Blacklist of bad payers discussed by marts
A database of bad payers at marts was mooted at a recent meeting of mart managers and their regulator amid concerns over the levels of credit being given to some customers at marts.
The suggestion was made at a new Mart Forum, which was established by the Property Services Regulatory Authority (PSRA) following the completion of compliance audits on marts, in which concerns were raised around 'mart culture'.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Times
22-07-2025
- Irish Times
Estate agent pays €10,000 penalty for using deposit funds given to him by client
A Co Wicklow estate agent has had to pay a €10,000 penalty for using deposit funds, given to him for the purchase of land, before the sale was finalised. Gabriel Dooley, of Dooleys Estate Agents in Greystones, had been given €50,000 by a company to purchase land, but the sale never concluded. The liquidator of the company later secured a High Court order for Mr Dooley to refund the booking deposit, but he refused to do so. Following this the liquidator made a complaint to the Property Services Regulatory Authority , the body responsible for licensing and regulating the property services sector. READ MORE A full investigation was carried out, with the PRSA making one finding of improper conduct against Mr Dooley for breaching regulation six of the Property Services (Regulation) Act 2011 (Client Moneys) Regulations 2012. This was due to Mr Dooley withdrawing money from the €50,000 booking deposit, which was held in his client bank account, before contracts for the sale of the land being signed or finalised. The board of the PRSA imposed a sanction on Mr Dooley for this breach, amounting to a financial penalty of €10,000. The High Court confirmed the decision on Monday. Mr Dooley paid this fine to the PRSA before the confirmation order. Under the Property Services Regulation Act 2011, following a complaint the PRSA can appoint an investigator who seeks relevant documentation and evidence from an agent and drafts a report which then goes to the board of the PRSA for a final decision. If improper conduct has been found, a number of sanctions can be imposed varying from a minor sanction, such as a caution, to a major one like the suspension of the agent's licence or a financial penalty of up to €250,000.
Extra.ie
07-07-2025
- Extra.ie
Revenue will target estate agents found ‘scamming' Help to Buy
Revenue will investigate real estate agents who attempt to 'scam' the Help to Buy (HTB) scheme, Minister for Housing James Browne has warned. It comes after estate agent Sherry FitzGerald reportedly told a couple the price of a home had been split into two payments in order to bypass the rules of the subsidy scheme. The HTB scheme offers first-time buyers the chance to claim back €30,000 from their income tax on properties where the value is above what they can afford under Central Bank lending rules, but only on properties valued at €500,000 or less. Revenue will investigate real estate agents who attempt to 'scam' the Help to Buy (HTB) scheme, Minister for Housing James Browne has warned. Pic: File According to reports, a Limerick estate agent offered to split the cost of a property valued at €525,000 in two – a €500,000 payment for the house and an extra €25,000 in 'flooring costs'. This allowed the couple to avail of the HTB scheme under a falsified home value of €500,000, The Irish Times reported last week. Yesterday, Minister Browne warned: 'Anybody scamming that system, Revenue Commissioners are going to investigate that because that is a scam.' He added that splitting of house prices to bypass the cap was 'absolutely unacceptable'. 'It is outside of the terms of that agreement,' he told RTÉ's The Week In Politics. Revenue will investigate real estate agents who attempt to 'scam' the Help to Buy (HTB) scheme, Minister for Housing James Browne has warned. Pic: Stephen Collins / Collins Photos The Fianna Fáil TD warned that 'people are taking very high risks in terms of effectively defrauding the system'. The Property Services Regulatory Authority (PSRA) has said it has the power to issue minor and major sanctions, including suspensions and fines, to people attempting to bypass the HTB cap. The PSRA told the Irish Examiner it encourages 'first-time buyers who are approached by estate agents to enter into this practice to make a complaint to the PSRA'. Following the report, a Sherry FitzGerald spokeswoman told The Irish Times: 'At this point, we believe that this is an isolated incident relating to a single property.' She confirmed Sherry FitzGerald would be launching a formal investigation into the matter, adding: 'Following the conclusion of our investigation, we will take whatever steps are necessary to ensure that such a situation cannot occur again.' In the first four months of the year, 17,144 applications were received for the Help To Buy the first four months of the year, 17,144 applications were received for the HTB scheme. There were 5,000 more than in the same period of 2024. Minister Browne also addressed concerns about decreases in employment in the construction sector. The Business Post reported yesterday that construction firm MKN Property Group has cut more than half its workforce because it has 'run out of work'. Labour housing spokesman Conor Sheehan said: 'We have apprentices at the moment who are still on sub-minimum wage… We need to do a huge job in workforce planning, in terms of scaling up the construction industry.' Mr Browne called the issue a 'funny balance', saying: 'If you increase pay too much you will end up with less apprentices.' Eoin Ó Broin, Sinn Féin housing spokesman, told the minister: 'The problem isn't a skills shortage, it's how you're handling this.' Minister Browne also fielded questions on the limitations of Uisce Éireann. Eoin Ó Broin, Sinn Féin housing spokesman, told the minister: 'The problem isn't a skills shortage, it's how you're handling this.' Pic: Leah Farrell/ The utility provider has repeatedly warned it does not have the capacity to connect proposed housing projects to the water pipeline. Minister Browne was asked why Uisce Éireann has no statutory obligation to provide water infrastructure for new housing projects. Rory Hearne, Social Democrats housing spokesman, called for statutory guidelines to be provided to Uisce Éireann, saying: 'The Government has to give them that, in terms of actually saying they have a responsibility as well.' The minister responded: 'There is no point in having statutory guidelines if a body doesn't actually have the capacity to do so; what we're doing is actually giving them the capacity. 'We're going to give them more funding specifically ringfenced to deliver the housing infrastructure we need'. Minister Browne was reluctant to provide more details on the funding except to say that specifications would be outlined in the National Planning Framework, the National Development Plan, and his own housing plan. He wouldn't give a timeline but insisted it would be new money not previously announced.
Irish Examiner
01-07-2025
- Irish Examiner
Effort to bypass help to buy scheme being examined, says housing regulator
Ireland's property regulator said it is examining a report that a potential home buyer was asked to pay €25,000 for flooring in order to bypass the cap on the help to buy scheme. The Property Services Regulatory Authority (PSRA), which licences and regulates auctioneers and estate agents, said it was not aware of such practices taking place, but encouraged any first-time buyers who were faced with such an incident to lodge a formal complaint. The Irish Times reported yesterday that a prospective home buyer contacted estate agents Sherry FitzGerald, asking if the developer of a new estate would consider selling a home for €500,000 so it would qualify for the help to buy scheme. The agent said it would not qualify for the scheme as it is priced at €525,000 and above the €500,000 cap. The agent subsequently contacted the buyer, saying the price of the home had been split so that it qualified for the scheme, with the house costing €500,000 and the flooring in the home costing €25,000. Reacting to the report, a spokesperson for the PSRA said it has the power to issue minor and major sanctions, including suspensions and fines. 'The PSRA was not aware of the practice of estate agents assisting developers circumvent the help to buy (HTB) scheme by asking first time buyers for the excess of €500,000, which is the limit under the HTB scheme, in cash,' they said. The PSRA would encourage first-time buyers who are approached by estate agents to enter into this practice to make a complaint to the PSRA [and] include all relevant evidence. Contacted by the Irish Examiner, Sherry Fitzgerald said it has launched an internal investigation. 'At this point, we believe that this is an isolated incident relating to a single property. Our client is not privy to any negotiations with any prospective buyer. 'Following the conclusion of our investigation, we will take whatever steps are necessary to ensure that such a situation cannot occur again.' Administered by the Revenue Commissioners, the scheme provides a refund on income tax of up to €30,000 to first-time buyers on new-build properties up to a value of €500,000. For a property to qualify under the scheme, it must be purchased or built as the first-time buyer's home and, if purchased, it must be purchased from a qualifying contractor. The tax refund is paid directly to the contractor. In the first four months of 2025, some 17,144 applications were received for the scheme — almost 5,000 more than in the same period in 2024. Contacted by the Irish Examiner, the Department of Housing referred questions to the Department of Finance, which referred the matter to Revenue. In a statement, Revenue said it could not comment on individual cases but said the €500,000 threshold includes all payments made in connection with the property. 'Splitting payments, omitting costs, or structuring arrangements to artificially remain below the threshold constitutes non-compliance,' Revenue said, adding that a range of sanctions could be imposed.
