Must I pay NPPR tax on both my flats?
Q I have an investment property that is divided into two separate flats. It is not an apartment block but a house that was professionally converted some years ago. Last year (2009) I paid the NPPR tax of €200 for the building but I have since been told by another landlord that I should have paid for each flat. Can this be correct?
AYour landlord friend was correct. The NPPR charge is payable for each unit of accommodation so, annually, you should pay €200 x 2 = €400. Presumably you have also registered both rental units – separately – with the Private Residential Tenancies board (prtb.ie). From your brief note it would appear that you have only paid in 2009 which means you are now getting into arrears – and these grow every month. As you have not paid a charge at all for one of your apartments you will have to pay €200 for 2009 for that unit plus any arrears that have accrued. The "liability date" for the 2010 charge is March 31st – ie if you owned the two flats on that date (which you did) then you had three months to pay to avoid late payment charges. You missed that deadline (June 30th), so the charges will now apply there too.
How should I reply to a solicitor’s letter?
Q We received a very serious (and quite frightening – “trespass”, “court costs”, etc) solicitor’s letter from our neighbour basically telling us that they were going to erect a fence to the side of the house on what is, we know, our property. It’s a long story but basically we refused to allow them to put up the fence two years ago and assumed they understood that part of the narrow lane is ours (it is on the deeds to our house and we have used it for the past 15 years). My question is: do you have to reply to a solicitor’s letter with another (expensive) solicitor’s letter? He gave us a 10-day deadline.
ADon't panic. Legal language, unless you're in the business, can be confusing and usually feels somehow threatening. You don't need a solicitor's letter to reply to another solicitor, you can do it yourself. You could reply to the letter yourself and at the very least that reply can be in the form of an acknowledgment saying that, yes you got the letter and you are considering the matter. Or you can write a more comprehensive letter outlining in clear language the situation and your claim on the property. Did you take legal advice when the matter blew up two years ago? Where there is a dispute over boundaries (and this seems to be the case), always one of the trickiest areas in property ownership and neighbour conflict, it is wise to get legal advice – if your claim is clear then an equally strong letter from your solicitor might be just what's required to bring the matter to a conclusion. How are relations with next door? You could try talking to your neighbours. Though admittedly it may have gone beyond that.
Your questions
Send your queries to Property questions, The Irish Times, The Irish Times Building, 24-28 Tara Street, Dublin 2 or e-mail propertyquestions@irishtimes.com. This column is a readers’ service and is not intended to replace professional advice.
