Conveyancing is the legal work involved in the purchase or sale of land or property. A typical Irish conveyance, may take anything from 8 to 12 weeks. In Ireland a solicitor must be qualified and registered with the Incorporated Law Society of Ireland. All practicing solicitors must hold a “practice certificate” issued by the Irish Law Society on an annual basis. Unlike the UK and other EU countries – there are no licensed conveyancers. – – so solicitors have a monopoly here.
Charges for conveyancing vary. Many solicitors still charge a fee based on the property value sometimes 1.5% of the purchase price plus outlays.
In Ireland there are now some firms offering onveyancing for a fixed fee – regardless of the house value. The work involved is the same regardless of the value of the house – so it is a fairer method of charging.
Fixed fees can start at around €700 including VAT plus outlays such as searches and land registry fees – these extras can add on nearly €1000 .
By comparison – there are conveyancing firms in the UK who charge £200 for the legal work to buy a house. (About €240)
Sample costs for Buying a House valued under €255k
Legal Fees €750.00
VAT @21% €157.50
Land registry fee on transfer €375.00
Land registry fee on mortgage €125.00
Land registry fee Folio Entries €25.00
Search fees (estimated) €40.00 (bankruptcy,judgements,litigation,land registry against vendor)
Oath fees €20.00
Total €1,492.50
Notes Land registry charges depend on the property value :
Up to 255,000 = €375.00
Up to 285,000.00 = €500.00
Up to 385,000 = €625.00
If you are thinking of buying property in Ireland but you currently live outside the Eurozone – you will need to convert your savings into Euros to purchase the property.
Our advice is – don’t let your bank do the currency exchange and transfer for you – there are much cheaper ways of transferring money to Ireland. See our page about Sending Money to Ireland here