��Ʒ����������ҹ����

The Local Government (Charges) Act 2009 affected and continues to affect the sale of certain ‘residential property’ (as defined in the 2009 act), being in essence non-principal private residences (NPPR) from 31 July 2009. Section 3 of the act imposed an obligation on ‘the owner’ of such a property on the liability dates of 31 July 2009 and 31 March in the years from 2010 to 2013 inclusive to pay a charge of €200 to the local authority in which the NPPR was located.

Section 7(1) of the 2009 act states: “Any charge or late payment fee due and unpaid by an owner of residential property shall, subject to subsection (2), be and remain a charge on the property to which it relates.”

Section 7(2) states further: “The said property shall not, as against a bona fide purchaser for full consideration in money or money’s worth or a mortgagee, remain charged with or liable to the payment of such unpaid charge or late payment fee after the expiration of 12 years from the date upon which the amount concerned fell due.”

The committee has received a large number of queries from the profession as to whether or not a purchaser and/or a solicitor for a purchaser who acquires such a property for full consideration in money or money’s worth after the expiry of 12 years from a given liability date as defined in section 3(1) of the 2009 act should be concerned with any liability for non-principal private residence charge falling due on such liability date. As stated above, the first liability date was 31 July 2009.

Given the significance of this issue for the profession, the committee obtained an opinion on the matter from a leading conveyancing counsel. The advices received from counsel were that a bona fide purchaser acquiring property for full consideration in money or money’s worth following the expiry of 12 years from a given NPPR liability date does not need to be concerned with any liability for non-principal private residence charge due in respect of such liability date.

While it is not the practice of the committee to interpret the law (and therefore practitioners should consider this matter themselves), the committee does give guidance to the profession on a regular basis on what it believes to be prudent conveyancing practice.

The committee is of the opinion that it is reasonable for a prudent solicitor to advise a purchaser acquiring property for full consideration in money or money’s worth to proceed with a purchase without raising any requisitions or objections in relation to any NPPR charge outstanding following the expiry of 12 years from its liability date. Otherwise, the 12-year limit referred to in section 7(2) of the 2009 act would be meaningless.