Natural Gas Connection To New Build Home | Posted 26.10.09
When building a new house to live in yourself, or for sale or long term rent, you obviously need water and electricity
supplied to your property.
You may also decide to use gas for heating and cooking in your house, in which case you have two options, either a connection
to a natural gas supply or to a gas storage tank in your back garden.
The natural gas pipeline network is not yet as widespread as water and electricity supplies, and to get a network connection to your new house you must take the following steps:
Contact Bord Gáis Networks, who will advise you if a natural gas pipeline is near enough to your new house to enable them to connect you to the gas network. Obviously if you are building your new house near existing houses, its very easy to find out what system they are using and check for yourself if piped gas is available.
Full Article | Gas Supply To New Build Homes
Electricity Supply To New Build Homes | Posted 25.10.09
To obtain an electricity connection to your new house, you need to show ESB Networks that you have received planning
permission from your local planning authority. An application form, Form NC2, should be completed and sent to ESB Networks
along with an ordinance survey map at 1:2500 scale for rural areas and 1:1000 for urban areas, indicating the position of your
new house. ESB Networks will also require a site plan of your new house at scale of 1:500.
You can tell ESB networks on which external wall of your new house you would like to have the electricity meter fitted.
Full Article | Electricity Supply To New Build Homes
Working with Your Builder | Posted 24.10.09
If you are planning home improvements, in addition to a builder to do the actual physical work, you may, depending on the scope of your plans, also need the services of a surveyor, an architect or even a dedicated project manager to work on your behalf.
You should do your research to make sure the work involved will be carried out properly, safely and within budget.
As well as using the local telephone directory and the internet to search for builders in your area, you can also ask family and friends for recommendations. Look around for building work being carried on in your neighbourhood and don't be afraid to call to the house when the builders are gone and ask as many questions as necessary.
Full Article | Working with Your Builder
Insurance Cover & Safety on a New Build Home | Posted 23.10.09
The construction of your new self-build property is an exciting time, watching your house being built from the foundation
right up to roof level and completion.
A much less exciting, though absolutely vital aspect of self-build houses however, is the provision of proper levels of
insurance cover. Your loan provider may insist on you obtaining adequate insurance cover before releasing the staged
payments of your mortgage.
The insurance cover you need for your self-build house can be divided into various categories.
Public liability insurance provides you with insurance cover against the possibility that visitors to your new house site,
whether invited or not, receive injuries to themselves or to their property whilst on your land and building site.
Full Article | Insurance Cover & Safety on a New Build Home
Water Supply to New House | Posted 22.10.09
If you are building a new house, whether to live in yourself or for sale or long term rental, you obviously need your home to be connected to a water supply and to be provided with a safe and environmentally friendly waste disposal system.
To deal with the waste water issue first, it is vital, even before you apply for planning permission to have a test
percolation hole drilled. This will establish the water drainage capabilities of the land beneath your house. Sites with
high water tables or hard rock near the surface may not allow for safe water drainage and, in order to receive planning
permission, you must satisfy your local authority that your waste water system conforms with their regulations.
Unless you are sure that you will receive a water connection from the local supply, you should refrain from
building work until you receive written conformation from the local authority they will connect your new house
Full Article | Water Supply to New House
Property Charges and Taxes | Posted 21.10.09
The last budget altered the threshold amount for the calculation of capital acquisitions tax. A person can now receive or
inherit up to a maximum of 434,000 euros by a parent and still be exempt from capital acquisitions tax.
If a person receives an inheritance or gift from other family members, the capital acquisitions tax threshold is reduced to
43,400 euros. The threshold for gifts or inheritances from non-family members reduces to 21,700 euros. Gifts or
inheritances between married couples are exempt from capital acquisitions tax.
The current capital
acquisitions tax rate is 25 percent for inheritance or gifts received after the 8th of April, 2009.
Full Article | Property Charges and Taxes
House Purchase: Making an Offer | Posted 12.10.09
Although houses prices have dropped by up to 50 percent in the last two years, this does not necessarily imply that housing
has become any more affordable to larger numbers of people.
Over the last 18 months, the income of many people, although fortunate to keep their jobs in the current recession, has also
fallen, because of pay cuts and tax increases. In addition, it is much more difficult to obtain the mortgage needed
to purchase a house or apartment, so for many people the dream of owning a house of their own, despite falling house prices, is
still as far away as ever.
Full Article | House Purchase: Making an Offer
Rent To Buy House Purchase Schemes | Posted 12.10.09
In today's market, with house prices continuing to fall and no obvious end in sight, many potential house buyers are in a
position of having to rent a house or apartment and then waiting until they believe that the time is right to make an offer.
Although rental prices are currently also declining, from the tenants point of view, paying rent each month is still wasted money. In
a "normal" housing market, tenants could be using that money to pay off a mortgage and eventually own their own homes.
Full Article | Rent To Buy House Purchase Schemes
Safety on a New Home Construction Site | Posted 11.10.09
Building a new house yourself, or having it built for you, is an exciting time. However, amid all the excitement, planning
and decisions, you should never lose sight of the fact that a building site is potentially a very dangerous place.
Make safety on your construction site a number one priority.
All of the machinery used on a construction site, from mini excavators, cranes, scaffolding and ladders, right down to
ordinary electrical drills, will have it's own particular safety issue. As well as static machinery, there will generally be
a large amount of truck and van traffic moving on and off site, often through confined spaces on rough ground and on rutted
tracks.
Full Article | Safety on a New Home Construction Site
Getting a Mortgage in a Recession | Posted 21.09.09
Most mortgage providers today will demand a deposit of 20 percent of the price of the property for which the mortgage is
being sought. Banks and building societies no longer offer the 100 percent mortgages that were available 18 months ago. Now
the maximum on offer is generally 90-92 percent.
Bank of Ireland offer a maximum mortgage of normally 90% of the property value. As a general rule, loan amounts are subject
to monthly repayments not exceeding 30% to 40% of the borrowers disposable income and will vary according to individual
circumstances.
Full Article | Getting a Mortgage in a Recession
House Building & The Final Grant of Planning Permission | Posted 21.09.09
If you intend to develop your land in some way, before construction or development actually begins, you will need obtain planning permission, unless you are certain that your proposed development is exempted.
The timescale for obtaining planning permission from local authorities in Ireland can vary widely, depending on how involved
the proposed development is and how well prepared the applicant is to respond to the issues that will raised by the members
of the local planning board.
The first stage of the planning permission process takes four weeks.
After the receipt of application for planning permission, the local planning authority will then spend time checking that the
application is valid and then they will acknowledge receipt of the valid application in writing.
Full Article | House Building & The Final Grant of Permission
The Planning Permission Process | Posted 20.09.09
Types of Planning Permission
Outline Planning Permission. If your proposed development is granted O.P.P., this means that the
local planning authority agree to your proposals in principle. If you need full planning
permission, you will have to apply for "permission following the grant of outline permission".
Permission Consequent to Outline Permission. This type of permission follows the grant of OPP and
provides for the applicant to submit full drawings and details of any proposed development.
Full Planning Permission.
To be considered for the granting of full planning permission, a developer must submit a valid
application, which should include detailed drawings and plans of the proposed development.
Exempted developments do not require any type of planning permission.
Full Article | The Planning Permission Process
Planning Permission: Exemptions For House Extensions | Posted 19.09.09
Planning permission exemptions are generally based around various well defined aspects of a property
such as its total volume or height.
If these thresholds are exceeded, e.g. building an extension on a house that exceeds a certain height,
then planning permission must be applied for.
The idea behind exemption is that development on a relatively simple scale should not be hindered by
excessive or non-essential regulations.
Examples of structures that can built within the immediate area of land connected with the house,
e.g. front or back garden include a greenhouse, garage or sheds. No exemption from planning permission can be granted for structures built forward of the front wall of the house.
Full Article | Exemptions From Planning Permission
Types of Planning Permission | Posted 18.09.09
Some of the developments requiring a grant of planning permission from the local planning authority
include:
The building of a dwelling house.
The carrying out of maintenance, improvement or alteration of an existing dwelling house in order to
create an extension of the living area.
The change of use of a garage shed, outhouse or any other structure to become part of the house.
The provision of buildings for the purpose of agriculture.
The change of use of previously uncultivated land to intensive agricultural production.
Full Article | Types of Planning Permission
Planning Permision: Architects & Planning Agents | Posted 17.09.09
To increase your chances of being granted planning permission in the shortest possible timeframe,
you should strongly consider having pre-planning discussions with your local planning authority.
These meetings can often save an applicant a lot of time and money that would otherwise be spent in
having to resubmit, and possibly re-resubmit, improperly completed planning application forms.
Although you can submit the planning application directly to your local planning authority, if you
have no previous experience of the planning process, you should think about employing the
professional services of a planning agent or architectural firm, especially if the proposed
development is anything other than a very straightforward change of usage.
Full Article | Planning Permission: Architects & Planning Agents
Planning Permission New Build Houses | Posted 15.09.09
Planning authorities usually define development as something along the lines of "the carrying out of work on, in or under
land" or alternatively "making any material change to the use of building or structures already present on the land".
Unless the new development is specifically exempt from planning permission requirements, the developer must formally apply
for planning permission from the local planning authority to proceed with their development proposals.
Planning permission is required for a large variety of changes of use of the land, ranging from the obvious, e.g. building a
house on a new site, through less common change of uses, such as the replacement of broad leaf high forest by conifer species
or the use of uncultivated land for intensive agricultural purposes or peat extraction.
Full Article | Planning Permission For New Build Houses
Garage & Attic Conversions | Posted 29.08.09
Over the years, your house space requirements will often change. You may need an extra bedroom, or an en-suite bathroom. Removing or repositioning the internal walls of your property will often introduce more light and warmth into your house and create a sense of more space.
In most cases, unless your property is a listed building, you are free to put up partition walls as well as to install en-suite and understairs toilets. etc. Building work that involves load bearing walls or changes to the outside of the house may require compliance with the relevant building regulations.
These modifications will allow you to make the most of your existing space and convert otherwise unused space from one room into say, a larger kitchen or living room.
Many building firms specialise in attic conversions, and the introduction of even a small window into the roof or gable end wall can transform a house. Even if your attic is small, you may have enough space for a child's bedroom or study area.
Before you make definite plans for this space, you should check to see if any beams and trusses that take up additional space can be built around. Also, is the floor reinforced to take the weight of the furniture you intend to put in the attic? You may need specialist advice on your options before going ahead.
Full Article | Garage & Attic Conversions
200 Euro Second Home Property Charge | Posted 29.08.09
The Local Government (Charges) Act 2009 provides the details of the new 200 euro per second property charge. The payment is to be
made to each local authority within whose boundaries rental properties and holiday homes lie.
Payment must be made by liable house and apartment owners to their local authority before the end of September 2009.
Full Article | 200 Euro Second Home Property Charge
Landlord & Tenants | Posted 28.08.09
One of the most common, yet most
easily resolved disputes between
landlords and tenants, relates to
the condition and the content of
the property to be rented.
Landlords should provide tenants
with a detailed list of the
contents of the house and
agreement should be reached as to
the condition of the house before
the new tenants move in.
Landlords must be prepared to
accept a certain amount of
unavoidable normal wear and tear
in the furnishings and fittings
of the house, especially if they
are lucky enough to have their
property continuously rented out.
Full Article | Resolving Rental Disputes
Legal Issues | Posted 27.08.09
Steps involved after you have agreed a price with the Buyer,
Appoint a Solicitor
Once you have agreed a price, you should seriously consider appointing a legal representative as early as possible. Solicitors need your agreement to find and secure your property's Title Deeds if they are held by a bank or building society. The earlier this is done, the less chance of any delay in issuing Contracts at a later stage.
Take up Title Deeds
After they have received your written authority, the Solicitor will take up your Title Deeds from your Bank or Building Society. This takes about 14 days and at this stage your Solicitor will pay a scheduling fee to your Bank or Building Society on behalf of you, the seller.
Details Of Sale
The details of sale should be written once the price and conditions have been agreed by you and the booking deposit has been paid by the buyer. The details of sale contain basically what has been agreed by the buyer and seller, that is: the price, conditions of sale contents, buyer's name and address, name of buyer's solicitors and estimated closing date.
Contracts are Issued
After receiving the details of sale, your Solicitor will write the contracts and send them, together with a copy of your Title Deeds to the Solicitors representing the buyers.
www.moloney-solicitors.ie, 6 O'Curry Street,
Limerick, is a firm of solicitors based in the heart of Limerick City, with a broad range of specialist legal knowledge. They offer practical and insightful advice, tailored to the needs of each individual client.
More information here
Full Article | Legal Issues | Selling Your House
Log Cabins | Posted 26.08.09
Log cabins are available in a variety of sizes and designs. They provide an ideal and affordable way of obtaining that "little bit of extra space", with minimum disruption. Most small cabins are erected quickly and can be custom built to your own specifications or to standard designs. Log cabins range in size from small units suitable for home offices, teenage retreats, utility rooms etc. to dwelling houses and larger buildings.
Small units such as home offices, playrooms etc. up to 25 sq/m do not usually require planning permission falling as they do into the category exempt from development. However larger buildings and dwellings may require planning permission depending on size and proposed use. Full details regarding planning permission may be obtained from your local county council offices.
Coppola Cabins are constructed from Scandinavian Spruce with different log thickness, tile effect felt roof, wooden double glazed windows and doors.
Wooden Windows | Posted 25.08.09
Many modern homes have uPVC windows and doors, which for the most part, are virtually maintenance-free. However, if your property features wooden windows and doors, you will need to protect them from damage caused by rain, frost and the suns' UV rays.
Weather protection systems for wooden structures are either paint based or varnish based. In the past, most exterior paints were oil based, but nowadays many paints are water based, which allows for easier brush cleaning and less toxic residues and reduced heavy odors.
The technology behind varnish coats has also improved recently, with a vast range of colors and stains to choose from.
Whatever system you choose, the key to long lasting protection is preparation. The effort taken to remove all loose paint and sand down surfaces is well worth it, as it will save you time later in repairing damage due to badly applied paint.
The best time to renew your woodwork paint is at the end of summer when the least amount of moisture will be trapped within the wood.
Before starting the actual painting, you must spend as much time as necessary in the preparation of the surface. You will need a scraping knife, sanding paper and a sanding block for flat surfaces. If you are burning old paint off woodwork, make sure you can quickly and safely douse any small fires that may result. Paint stripper may be a better choice and remember to keep oil-based paint and white spirit away from sources of heat. Wear rubber gloves and protective glasses whilst working.
Full Article | Wooden Windows
BER Certificate | Posted 24.08.09
The EU Directive on the Energy Performance of Buildings (EPBD) recently passed into law in Ireland. It lists a new set of provisions aimed at improving energy performance of residential and non-residential property, both existing buildings as well as new or proposed structures. Property owners are now obliged to provide a Building Energy Rating (BER) certificate, which is basically an energy performance label. They will be required at the point of sale or rental of a building, or on completion of a new building. A BER is similar to the energy label for a household electrical appliance.
The label has a scale from A to G. A-rated homes are the most energy efficient and G the least efficient. The information contained in the BER certificate allows consumers to check the energy performance of a building and enables them to take this into consideration in any decisions on property transactions.
The Directive is designed to ensure that building standards across Europe comply with the goal of minimizing energy consumption. This Directive affects consumers all across Europe and attempts to reduce energy consumption, whilst not requiring huge additional expenditure at the consumer and business level.
Full Article | BER Certificates
Mortgages | Posted 23.08.09
Before applying for any mortgage, no matter how small, you must be absolutely certain of how much you can afford to pay back. If you need to, get some independent professional advice and make sure that you have included everything in your budget calculations. Be realistic about the sacrifices, such as a smaller car or the lack of an overseas holiday, that you may have to make in order to repay your mortgage.
Obviously the amount you can borrow will depend primarily on the amount of money you earn. Shop around for the best deal or go to an independent mortgage broker.
There are two things to bear in mind when applying for a mortgage: what is the percentage of the house value you can receive as a mortgage, say 80 to 95 percent, and what earnings limit will the lender impose, a typical example being three and a half times your salary.
If you are applying for a mortgage with your spouse or partner, what extra amount of mortgage is available if two salaries are available for repayment?
Many people applying for a loan worry about being turned down, but remember, lenders can usually adjust loan terms in many ways in order to help you qualify for a loan.
Full Article | Applying for a Mortgage
Bedrooms | Posted 22.08.09
A bedroom is not complete without beautiful and comfortable furniture. Bedroom sets such as beds, dressers, armoires, chests, and nightstands come in a variety of style, shape and size. Beautiful furniture sets adds a beautiful look to a bedroom.
Bedroom Studio features Flou, one of Italy's foremost design house for bedroom furniture. Since 1978, Flou have been trendsetters in this area through collaborations with world-class designers.
Architects | Posted 21.08.09
Using an architect from the earliest planning stage of your project allows them to gain more opportunities to understand your needs, develop creative solutions, and propose ways to reduce your construction and maintance costs costs. A well designed building can both reduce your costs and increase its long-term value.
Architects can manage your project from site selection to completion.
In many building projects the role of the architect includes co-ordinating a team of specialist consultants such as landscape architects, engineers, quantity surveyors, interior designers, builders and subcontractors.
Louise Sliney Architects, based in Munster, is a dynamic young practice offering a full range of architectural services for residential and commercial projects including:
one-off housing,
house extensions and renovations, interior design consultations, multiple housing, apartment developments and office and commercial developments.
House Insulation | Posted 20.08.09
Efficient home insulation, as well as reducing your home heating bills, has another major benefit, it reduces sound transmission, both from nearby houses but also from noise created in your own house from home appliances such as your heating system, washing matching as well as TVs and radios.
Three main types of insulation are used in modern houses.
Fibrous insulation uses narrow fibers bonded together and which trap air between them. Examples of fibrous insulation include fiberglass blankets and boards. In the past asbestos wool was often used as insulation but health concerns now prevent its use in the home.
Cellular insulation again uses small pockets of air but now they are trapped within tiny bubbles or foams. A prime example of cellular insulation is polystyrene.
Fibrous and cellular insulation reduce heat loss by absorbing air, whereas radiant barriers and coatings are composed of a surface that reflects radiant heat. Aluminum paint and metal foil are examples of reflective coatings.
One measure of the usefulness of home insulation is given by the R Value. "R" stands for resistance to heat flow. The higher the R- value, the more heat it can resist.
Premier Insulations Nationwide are established over 25 years and are considered market leaders in the home insulation business. Based in the midlands and operating nationwide, they offer advice, surveys and quotations on cavity wall insulation,
Full Article | Home Insulation