Here’s our 10-Point Plan for purchasing your new home:

1) Get an engineer to survey the property before you sign the contract. Any problems with the structure and/or boundaries will be highlighted at this stage.

2) Look for good value, make an offer and don’t hesitate to drive a hard bargain.

3) When you’re applying for a mortgage, three factors are critical: your income, deposit and credit history.  Ensure the information in the Irish Credit Bureau database is accurate.  Visit www.icb.ie and have it updated if necessary.

4) You need to have enough Life Cover in place to clear the mortgage in the event you die before the loan is paid off.  It’s best to arrange this as early as possible as any delay can slowdown your home loan and delay the closing of the sale.

5) Your Solicitor will check that the property has good marketable title.

6) Carry out a planning check on the development plan for the area.

7) Booking deposits are normally refundable up to the signing of the contract.  Once Contracts for Sale are signed by both buyer and seller and the deposit is received by the seller’s solicitor, both parties are committed. The deposit is usually 10% of the purchase price of the property.  Insure the property at this stage.

Ensure that supporting documentation such mortgage approval, life cover and house insurance are all in place, as the sale cannot close until they are.

9) Once the sale is closed, the keys are yours. Congratulations! 

10) Your Solicitor will register the property, mortgage and supporting documents in your name and return all deeds to the Bank or Building Society, where they will be held until your mortgage is fully discharged or if you intend remortgaging or selling.

Remember, to protect your interests, you should always take professional advice.

Call Brendan Burke Solicitors at 091 704 864 or click here to Make an Appointment.

The form is reasonably straightforward but if you have any doubts, ask a Solicitor to help you as problems can occur at this stage that can be time consuming and costly to resolve later on.  For example, it is really important to get the correct name of the respondent i.e. the party against whom a claim is being made, especially if it is a company and you can very easily end up taking an action against the wrong company.

If either side rejects the assessment made by InjuriesBoard.ie, it will issue an authorisation to allow you, the claimant, to take the matter to Court in the normal way.  If both sides agree to the assessment, the respondent must pay the agreed amount and that’s the end of the matter.

Of course there are many other types of situations where you may be entitled to compensation, such as product liability, nuisance claims or defamation, that do not involve Injuries Board.ie.  Contacting your Solicitor can be a great way to find out your rights and entitlements.

Call Brendan Burke Solicitors at 091 704 864 or click here to Make an Appointment.

If you die without making a Will, you lose control over who gets what. In this instance, you will have died ‘intestate’ and the State, through the laws of intestacy, will make the decision on your behalf.  Another effect is that your estate will be more time consuming and costly to administer by the Solicitor.

However, if you have a valid Will, it will be quicker and less costly to administer your estate.  You also have the benefit of deciding who gets what.  A Will is a living document and can be changed at any time.  It isn’t expensive to draw up and the peace of mind it can give is considerable.

At Brendan Burke Solicitors, we’ll take you through the process of making a valid Will, enabling you to express your wishes clearly and fully, and gain complete peace of mind.  We note the details of your assets – what and where they are and the names of the people you want to have them following your death.  We then draw up a draft Will for you to examine and to change if you wish.  Once you’re happy, we prepare the final version, which you sign in the presence of two witnesses.

Wills are often straightforward but some involve complicated arrangements – all the more reason to ensure they are drawn up by a Solicitor.

It is important to keep your Will safe.  Ask your Solicitor to keep the original and to give you a certified copy.  Also make sure that your two Executors know who your Solicitor is and that he or she is holding the original Will.

Call Brendan Burke Solicitors at 091 704 864 or click here to Make an Appointment.