The new rate of 1% now applies to all transactions whether you are a first time buyer or not or if you are purchasing a new or second hand home.

For properties valued up to €1,000,000, the new flat rate of 1% of the purchase price applies.  For properties valued over €1,000,000 the rate of 1% applies to the first €1,000,000 and a rate of 2% applies to the balance.

For Example:  A non-first time buyer who was purchasing a second hand property for €1.5million would have paid €106,250 in stamp duty, now with the new reduced rate they would only have to pay €15,000 in stamp duty.

Commercial rates remain unchanged.

Private Pensions 

The main proposals that impact on private pension provision are: 

• All lump sums in excess of €200k will be taxed, probably from Budget Day.
• In 2011 the Earnings Cap will be reduced from €150k to €115K.
• Next year will also see the abolition of PRSI & Health Levy relief linked to pension contributions.
• The Standard Fund Threshold will also be reduced, details in the Budget.
• The rate of relief for personal pension contributions remains the same for 2011 but proposed reductions are: 

•  There is no indication that the tax treatment of employer contributions will change.
• There is a very strong hint that the proposed auto enrolment scheme will never happen. 

The Government is committed to rising €700m from the pensions sector over the period of the plan and is willing to engage with the industry to examine alternatives to deliver this outcome.  This suggests to me that a reduction in the personal relief is not necessarily a done deal. 

Turning to pension fund investments, the Government is considering proposals to encourage pension funds to invest in Irish Government Bonds.  The NTMA will issue a CPI linked bond next year.  The National Pension Reserve Fund will be used to support the Irish Government Bond Market. 

Public Sector Pensions

Revised pay and pension arrangements will be introduced for all new entrants. Benefits will be calculated using career average and any pension increases will be linked to CPI.  The existing retirement will be raised to link in with the proposed increases in the ages when the state pension becomes payable: 66 in 2014, 67 in 2021 and 68 in 2028.  Presumably all private sector schemes will follow suit.

 Existing pensions cut as follows:

                                                            First €12,000              0%

                                                            €12,001 – €24,000       6%

                                                            €24,001 – €60,000       9%

                                                            above €60,000            12% 

Income Tax 

The next 4 years will see a reduction of 16.5% in the value of tax credits and tax bands, with 65% of the reductions in 2011.  There are other options including a mixture of the above changes to tax rates, PRSI and income levies.  Final arrangements in the Budget.  On average we will all pay 10% more in 2011. 

A number of reliefs will be abolished in 2011 included those linked to trade union subscriptions, rent relief and approved share options schemes.  The income tax age credit and age exemptions will be phased out over 4 years.  

Social Welfare 

Total expenditure will be reduced by €700m and details of rate reductions will be announced in the Budget.  We can expect a reduction in the level of state pension payments. 

NB      Funding rates for Directors pensions are still very attractive.

* Excellent customer service

* Experienced letting team

* On call 7 days a week

* 24hr professional maintenance team

* Existing database of quality tenants

* Extensive website coverage

* Prominent window advertising at our city centre office

* Competitive rates

What really sets DNG Flanagan Ford apart from the competition is the aftercare service provided for both landlords & tenants.  Tess is always on hand to resolve any issues which may arise from heating & plumbing problems to normal household issues.

Speaking to the Sligo Champion, Tess commented on the current rental market in Sligo.  “The rental market, similar to the sales market, has taken a hammering over the past couple of years.  Landlords have seen their rental income reduce & in many instances have seen their rental property lie vacant for months on end.  In saying this, good houses & apartments are always in demand.  When I talk about good properties I mean well presented, clean properties with up to date heating systems, double glazed windows etc.  These are all things we take for granted when purchasing a home, but they are very high on the list of requirements for prospective tenants also.  I am inundated daily with requests from prospective tenants for all types of properties from 1 bed city centre apartments to 4 bed detached houses within easy commuting distance of Sligo.  At the moment, tenants are really shopping around when their leases are coming near the end for a better quality house at an atrractive price.  It comes back to the age old scenario that if you have a good product it will rent & will achieve a good rental price.  The areas that are proving most popular at present are Strandhill Road & Strandhill village itself.  I am keen to talk to anyone with an investment property in these areas, & indeed all areas of Sligo city & suburbs to discuss the service I provide & my competitive rates.”

Some tips for the successful letting of your investment property:

* Choose DNG Flanagan Ford!

* Present your property in a clean, attractive state

* Put yourself in the shoes of the tenant & make sure your property is somewhere you would like to live

* Have a realistic rental figure in mind – too often properties are pitched with a rental price which is excessive & tenants just won’t be interested

* Remember - First Impressions Last

* Remember – Every month your house is vacant you’re losing money

Tess Monaghan is available to talk to landlords at any time & can be reached at 071 9159222, 086 3999062, tess@dngflanaganford.ie, or indeed call to our office at Shell House, Wine Sreet, Sligo

Keith Lowe, CEO of DNG, used an excerpt from an article which recently appeared in the Wall Street Journal as the opening message for the latest edition of DNG Express.  The article was entitled “10 Reasons to Buy a home” & was in response to specific negative media sentiment in Time Magazine. The property market in many parts of the USA has been hit severely & in some cases harder than Ireland.  The 10 reasons given in the Wall Street Journal article apply to this country also & the following is Keiths take on the reasons why:

You can get a good deal – Property prices have virtually halved in Ireland.  Similar to America there may still be a little further to go but you’ll never catch at the bottom & according to the WSJ “it doesn’t really matter so much in the long haul”, a comment I would echo.

Mortgages are cheap – At the date of this article a first time buyer can obtain a mortgage through Irish Nationwide Building Society at 3.7% fixed for three years or at a variable rate of 2.9% through the Home Choice Loan.  It was not that long ago when mortgage rates were twice the current price.

You’ll save taxes – Similar to the USA, first time buyers buying their home can qualify for attractive mortgage interest relief on their mortgage repayments and there is no capital gains tax when they sell in the future.

It’ll be yours – You can have the kitchen & bathrooms you want – You can move the walls or tear up the garden!  You cannot do this if you are renting!

You’ll get a better home – Buyers are in a very strong negotiating position & with much lower prices, purchasers can buy a home that they would not have been able to afford in the past & in their chosen location.

It offers some protection against inflation – Over the long term property prices have always beaten inflation especially if you are young & looking at staying in your home for 20 or 30 years.

It’s risk capital – Your home is not stocks & shares but the economy will surprise you & start growing at some time in the future.  Sooner or later property prices will rise again too & I bet it will be quicker than you think!

It’s forced savings – By paying a mortgage, which in many cases is higher than your rental cost, you are essentially saving for your future.  The part of your mortgage payment that goes against principal is not a cost as you are building equity in your home.

There is a lot to choose from – It differs depending on the locality in Ireland, but there is quite a lot of good property to choose from at the moment.  This will change when the market improves, but at the moment this means great choice at great prices!

Call to DNG Flanagan Fords office at Shell House, Wine Street to pick up your copy of DNG Express today.  All of our properties are also listed on our website at www.dngflanaganford.ie

“The Sligo market has suffered the same percentage falls as experienced in most other provisional towns around the Country.  From our research the average price fall in the market place is between 35% & 40%.  However there are cases which this is both lower & greater.  2010 has seen a great improvement in the volume of sales which we have managed to achieve over our 2009 figures. 

In 2009 a large percentage of booking deposits paid were ultimately refunded as the property market continued to fall at quite a fast pace.  With buyers seeing the market fall at slower pace we are experiencing far greater percentage of sale completions over the first 9 months of this year. Vendors have helped us in this regard. Most people we talk to at the moment who are considering selling are prepared to put the property up for sale at realistic values. They are no longer looking for 2006 prices and this has lead to a strong increase in the number of viewings we are getting. We anticipate the market will start to level very shortly with a sense of normality returning. And not a day too soon!!!”  said Shane Flanagan.

This trend seems to be the same as experienced by many other agents in the area who all collectively seem to be reporting an increase in the level of viewings, especially for properties which have recently been placed on the market. 

According to Shane Flanagan of DNG Flanagan Ford some properties that they have placed on the market recently have sold in the first  2  weeks  after being placed on the market

“We recently placed a property on the market in Heatherview, which we sold within the first 10 days of it going on to the property market. 

We have numerous other experiences of properties going to the market with realistic asking prices at todays date where viewing  numbers  are at levels not seen for almost 4 years in the Sligo area.  We are currently under offer on 5 different properties & deals are being done very regularly, but more importantly these deals are actually being completed by the willing buyers ” .   

 To get the most up to date list of all the properties available on  their  books with prices etc visit  their website at www.dngflanaganford.ie &  they  would be delighted to arrange an inspection for you of any of the properties that may suit your needs.

DNG also noted positive signs in the property market with a large drop in the number of customers requesting the return of their booking deposits paid down to 5% from a high of 30% during the height of the property crisis. 

According to Keith Lowe CEO, DNG Nationwide “This is very significant and our agency has not experienced a statistic like this since the boom years. Since the property market started to experience a re-alignment in late 2006 the number of buyers who paid our agency booking deposits on homes and then changed their buying decision was as high as 30%. This important statistic indicates that buyer confidence has improved and that prospective purchasers are not finding better value elsewhere in addition to not having problems arranging their mortgage. Many buyers are also advising us that they are keen to purchase now and take advantage of low long term fixed interest rates.”

It was also reported that property prices in the greater Dublin area have dropped by an average of 48% since peak in late 2006 but that the level of drop of 4% in the last quarter of 2009 was much less than the three previous quarters. According to the organisation this indicates that property prices in the greater Dublin area are close to stabilisation and the agency is predicting some level of price growth in certain areas of the market as early as next year if not before.

Attendees also heard that the number of new properties coming to the market for sale throughout the country has also reduced and that this reduced choice for buyers should also assist recovery of the property market.

The conference also reported that it is imperative that the government continue to ensure that there are sufficient levels of finance available through Irish financial institutions for property transactions as a vibrant property market is essential to assist economic recovery.

Keith Lowe also added “Following the very sharp countrywide price falls in property prices over the last three years it is encouraging to see much increased viewing and sales activity in the property market. Sales in our Dublin network have increased by over 30% this year compared to the same period in 2009. There is normally a time lag between market changes in Dublin and the rest of Ireland and it is encouraging to see evidence of improved activity already being experienced throughout the DNG nationwide network”

Speaking at the conference Shane Flanagan of DNG Flanagan Ford commented on the increased level of activity in the Sligo area.  “Since December 2009 we have seen a notable increase in not only the quantity of viewings we have, but also the quality of viewings, ie the majority of viewers are genuinely interested in purchasing a property.  We feel that prospective purchasers now recognise that there is excellent value to be had at present in Sligo & surrounding villages & towns.  We have Sale Agreed numerous properties over the past few months & almost all of these sales are expected to conclude successfully.”  Shane added “Some of the lending institutions are now lending funds especially to first time buyers & we have already seen the positive impact this is having on the local property market.  Many sellers are now far more realistic about the price they wish their property to be placed on the market at & this has been a massive factor in attracting increased viewing numbers.  This is a trend we expect to continue over the coming months.”

About Douglas Newman Good & DNG Nationwide.

Douglas Newman Good (DNG) are the largest seller of residential property in the greater Dublin area and operate a network of 67 real estate offices throughout the Ireland.

The IAVI has supported, and insisted upon, high academic standards in the property profession for many years.  In partnership with the Dublin Institute of Technology it runs two property courses – an Honours Degree and a Higher Certificate in property studies.

To recognise the achievements of two students who achieve academic excellence in these programmes, the IAVI awards a medal to the student who achieves first place in each course. For the Higher Certificate course, the Institute awards the Owen O’Riordan Memorial Medal, the 2009 winner is Marie McDonald who works with DNG Flanagan Ford in Sligo.

For the Higher Certificate course, the Institute awards the Owen O’Riordan Memorial Medal.  Owen was a student on the IAVI Residential and Land Agency course, (the forerunner of the Higher Certificate).  Whilst on the course, Owen was diagnosed with a serious illness.  Despite this, he battled on and continued his studies until he died aged 21, still attending lectures on the course, in 2005. The winner of this for 2009 is Marie McDonald who works with DNG Flanagan Ford in Sligo.

Pictured left to right are: IAVI President Ms Aine Myler, Chairman of Sunderland AFC Mr Niall Quinn, medal winner Marie Mc Donald and Shane Flanagan, Director DNG Flanagan Ford.

Marie joined DNG Flanagan Ford in 2001, initially working in the financial services side of the business for the first 3 years & during this time studied with the Institute of Bankers & received her QFA qualification along with a Certificate in Investment Advice.  However in 2004 Marie took a keen interest in the auctioneering side of the business.  DNG Flanagan Ford have always placed strong emphasis on all members of staff attaining the highest standards of qualifications relevant to their work.  “We at DNG Flanagan Ford are absolutely thrilled for Marie.  We saw at first hand the effort she was putting in & we knew that with her dedication & excellent work ethic she was always going to do well in this course.  To come Number 1 in the country when so many are attending was an absolutely massive achievement & we are all so proud of her” said Shane Flanagan of DNG Flanagan Ford.  “Marie brings this level of enthusiasm & dedication to work everyday of the week & this award will serve as not only a huge confidence boost for Marie, but will also I think, give her great satisfaction for the huge effort she put in while attending this course which included many weekends & mid week journeys to Dublin to attend long lectures.”