This material is based on conversations with Ukrainians who purchased housing in Ireland with their own funds or obtained mortgages, representatives from the banking sector, brokers, and those who were denied credit.

If you have sufficient funds in your account, this significantly simplifies the property purchase process. Regarding mortgages, there is no single instruction for obtaining one. Everything is individual and depends on many factors, including the number of non-working family members. What to start with when searching for housing, where to look for financing if needed, how much time passes from the moment of house purchase to moving in — read about this in our material.

Can Ukrainians Under Temporary Protection in Ireland Get a Mortgage

The law does not prohibit this, and positive cases of Ukrainians prove that banks do provide housing loans to people with TP. Brokers say: even citizens of other countries who live and work abroad but want to take a mortgage for housing in Ireland receive it, if their income and credit history meet the bank’s requirements. However, the terms of such lending will be different for them. From the bank’s perspective, such a purchase is considered an investment, so the person is classified as an investor, and the down payment for them may be 30-40 percent of the property value.

Ukrainians under TP are not legally prohibited from buying housing in Ireland. Similarly, they are not prohibited from applying for mortgage lending. However, owning property does not mean an advantage in obtaining citizenship (in case Ukrainians under TP get the opportunity to apply for it). Also, buying your own housing does not guarantee you the right to remain in the country if TP expires. At least for now, this is the case.

Why Someone Gets a Mortgage and Someone Gets Denied

Getting a mortgage, even for the Irish, is quite a complex process. And you need to prepare properly for it. Know what to talk about, have a properly prepared package of documents, etc. When a person, not knowing these nuances, goes to the first available bank, they usually get a refusal. And they conclude: Ukrainians under TP are not given mortgages.

Actually, each bank has its own lending conditions and various programs designed for different categories of people. If one bank refused, it means that this bank doesn’t work with people of your category. And you need to find an institution that does. Moreover, as brokers claim, each bank can even make exceptions for its clients.

What is a Broker and How Can They Help

A broker is an intermediary between you and a financial institution. Their job, simply put, is to find a bank that will be willing to provide credit specifically to you. People have different incomes and life situations: you’re single or a couple, have two children or four (or none), have an outstanding loan or not. These nuances affect the bank’s decision. And the broker knows which bank works with whom and where there are better chances of getting a mortgage. The broker is interested in you getting a mortgage because only then will they receive their fee. By the way, you don’t pay for the broker’s services — the bank does. Brokers work with both banks and various financial institutions.

Can you apply for a mortgage without a broker’s help? You can. But for success, you need to have a certain amount of information and, preferably, have a stable high income level.

Working with the Bank

The documents you submit to the banking institution may remain under review for a long time. Usually two to three months. If more than three months, some documents may be expired and need to be updated and resubmitted.

After reviewing the documents, the bank may refuse or give approval. If you received a positive response from the bank, this doesn’t yet mean money will be issued. The bank still has the ability to refuse, for example, at the stage of submitting additional documents.

Tip

For the bank, it’s important how many people in the family are dependents. If the wife doesn’t work and depends on the husband’s income, she’s also counted as a dependent. So it’s desirable for the wife (or husband, if he’s on childcare leave) to be employed at least part-time.

Basic Bank Conditions for Getting a Mortgage

Each bank has its own conditions, so there’s no single list of rules that guarantees success. You can orient yourself to the following. A person must work officially for at least one year. In some banks, these conditions are more serious — three years of official employment. If you’re self-employed, usually two years of business operation is required.

The mandatory document that starts the review of your application is the salary certificate. This is for people who work as employees. This document is issued at the workplace (income statement).

An important detail — they count basic income, meaning overtime is not considered.

For private entrepreneurs, it’s necessary to provide tax returns for the last two years.

A mandatory condition is your clean credit history. The bank will check this, and usually credit history is kept for at least 10 years. If you had credit problems — this doesn’t mean automatic refusal. If violations are minor and you can provide strong arguments for why it happened, there will be a chance to get a mortgage.

You also need to show the bank your savings — because you have to pay 10 percent of the property value you’re planning to buy.

Fact: Mortgages are issued for both new construction and secondary market housing

What Mortgage Amount Can You Count On

If you’re alone — your annual salary is multiplied by three. If you’re a couple, it’s multiplied by 4. If you’re buying your first home — the down payment will be no less than 10 percent of the house value. If it’s a second home, then the payment is from 20 percent.

The average earnings in Ireland is 35 thousand per year. Multiply this figure, for example, by four — maximum you can get 140 thousand euros. Separately, you must have at least 10 percent of these 140 thousand for the down payment. Plus expenses for lawyer, tax, inspector, house and health insurance, and deposit.

The cost of lawyer services and house tax depends on the house value. The guideline in figures is 6-8 thousand euros.

An important point — the interest rate on your mortgage loan depends on the house’s insulation certificate! So they recommend buying not secondary housing, but new construction.

The broker should accompany all stages of the deal, help with filling out necessary documents for the bank. The deposit that is made and remains with the lawyer is considered in the final calculation.

How to Look for a House

So, if you have cash available or took a mortgage, the search for an object usually happens like this:

You look for a house on housing websites — contact the agency that sells it. You write about your interest, wait for viewing.

Ukrainians who bought housing recommend looking for small real estate agencies. Large ones usually have expensive real estate, clients with thick wallets, auctions. Small agencies may have simpler offers and not auctions, but regular bidding.

Here’s one of the stories:

“We got confirmation from the bank about the mortgage, found a house on daft — called the agency and stated our price. Then over several weeks, bids were raised by all people who also wanted this house. Then the agency called us and said our bid was accepted. Then we called the broker, informed him of the news so he could start all processes. Usually, brokers already work with lawyers and contact them themselves to prepare the contract. While there’s no contract, you can still refuse the deal, just like the seller.

So, when the seller approved you — a deposit is made. It’s kept exclusively with the lawyer.

The deal with you is concluded after the seller chose you and the agent asks for your lawyer’s contacts. That is, you must have a potential lawyer even at the stage of entering bidding.”

Housing Search Here

• www.daft.ie 
• www.myhome.ie 

From the moment of purchase to moving into the house, on average, 2 to 8 months pass. Rather count on 6-8 months — this scenario is more realistic.

After the above-described procedures, the broker must arrange house insurance.

From the bank’s side, expect an inspector’s visit. They come to assess whether you’re really buying a house suitable for living. The inspector’s visit costs approximately 160-200 euros.

You also need health insurance.

How Much Money You Need to Have

If you won the deal (bidding), you should have approximately this amount:

• 10 percent down payment 
• 6-8 thousand euros for lawyer (this amount includes house tax). Lawyer’s cost is a certain percentage of the house value 
• 200 euros — house assessment by bank inspector 
• Housing insurance (approximately 50 euros monthly) 
• Life insurance (guideline — 120 euros monthly) 

If There’s No Money for Down Payment

Sometimes people take a loan for the down payment at another bank. Keep in mind: at the bank where you’re getting the mortgage, you’ll be asked to prove the origin of this money. If you say it’s a gift from parents, then in Ireland there’s a tax on expensive gifts. If you sold your own real estate in Ukraine and want to use this money for the down payment on new housing, you must provide the bank with a purchase-sale document in English and notarized.

Auction and Bidding

What they call an auction when buying a house isn’t always that. Indeed, some real estate can be sold through auction systems in the sense we’re used to. Here’s one of the stories we were told:

“You come, several rows of chairs are arranged in the hall. Interestingly, experienced buyers take back seats, and beginners sit in front.

When they put an object up for bidding, people state their price, the price grows. Then sold.

The process continues until all objects are either sold or withdrawn from bidding due to insufficient price.

If you won the auction, you need to immediately make a deposit and hire a lawyer for legal processing of the deal. The whole process can take from several weeks to several months.”

This is an example of a real auction, however, usually by auction they mean bidding. That is, there’s a house viewing with an initial cost, for example, 100 thousand euros. After viewing, the realtor sends emails with a proposal to announce your price for the house. Everyone sends their price they’re ready to pay. And you receive letters where you’re informed that the housing cost has increased. You propose your price. As a result, the broker informs the winner: their price was accepted by the owner. And others are informed that their price didn’t work. You, of course, can exit the bidding at any moment if you’re not ready to pay the price the house has grown to.

During this bidding, you don’t need to confirm your solvency. Moreover, if your bid worked, it doesn’t mean you must buy the house. You can refuse and bidding will start over.

Conclusions

Buying housing in Ireland for Ukrainians under temporary protection is quite possible. If you have the full amount available — this reduces your troubles. Key factors in getting a mortgage are: stable official employment for at least a year, clean credit history, having 10% of housing value for down payment, and additionally 6-10 thousand euros for related expenses.

Working with an experienced broker significantly increases chances of mortgage approval, as they know the specifics of different banks and can find the best conditions for your situation. Remember: refusal at one bank doesn’t mean impossibility of getting credit at another.