Practice Area » Buying & Selling Property » Glossary for Buying & Selling Property
Buying and Selling Property Glossary
Please select the letter you wish to preview the legal definitions for.
ABCDE FG HIJKL M N OP Q R S T UVW X Y Z
Advance: This is the total amount of the loan you receive.
APR: Annual Percentage Rate. An APR is an interest rate calculation designed to reflect the total cost of credit over the whole term of the mortgage.
Bridging Loan:A temporary loan to allow you to buy your new house before selling your own home.
Broker: An independent intermediary who will give you advice and offer a range of mortgages.
Building Insurance: Insurance to cover any structural damage to your home. All lenders will need their interest in your home to be noted on the policy.
Capital: The sum borrowed to buy the home.
Caveat Emptor: (Let the buyer beware). At common law, a buyer was expected to look after his own interest and take the property as he found it. However, statute law now imposes implied conditions and warranties.
Chain:This happens when the seller needs the sale of their house to close to complete the purchase of another property. The same situation may happen for other people in the chain. As a result if one sale falls through the whole chain can collapse.
Closing Date: The date arranged for the final legal transfer of the property where the remaining balance is paid to the seller, the buyer receives the keys of the property and all legal formalities are completed.
Collateral: Title Deeds of your new property given as security against the repayment of the mortgage.
Contract of Sale : The written legal agreement between the seller, known as the vendor, and the buyer, known as the purchaser, with regard to the property.
Conveyancing: The legal work involved in buying and selling a home.
Deeds:Written and signed document which sets out the agreement of the signatories in relation to its contents. Under common law, a deed had to be sealed - marked with an impression in wax. A deed is delivered by handing it to the other person. Usually a deed (or some other written evidence) is required in relation to actions involving land.
Deposit:This is normally paid in two parts. A booking deposit to the estate agent which is refundable and a contract deposit, both usually making up a total of 10% of the contract price.
Disbursements:Expenses paid out by the solicitor on behalf of the purchaser. (e.g. postage/couriers/land registry fees).
Endowment Mortgage:Interest is paid to the lender each month. A payment is also paid into a savings/investment policy each month. The loan is repaid at the end of the loan period from the proceeds of this policy.
Equity:The amount of the property you own i.e. the property value less the mortgage.
Equity of redemption: The sum total of the mortgagor’s rights in Equity; it is an equitable estate which can be assigned or mortgaged again. It exists from the moment the mortgage is made.
Estate Agent:Property Agent who works on behalf of the seller who has the aim of getting the highest price for the home.
Exchange of Contracts:The point at which the buyer and seller are legally bound to the sale and purchase of the property.
Failed Valuation: When the lender turns down your mortgage application after reading the surveyor’s valuation report.
First Charge:A legal charge used by the lender to secure the mortgage. The lender has a ‘first call’ on any funds available when you sell the property.
First Time Buyers Grant: This grant is now no longer available. There are now reductions in stamp duty for first time buyers.
Fixed Rate:Payments on a mortgage can be fixed for a specified period and will not change for that period.
Freehold:Right to the full use of real property for ever (as opposed to leaseholds or tenancies, which allow possession for a limited time). Varieties of freehold include fee simple, fee tail and life estate.
Gazumping: When the seller having already accepted an offer from Party A accepts a higher bid from Party B.
Ground Rent:Rent you pay annually on a long lease. You may buy out the ground rent and aquire the freehold title in certain situations.
Guarantor:A person who agrees to guarantee a loan. With some lenders you can borrow more money with a guarantor. They are responsible for the mortgage payments if you can’t afford to pay them.
Home Bond:Guarantee on most new houses and apartments. It provides against: losing your deposit if the builder goes bankrupt, 10 years Warranty against major structural faults, and 2 years Defect Warranty against water and smoke damage after completion and 6 months for minor defects.
HB47:Certificate issued by Home Bond confirming that the property has been registered and is covered under the Home Bond Guarantee Scheme. Mortgage companys require the original before they allow the draw down of funds.
Indemnity Bond: An upfront one-off fee charged by some lenders if you borrow in excess of 70-80% of the house value to protect them against you defaulting on the loan.
Joint Agents: When the seller employs two independent Estate Agents to sell their house.
Land Registry:The solicitor registers the buyer as the new owner of the house with a government department which keeps records of ownership of most land and property in the State. It is a centralised system and can be accessed now on www.landregistry.ie.
Life Assurance: An insurance policy which pays out a fixed lump sum on the death of a policy holder. All lenders will require you to have life insurance to cover the mortgage. This is often referred to as Mortgage Protection.
Loan to Value:This is a formula used to work out the percentage of the value of the house that you borrow from the lender e.g. if the house is worth €100,000 and you borrow €50,000 the Loan to Value is 50%.
LeaseholdThe interest in a property created by a lease.
Lessee:The person to whom a lease is granted.
Lessor:The person who grants a lease.
Mortgage: An interest given on land, in writing, to guarantee the payment of a debt or the execution of some action. It automatically becomes void when the debt is paid or the action is executed. The person lending the money and receiving the mortgage is called the mortgagee; the person who concedes a mortgage as security upon his property is called a mortgagor. The three types of mortgage are a legal mortgage (involving a transfer of the legal interest in the property), an equitable mortgage (by depositing the title deeds) and a judgment mortgage (following a court judgment).
Mortgagee:The financial institution who lends the mortgage.
Mortgagor :The house buyer who takes out the mortgage.
Mortgage Term :The period over which the mortgage is to be repaid.
Mortgage Protection :An insurance policy (life assurance) which will pay off a fixed amount of money on the death of an individual.
Negative Equity :When the value of a home falls to less than the balance of the mortgage.
Pension Mortgage :Mortgage available to self employed people, people without a pension scheme and owner directors of companies. Monthly interest payments are made to the lender, and a pension policy is set up to pay off the mortgage when the mortgage holder retires. It can be very tax efficient. Speak to your broker for more details.
Premier Guarantee :Guarantee on most new houses and apartments. It provides against: losing your deposit if the builder goes bankrupt, 10 years Warranty against major structural faults, and 2 years Defect Warranty against water and smoke damage after completion. Similar to Home Bond.
Premium:The monthly amount payable for an insurance policy.
Principal: The original amount of the loan.
Private Treaty Contract :A Contract that is negotiated outside an Auction.
Redemption:Repayment of a mortgage, so the equitable estate of the lender and the legal estate of the borrower merge in the mortgagor. Paying off the mortgage either to move home or at the end of the mortgage term.
Redemption Penalty:Lenders charge a penalty if you pay off your mortgage early when you are on a fixed rate.
Repayment Mortgage : A mortgage where the capital and interest are paid off in monthly installments.
Searches :Your solicitor carries out searches to ensure the person selling the property has a legal right to it and that there is no other interest shown on the title.
Serious Illness Cover:This is a type of insurance which can be taken out as part of your Mortgage Protection Policy which will pay off your mortgage if you suffer a serious illness from the insurance company’s list. It is recommended.
Snag List:When a new home is built the buyer is recommended to arrange for a surveyor to check if there are any defects which need to be fixed before they complete the sale.
Sole Agent:When a seller sells their home exclusively through one Estate Agent.
Solicitor:Legal representative who acts on behalf of a buyer or a seller in the purchase or sale of a house.
Special Conditions:Specific Terms on the loan offer letter which must be satisfied before the loan advance is paid out.
Spouse: Husband or wife.
Stamp Duty : A government tax on buying a home.
Structural Survey:A report detailing whether the house is structurally sound and listing the major and minor defects. This is recommended for second hand properties.
Subject to Contract:Generally, an offer or acceptance made subject to contract means that no legally binding agreement or contract will exist until the formal contract has been completed by the parties. There may be a binding contract if the court can conclude that all the terms of a of a bargain have been agreed and set down in writing.
Surveyor:The person who carries out the structural survey of the property.
Term:The period for which a mortgage is taken out.
Title:The legal right to ownership of a property.
Title Deeds:The documents which shows the ownership of a property.
Tracker mortgage:A tracker mortgage is fairly new to the Irish mortgage market. It is similar to a standard variable rate mortgage, with one main difference - it 'tracks' the European Central Bank (ECB) rates. The benefit is that it commits the lender to keeping their 'margin' (the markup they charge on top of the wholesale rate) under a certain level.
Transfer:A deed which transfers ownership of a property.
Variable Rate:An interest rate that can rise or fall, depending on prevailing rates with the European Central Bank (ECB) rate.
Valuation Survey :A survey carried out by the lender to ensure that the house is not worth less than the proposed loan. This is separate to a structural survey which is recommended for a second hand property.
Business & Commercial
Landlord & Tenant
Conveyancing & Property
Probate & Administration
Litigation
PIAB
Debt Collection
Family Law
Wills
Glossary