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Archived Article!
Whilst some of the information is outdated, you may still find this article useful.
Moving to Ireland from the UK
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You may feel that owning a property in the UK may be a significant obstacle
to moving abroad. With careful planning this does not have to be so --
whether you are moving permanently or temporarily. If it is a permanent
move you may wish to sell your house and the best advice is to ensure
it is ready to market at least 3-4 months before your planned departure.
A positive note to this -- there will be no legal chain attached to your
property and this should speed up proceedings. Alternatively a temporary
move to Ireland will mean that you will probably want to let your property
while you are away. Plan this well in advance and have your property in
a lettable condition about 2 months before you leave. This is to ensure
that you have plenty of time to meet with prospective tenants and are
thoroughly satisfied that the ones who will be living in your home meet
your personal requirements and not the letting agents! Beware of unregistered
letting agents with no membership of a professional body and ensure you
agree their terms of engagement before they send tenants to view your
property.
The National Association
of Estate Agents (N.A.E.A.) is the professional authority in the UK
and represents the interests of members, purchasers and sellers of property,
landlords and tenants. Member firms have to comply with strict rules and
regulations designed to ensure that all parties to a property transaction
are dealt with fairly. They also have to demonstrate a competent level
of knowledge and understanding of estate agency before they can join and
follow a course of continuing professional development throughout their
career. By using a member of the N.A.E.A. you will receive a good level
of service from a professional agent.
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Irish Property
You will need to arrange some form of accommodation whether temporary
or permanent before you leave for Ireland and the suitability of such
will depend upon a number of factors i.e. proximity to work, type of area,
cost to buy property, cost of renting property, local facilities, etc.
It is common in Ireland for properties to be auctioned rather than offered
for sale to the public as in the UK and you will see the term 'Auctioneer'
used more often than 'Estate Agent'.
People coming from the UK have the added benefit of their Sterling savings
currently worth 25% more when they come to Ireland. Mortgage interest
rates in Ireland are approximately 1.15% lower than UK rates, and this
knocks approximately IR£ 70 per month off mortgage repayments on a IR£100,000
variable rate loan over 25 years.
If you are thinking of building in one of the West Cork towns there can be
onerous planning restrictions: You have to either live
for 7 years in the corridor between the town boundary and 3 miles of the
boundary or your site to get planning permission in the 3 mile zone.
The alternative is to build on a site outside the 3-mile zone and West
Cork has plenty of scenic locations for your home.
Mortgage Rates
Current variable mortgage interest rates on offer by leading Irish banks
are approximately 5.6% compared to 6.75% in the UK. Most Irish banks require
a minimum of 20% equity unless you are known and hold your personal account
with them. Under the Irish money laundering provisions you will need a passport
and permanent address to operate an Irish bank account. Irish mortgagors
place a priority on the ability to repay, rather than the asset value of
the property -- used in the UK to limit the amount of the mortgage advance
if the value is lower than either 3 times a single applicant's income or
2.5 times a joint applicant's income. The
Irish
Mortgage Corporation maintains a league table of Irish
mortgage lenders online, which they claim has the most current listing of
Irish rates to borrowers. Users can type in details of the loan required
and the site produces the lowest rates and repayments.
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