Most people in Ireland sell through an estate agent, who must be licensed by the PSRA and typically charges 1% to 2.5% of the sale price plus VAT, which is €2,500 to €6,250 plus VAT on a €250,000 home. You are not legally obliged to use one, though selling privately means doing the marketing, viewings and offer handling yourself. Either way you need a BER certificate to advertise and a solicitor for the legal side. If the home has been your only or main residence, the profit is usually exempt from Capital Gains Tax.
Selling is less mapped-out than buying, but the shape of it is simple: get the home ready to advertise, find a buyer, agree a price, and let the solicitors complete the legal transfer. This guide covers what an agent does and what they charge, what you need before you go to market, the steps, and the tax.
Do you need an estate agent?
Legally, no. There is no requirement in Irish law to use an estate agent (auctioneer) to sell your home, and some people do sell privately. In practice the large majority use an agent, because pricing knowledge, marketing reach, running viewings and reading which buyers are serious are the whole job, and doing it yourself while holding down work is harder than it looks.
If you do use an agent, two things are worth knowing. They must be licensed by the PSRA (Property Services Regulatory Authority), and you can check any agent's licence on the public register at psr.ie before you sign anything. They must also give you a Property Services Agreement setting out the fee and terms at the outset. Read the fee basis carefully: a percentage, a flat fee and a "sole agency" period are all negotiable, and the agreement is where the answer lives.
Choosing an agent
- Ask what they will charge, in writing, and whether the percentage is of the final sale price including or excluding VAT.
- Ask what the fee covers: photography, floor plans, advertising, viewings, and which portals they list on.
- Check the PSRA register at psr.ie for the licence number they give you.
- Ask about the sole agency term. A long tie-in with an agent who underperforms is the most common regret.
- Compare two or three valuations, and be wary of the highest number if nobody can explain it with comparable sales.
What you need before you list
- A BER certificate. A Building Energy Rating is legally required to advertise a property for sale. Arrange it with a registered BER assessor before you go to market.
- A solicitor. You will need one to handle the conveyancing (contracts, title, closing). Instruct them early so the title and paperwork are ready.
- Your title deeds and paperwork. If there is a mortgage, the deeds are usually held by your lender; your solicitor requests them. Gather planning documents, the BER, and any certificates for extensions or works.
- An asking price. Research recent sale prices for comparable homes nearby. The Property Price Register shows actual sale prices, with a few months' lag. The asking price is a guide, not a floor or a ceiling.
The selling process, step by step
- Prepare and price the home, get the BER, instruct a solicitor and an agent.
- Advertise it and let viewings happen.
- Receive offers. In a private treaty sale, buyers bid and you can accept, decline or hold out. Nothing is binding at this stage.
- Go sale agreed once you accept an offer. The buyer usually pays a booking deposit, which stays refundable until contracts are signed. Sale agreed is not legally binding on either side yet, so a sale can still fall through up to contracts.
- Contracts. Your solicitor sends the contract and answers the buyer's pre-contract enquiries. When both sides sign and the buyer pays the contract deposit (usually 10%), the sale becomes legally binding.
- Closing. On the closing date the balance is paid, your solicitor clears any mortgage, ownership transfers, and you hand over the keys.
For more on the legal stage, see the conveyancing and sale-agreed guides (the buyer-side timeline mirrors yours).
What it costs to sell
- Estate agent fee: about 1% to 2.5% of the sale price, plus VAT. On a €250,000 sale that is roughly €2,500 to €6,250 before VAT.
- Solicitor fee for the conveyancing: commonly a few hundred to around €1,500 plus VAT and outlay, depending on the solicitor and the sale.
- BER certificate: a modest one-off fee to the assessor.
- Minor costs for any cleaning, repairs or staging you choose to do.
Tax when you sell
If the home has been your only or main residence for the whole time you owned it, the gain is usually exempt from Capital Gains Tax under Principal Private Residence (PPR) Relief (the garden or land up to one acre is included). For most people selling the family home, there is no CGT to pay.
CGT does apply, at a standard rate of 33% on the taxable gain, if the property was not your main residence throughout, for example an investment property, a second home, or a home you let out for part of the time. If any of that applies, get specific advice, because partial relief and reliefs for periods of absence can be involved.
This guide is general information, not financial, legal or tax advice. Costs, rules and reliefs change, so confirm the current position with a solicitor, a PSRA-licensed agent, Revenue or the CCPC before you act.