. Closing takes place when the purchase price is paid and the title is transferred.
Contact your solicitor as soon as you decide to sell — ideally before you appoint an estate agent. Early title investigation means any issues can be addressed without delaying your sale. Many vendors only instruct a solicitor after going sale agreed, and are then surprised by delays caused by title issues that could have been resolved months earlier.
The Kelly family had lived in their Cork home for twenty years. They went sale agreed quickly and were delighted. Their solicitor was engaged after the sale was agreed. On reviewing the title, he found that a garage extension built in 2005 had planning permission but that one of the conditions — a landscaping requirement — had never been certified as completed by the council.
This meant the planning was not fully finalised, which affected the title. The buyer's solicitor raised this as a requisition and refused to close until it was resolved. The Kellys had to apply for a certificate of compliance from the council, which required an architect's report and took twelve weeks.
The sale ultimately completed — but the delay nearly cost them their purchase of their new home, which had its own deadline. Their solicitor subsequently told them that if they had come to him four months earlier, this could have been identified and resolved before they went on the market.
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