Moving house or apartment can be a  stressful time with so many things to organise . If you are moving house in Ireland there are several places you need to inform of  your change of address.

Re-directing post:

An Post – the Irish Post Office – offers a postal re-direction service, which will ensure that all your post is forwarded to your new address. There is a fee for this service -

Up to 3 months €50.00 ; Up to 6 months €70.00 ; and up to 12 months €100. The charges are more if you are moving outside Ireland.If you use this redirection service -  you will still have to inform all your important contacts of your address change.

Gas and  Electricity

When you move house – Electricity and  Gas accounts  will need to be either closed or transferred into the name of the new owners. If you are moving from rented accommodation, your landlord may request that you transfer these services into their name to avoid having to pay reconnection fees. Make sure you take final meter readings for gas and electricity services just before you leave.

If you are moving into a home that has been previously occupied, ask the previous owners to transfer the utility accounts into your name. Take meter readings for gas and electricity as soon as you take possession of the premises. If utilities need to be connected, contact your electricity service provider (ESB Customer Supply or other) or Bord Gáis in good time to ensure that everything is working by the time you take possession of the premises.   .

Waste collection
Bin Collection accounts  will need to be either closed or transferred into the name of the new owners. If you are moving from rented accommodation, your landlord may request that you transfer these services into their name. Contact your local authority or Bin Collection company to let them know you are leaving and make sure you have paid all the waste charges that are owed on the property. Make sure there are no outstanding waste changes on your new home as you may be liable for them

Telephone Landline

Telephone accounts can be transferred between old and new addresses like electricity and gas accounts. This will save you paying a reconnection fee and means that you’ll have a working phone as soon as you move in. Likewise, if someone is moving into your old home immediately, you can transfer the account into their name.

Television licence

In Ireland, if you have a television you must hold a Television Licence. If you are moving house, you will need to transfer the address on your TV licence. Bring your existing licence to your nearest post office, together with evidence of your new address (a household utility bill or a bank statement will do). Staff in your post office will then amend the details on your record and your licence will be updated and re-issued to you. This service is free. If  you are movingabroad – there is no refund available on TV licences.

Cable/digital television

If you subscribe to cable or digital television services, you will need to contact your service provider to either cancel your account or arrange for a service in your new home. You may be able to transfer your account from your previous address, depending on where you are moving.  

Electoral register

The Electoral Register is held by your local authority. A new register is compiled each year and you have until 25 November to have your name included or to make any changes (such as a change of address) to your details. If you miss this deadline, you can apply to have your name included in the Supplement to the Electoral Register. To do so, you will need to complete a Change of Address form and return it to your local authority. There is no fee for this service.

Driving licence, car insurance and vehicle registration details

Car Insurance :You must contact your insurance company or broker and let them know your new address so that your insurance policy can be updated.

AA/ RAC - If you are a member of a break-down service, don’t forget to change your address with them also.

Vehicle Registration: Remember to fill in the change of address section on your vehicle registration certificate and return it to the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government. You will find the address on the certificate. They will update your details and send you a new registration certificate. There is no charge for this service.

Driving Licence : You are not obliged to change the address on your driving licence, but it is advisable to do so.

House, health and life insurance

You will need to contact your insurance company to discuss your house insurance as coverage varies from one company to the next. You should also ask if the contents of your house will be covered during the move. Many insurance companies will insure your house contents in transit as long as they will be packed and moved by a professional moving firm. If not, most moving firms provide moving insurance.

Your health insurance company will also require your new address details so information on your policy and renewal can be forwarded to you directly.

Children’s schools

If your children will continue to attend their current school, you just need to make sure that the school has your new address and contact number. If you have enrolled your children in a new school, make sure your child’s school records have been transferred there before they start. Don’t forget to let your children’s current school know when they will be leaving.

Financial institutions

If you are moving to a new area, you may want to move your bank account to a local branch. There is no charge for this service. If you are staying with the same bank branch, make sure they have your new address. You will also need to contact your building society, credit union, credit card company, pension provider, etc.

Revenue Commissioners

You will also need to notify your change of address to the Revenue Commissioners. Make sure you contact the correct tax district; you can get the contact information from any of your tax documents. Always quote your PPS number in correspondence or on the phone.

Employers

Get in touch with the Human Resources (HR) and the payroll departments where you work and give them your new contact details.

Social insurance and social security payments

If you receive any social welfare payments, such as Child Benefit or Jobseeker’s Benefit you will need to contact your local social welfare office to let them know your new address. Failure to do so may result in disruptions to your payments. They will require proof of your new address, such as a utility bill or bank statement.

Health professionals

You will need to notify your change of address to your doctor, dentist, optician and any other health professionals that you deal with. If you are moving to a new area, you can contact your Local Health Office for details of health professionals in your area. Make sure your health records are transferred to your new professionals.

In Ireland entry into the practices of auctioneering and estate agency is currently governed by the Auctioneers and House Agents Acts of 1947, 1967 and 1973. The legislation provides for the licensing of auctioneers and for a fine of up to just €635 for any person convicted of representing himself as an auctioneer without a licence.

Auctioneers obtain licences on an annual basis. The only pre-requisite for holding an auctioneer’ss licence is lodging a bond of €12,700 with a court and satisfying a District Court judge that you are suitable to be an agent. This usually involves merely proving you are neither bankrupt nor a criminal.

There are two professional organisations for Estate Agents or Auctioneers:
The Auctioneers and Valuers Institute (IAVI) :  members must qualify by examination and study valuations, all aspects of relevant law, town planning and other areas essential to the provision of a good estate agency service. Ordinary members of the IAVI require an accredited property degree, while associated membership requires the equivalent of a higher certificate in property studies.
The IAVI fines members who do not adhere to its code and can now fine members up to €20,000 and order them to repay all fees/outlay charged to a client, if the circumstances merit it. It has done so in more than 80 cases since 1993.

Institute of Professional Auctioneers and Valuers (IPAV)  have bonding programmes and consumer protection programmes in place.

Both organisations offer greater protection than the state for deposits paid to member firms, with the IAVI offering the highest level of protection at 15 times the level of the statutory High Court Bond of €12,700 required of all auctioneers.

Estate Agents and Auctioneers can charge as much as 2% commission in Ireland – plus advertising expenses.  Many of them have a minimum fee . Using an  agent  to sell your house could leave you with a bill for four or five thousand euro.

Do you really need an estate agent to sell a house?

Legally – no.  The perception seems to be that  you must employ the services of an estate agent to sell a house.  Most people do it – and everyone just follows suit.
When a buyer has been found – all the important  legal work is taken care of by solicitors or conveyancers. The estate agent’s job is just to find buyers – but in today’s world of online property websites is the old fashioned estate agent really needed?

If you want to reduce a bit of the hassle of selling a house and get someone else to take a few pictures and write some nice things about your house – and pay them at least €3000 euro – then by all means use an estate agent.
It is not beyond most people with a computer , a digital camera and a couple of spare hours to put their house up for sale in Ireland. Even when you use an agent – they are still (hopefully) going to be calling you to pass on offers etc and arrange viewings. You could easily do that yourself.
The internet is  a powerful tool for house buyers – so getting your property online is vital for anyone trying to sell a house. In larger towns and cities – there will be people looking around for properties for sale – and the usual “For Sale” signs will be another major source of attracting buyers.

There are a few websites in Ireland that cater for “For Sale By Owners”.

The biggest one I could find that deals exclusively with owners selling themselves is SellitYourSelf.ie . For just €195 Euro you can get your property listed online on their site and they also provide quality “For Sale” boards for you to put up outside. The fee of €195 is the only fee you pay – and the listing and photos remain on the site until the house is sold. See more details and register here

Daft.ie is probably the busiest property website in Ireland that allows owners to sell their own house. The majority of houses on the site are put on by estate agents – and there are thousands. For €195 euro you can join them.

Myhome.ie dont take listings from individuals as far as I can see.

Things you should know when using Removal companies  within Ireland or abroad:

1. Goods in transit are not covered by insurers unless they have been professionally packed. For example, bubblewrapping a prized painting or other goods yourself, which are subsequently damaged in transit, will not be covered by the insurance company. Insurance of your goods and prized possessions during the moving process is very important.You don’t want to discover that your valuable paintings or furniture are damaged and cannot be replaced due to inadequate cover.
2.  Be aware that there are cowboy operators in the removals market. They may assure you that all your goods are covered and may quote cheaper rates, but may not have full adequate insurance cover, if any at all. They may also engage in `woollen blanket wrap’ packaging as opposed to professional wrapping practices, which is unacceptable to insurers.

3.  Many consumers might suspect that packing by the removal firm is an expensive constituent of the entire service. It’s not, according to industry specialists, who say that packing accounts for about 5 per cent of the overall price.

4. Choose a reputable company with a proven track record, which is happy to show you its insurance and trade association credentials in writing. Certain trade associations such as the Federation of European Movers Association demand and continuously check for high professional standards.

5.  If moving to th UK , contact the  British Association of Removers for accredited members.

6. Have the removal staff been professionally trained? Make sure you are not just using a `man with a van’ without proper insurance cover, professional training and so on.

7.  Insurance cover costs vary. The most common practices appear to be (a) quoting either 1.5 per cent to 2 per cent of the declared goods value, where the customer draws up a list of goods to be transported and their replacement value is given; or (b) charging 15 per cent of the removal costs. The 15 per cent charge covers relocation values up to about €150,000. If you are moving a small number of goods, it may make more sense to look for insurance cover based on a quote of 1.5 to 2 percent ofyour declared goods value rather than a charge of 15 per cent of the removal cost. A quick calculation will reveal the best value for money.
8  Check to see if the insurance cover is an `all-risk policy’, which means that your goods are not just covered in transit, but also during the unpacking process. Most insurance covers your goods for a set time, typically one week from the date of departure of your goods for domestic moves and two weeks for international moves. This means that you need to unpack your goods if it is not being done by the professional mover by a certain date to check and claim for breakages or damage that may have occurred in transit. If you miss the deadline, your cover is cancelled.
9  Consider including property damage insurance as an extra. It’s usually quite cheap, according to industry specialists, at about €30 extra, but means that if the relocator damages your wallpaper while moving a sideboard, or damages your gate pillar in your driveway, you are covered for this damage.

10  Confirm whether your goods removal is based on a part-load service (ie are you sharing a truck/container?). If you are paying for a full truck, you don’t want to discover that the relocator is selling the extra space in the truck at your expense.

With BER – Building Energy Ratings coming iinto force for all house sales in January 2009 – Insulation is an easy way of increasing your property’s BER.

Each type of insulation is fitted differently but most insulation can be installed as a DIY project. Whatever type of insulation you choose, you’ll need to make a few preparations before you start.
Before installing insulation

When you insulate your loft you’ll need to insulate pipes and tanks too

Wiring needs to be dealt with safely. Wires should be kept above the insulation but not stretched if they don’t comfortably reach. An electrician will be able to re-route any problematic wiring – see our guide to hiring an electrician.

All pipe work and tanks in the loft space should also be insulated correctly since there will no longer be the same amount of heat escaping into the loft space to protect pipes from freezing.

Insulation must be installed following the manufacturer’s instructions to achieve the full benefit.
Fitting blanket insulation

Blanket insulation is sold in rolls of different widths so start by measuring the distance between joists and buying the nearest size.

Ideally it should fit neatly between the joists. To calculate the right amount, measure the length of the floor space to be covered. Don’t stretch or tear blanket insulation – use scissors if it needs to be cut.

Unroll the insulation blanket and lay it flat between loft joists. If possible add a further layer of blanket insulation across both the joists and the lower layer of insulation. Boards can then be placed over the insulated space for easy access in the roof space.
Fitting loose fill insulation

Work out the floor space in square metres – you’ll need approximately 200 litres of material to cover each square metre to a depth of 200mm.

Before laying the material, ensure the space between the joists is relatively dust-free and that the depth of the joists is sufficient to hold an acceptable level of loose fill insulation.

The material should be poured between the joists in the roof space, ensuring there are no cracks or holes in the ceiling. Brush or rake between the joists to ensure the fill is consistently level.

If you’re not fitting boarding over the loose fill, check the level of the material during winter months as high winds can unsettle loose fill insulation and blow it around the roof space.

To insulate a loft hatch, it’s best to use blanket material held in place by plastic or an old sheet.
Fitting sheet insulation

This type of insulation is fixed between the rafters rather than between joists, and like blanket insulation it can be cut to fit or bought in pre-cut packs.

To avoid condensation build up, always allow sufficient space between the insulation and roof slates or tiles to allow for ventilation.
Fitting blown fibre insulation

In most cases you’ll need to hire a professional to install this type of insulation as it needs to be blown into place with specialist equipment.

Irish house buyers are now employing private investigators and specialist agencies to investigate their future new neighbours . The prospective buyers can have things checked out like -  whether they have criminal records to whether they are fond of throwing late-night parties.

The managing director of a company which offers the vetting service says that auctioneers have a “lot to answer for” by failing to tell housebuyers of anti-social behaviour in particular neighbourhoods.

People are also contacting private investigators to make sure that the sweet old lady living next door is all she seems, and not a drug-dealer likely to be the subject of late night visits from clients.

“You have first-time buyers looking to buy everything from an ex-council house to a three-bed semi-detached and upwards, and property is such a valuable asset now they don’t want to have to sell at a reduced price,” said Donncadh O Cinnsealaigh of Investigate Services in Naas, Co Kildare.

“It can be problematic buying a house in a particular area. Everything is aligned to the value of a property, people aren’t blinded at the chance of getting their first home.

“An elderly couple would want a nice quiet area. In the day time, it might be quiet; but at night, the young people come out. They also want to know what the age profile of an area is, and will there be problems in the future. They would say just check the immediate neighbours.”

A dedicated service for homebuyers will also look at facilities in the area, so people can make an informed choice. “The concept was in the making for a number of years. I noticed a high number of people taking legal action against their neighbours,” David Gibney of whoaremyneighbours.com said.

“People pay a lot of money to buy a house. They pay for an architect to survey a second-hand property, so I thought ‘why not survey the area’?”

“The auctioneers in Ireland have a lot to answer for. They might say there’s a widowed woman living next door, but they don’t mention her three sons who are unemployable and are out half the night.”

House prices fell again in Ireland during August 2007 –  to bring the rate of decline to 3.3 per cent since the start of the year, according to the latest Permanent Tsb/ESRI house price index.  The index shows house prices nationally fell 0.3 per cent in August following on from a 0.4 per cent drop in July.
As a result, the average price paid for a house in Ireland in August was €300,375, compared with €306,173 in August 2006, a fall of 1.9 per cent over 12 months.
During the 12 months to the end of August 2007, house prices in Dublin fell by 0.6 per cent. Outside Dublin they dropped by 2.9 per cent over the same period.

Houses in  counties of Louth, Meath, Kildare and Wicklow around Dublin showed some of the sharpest falls, dropping 1.3 per cent in August, bringing to 5.4 per cent the fall in prices in these areas over the year to date.

According to Permanent Tsb/ESRI estimates the average price of a house in these areas is €325,568, down from €344,186 in December 2006.

Niall O’Grady, head of marketing at Permanent Tsb, said: “While we have seen attention-grabbing stories about declines in the asking prices for some houses, the index confirms that the actual rate of change in house prices across the country remains modest.

“Since the start of this year, prices have declined by 3.3 per cent on average.”

Among the different types of property bed semi-detached house prices grew by 0.9 per cent in August, although they remain down 3.4 per cent on the year as a whole.

Purchasers buying their second or subsequent property paid on average 0.2 per cent less in August than in July and 3.5 per cent less than in January. First-time buyers were paying 3.6 per cent less than at the start of the year, and an average of €268,904.

Many hosue sellers  choose to sell with the assistance of an estate agent / auctioneer  because it can be  more convenient, and can sometimes be  more effective, than selling privately.
Good agents have a wide net of prospective buyers, and know how to promote your home  You should choose  an agent with the following factors in mind:

Cost:
Most estate agents charge between 1-3% commission on the successful sale of your home, but check for hidden extras.

Valuation and price
Make sure you and the agent agree on the value of the house, because he or she will be negotiating on your behalf.
Market reach:
This is a critical factor in the selection process. You want an agency which can attract the largest number of potential buyers  for your home. Ask to see how they present properties, where they advertise, and their process for following through leads. Check if they have a website – look at it and ask if your house will be put on it. Some charge extra for posting on the internet – a pretty poor practice. Use google to see if their website appears in search results for “estate agents in ” your town or “auctioneers” in your area. Ask if they use Daft.ie or Myhome.ie. The more exposure – the better.

Reputation:
Talk to friends and neighbours who have recently bought or sold in the area, and find out the “inside story” of local estate agents.

Service:
You want to work with people you like and trust, and have your best interests at heart. Remember, an agent is working for you, so you should interview him or her in the same way you would interview a prospective employee. Be clear on how you expect to communicate with the agent, and kind of service you are looking for. If you are not happy with them – go elsewhere.

Regulation and Training
Legally, estate agents are not required to have formal qualifications. They don’t need to be part of any recognized professional body.  However, reputable agents  do have experience and qualifications, are members of relevant professional bodies . Qualified agents can choose to join a professional organisation such as the Irish Auctioneers and Valuers Institute (IAVI) or the Institute of Professional Auctioneers and Valuers (IPAV) but this is purely voluntary. Both these organisations have the benefit of voluntary compensation schemes that pay out compensation if an agent absconds with client funds. About half of Ireland’s 5000-odd holders of auctioneer’s licences are members of either the IAVI or the IPAV, although many licence holders don’t practice as estate agents.