Liam Keane & Partners Solicitors

B.E.R. Certificates (Building Energy Rating Certificates) are required from the 1 st of January 2009 for the following properties:

•  All new dwellings where the planning permission was applied for on or after the 1st of January 2007 ,

•  All new buildings where planning permission was applied for on or after the 1st of July 2008 , and

•  All existing buildings that are offered for sale or rent after 2009.

There are some exemptions to the requirement for a B.E.R. Certificate which include dwellings for which planning permission have been applied prior to the 1st of January 2007 and which have their external walls completed before the 30th of June 2008 or other new buildings other than dwellings where planning permission predates the 30th of June 2008 and which have substantial work completed by the 30th of June 2010. Other buildings that are exempt from the necessity for a B.E.R. Certificate include protected structures, national monuments, buildings used as a place of worship, temporary buildings, agricultural buildings and standard owned buildings of less than fifty metres square.

The effect of the new B.E.R. regulations is that any potential vendor placing their property on the market after the 1 st of January 2009 must have obtained a B.E.R. Certificate for this premises. This enables a potential purchaser to compare the B.E.R. Certificates for various premises which they are considering buying with the result that they can pick the most energy efficient premises. This can have a knock on effect in relation to the price of the property for sale as a property with a high B.E. R. rating, in theory, should be of a higher value than a property with a lower B.E. R. rating. In effect, where a person is placing a property on the market they should provide the auctioneer with a B.E.R. Certificate so that this is available to potential viewers.

The Building Control Authority has the power to demand a copy of the B.E.R. Certificate and the penalties for non-compliance include fines of up to €5,000 and / or three months imprisonment or both.

A B.E.R. Certificate can only be furnished by a trained and registered B.E.R. Assessor. These assessors must declare any conflict of interest and are traced back to a property by reference to the MPRN Number of the property which appears on your ESB bill.

Once issued, a B.E.R. Certificate will be valid for ten years and, where properties are sold 'off the plans', a provisional certificate may be furnished which is valid for two years and which must be superseded by an actual certificate before a sale or lease is completed.

Assessors must be registered with S.E.I. (Sustainable Energy Ireland) who are the registering body and who have formulated the framework and methodology for assessment. The assessor must have passed the appropriate qualifying examination and paid the registration fees. The assessor must also abide by a code of conduct which includes declaration of any conflict of interest.

The methodology involved requires the assessor to undertake an inspection of the building. The performance of building elements such as walls and roofs on the building is calculated from assumed construction based on the age of the house. The rating will be based on predetermined settings such as the number of occupants, heating period, heating temperature, lighting input and the performance of building fabric based on the age of property.

The cost of these Certificates is likely to differ between different sized houses. A list of approved assessors and B.E.R. contact information is available from the S.E.I. website at 
www.sei.ie/your-building/BER/ .

Hardly the first question on people's minds in these uncertain times one might say. With so many pressing things to worry about and concern ourselves with in our everyday lives these days it may be regarded as a luxury to have time to worry about what's going to happen after we die. That's all be for somebody else to deal with, rightt?? But what if they don't? Or do so not in the way you would like? What if all the possessions, the money, the home you've worked so hard to acquire over the years, fall into the wrong hands? What if the children you have looked after suddenly find themselves not only grieving but subsequently in the midst of arguments and legal battles between persons or family members who may not be the people you would chose to look after your children if you were no longer here to do so. Are these questions that any of us shouldn't perhaps take a moment to consider?

So why make a will? At its most basic a will is a document which sets out how you would wish your affairs to be dealt with after your death. Mostly a will deals with property. Your will nominate s the person or persons to whom you would like your property to pass after you die. But what if I have no property then surely I don't need a will? Not true. Property doesn't just mean land or buildings. Everything we own including land, buildings, cars, savings, furniture, jewellery, personal effects, even pets make up your estate. Wills, when drafted properly, deal with all of your estate.

Also, if you have children and suddenly you're no longer around to care for them a guardian(s) must be appointed. Without a will the persons you may wish to act as guardians possibly will have no legal status to do so. Your will sets out all of your intentions and limits the potential for any conflict with regard to your affairs once you have passed away. You may also use your will to convey your wishes in relation to funeral arrangements, a topic most people find difficult to discuss and often easier to deal with in writing.

So let's say you decide to make a will, what next? Do you need a solicitor? Technically, no. There is no legal requirement that a will be drafted or witnessed by a solicitor. So why bother? There are no less than nine basic elements in a very standard will. If any one of these elements is missing or is incorrect the will becomes partly or even entirely invalid. The intentions which may have been carefully thought out and stated may be disregarded or worse, argued over in open court. In addition to the legal requirements for making a valid will your solicitor will also advise you on the obligations you may have to provide for certain persons in your will, such as spouses and/or children. The courts are frequently required to deal with cases of challenges to wills brought by people who believe they have not been adequately provided for. Your solicitor will advise you of these obligations and so assist you in drafting a will which provides peace of mind in knowing that your affairs will be properly dealt with in accordance with your wishes after your passing.

If you have young children you may wish to ensure that your estate or part of your estate is held in trust for them to ensure their guardians have the resources to bring them up in the manner you would wish . Trusts are complex legal devices but with the correct advice and careful drafting you can easily incorporate one into your will.

But aren't there rules which automatically deal with these matters? Doesn't everything just go to my next of kin? Not necessarily. Of course there are rules in place which state how a deceased person's estate is divided up. These rules are known as the Rules of Intestacy. But the Rules of Intestacy are complex and where next of kin are not easily identifiable or there is more than one then property may be divided up between numerous people in such manner as to make it virtually impossible to deal with and practically worthless. This can often be a cause of great stress for persons left behind. Take for instance a wife not working outside the home who's husband has died leaving a house in his name only and children to provide for. She may need to re-mortgage the family home to raise capital or even sell the home and move on at some point in the future but the family home is now partially in her name and partially in the names of the children, leaving it very difficult indeed to deal with. Such a situation is easily avoidable by making a will.

Finally, as if above is not convincing enough to make a will, there may be one last factor which could be very be compelling. Tax. Not only are wills instruments to convey one's wishes they are effective tax planning devices. And in these times of income levies and bank bail-outs that's surely something we all want to consider.