Property owners can sign up to the Property Registration Authority alert services to monitor any activity on their property. Property is usually the most valuable asset that people own and one which can be sold and mortgaged. Unfortunately, it can be subject to fraud whereby someone impersonates either a buyer or a seller or anyone involved in the conveyancing procedure including lenders.
Certain properties are more vulnerable to fraud such as empty houses, properties that are rented, properties with no mortgage or properties having unregistered title and certain owners are vulnerable for fraud such as Landlords, deceased owners, elderly owners living in nursing homes or owners living abroad. Thankfully, in Ireland, there have been no documented cases of property fraud detected, however, as there have been quite a number of cases of such fraud in England, the Property Registration Authority in an attempt to prevent such fraud happening here, have created a Property Alert service which registered owners are advised to sign up for.
This service allows owners to sign up to the alert service online which manages alerts on registered property up to a maximum of three properties. The service will allow you to obtain email and text message alerts when an application for registration has been lodged and to receive relevant information on the application. The benefit of signing up for such a system is to provide an early warning of any activity on the property. While it won’t automatically stop fraud from happening, it affords the owner an opportunity to take immediate action if they suspect the activity to be suspicious or unexpected. To register for the Property Alert Service and for further information:
- Go to landdirect.ie
- Select the ‘Proceed as Guest’ option
- Click on Property Alerts in the menu
- Follow the instructions
Stephanie Trant Solicitor
Gerrard L. McGowan Solicitors
01 8412115
The material is for information purposes only and is a summary of principal points. Professional advice should be sought in all cases. Information is correct at the time of writing. May 2019
