The build
Manage your self-build or hire a main contractor?
Hire trades or use a main contractor for your Irish self-build? Compare time, payment gaps, safety duties, certification and delay costs.
Stage 5 of 7
Notify Building Control
Appoint your assigned certifier (the independent professional who inspects and certifies your build) and your builder, then lodge the commencement notice with the council before you start.
What happens
- You appoint an assigned certifier and a builder and sign the statutory documents.
- You lodge the commencement notice 14 to 28 days before work starts, and wait for it to validate.
- You agree the contract with your builder or set up your own project management.
Typical time: Allow several weeks to prepare, plus a 14 to 28 day notice window.
Your checklist
Stage complete
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Guides for this stage
Start with the first guide, or choose the part you need help with.
The build
Choosing a builder and the building contract for a self-build
How to shortlist and check a builder in Ireland, what a building contract should cover, and how to link payments, retention and insurance to it.
Regulations
Commencement notice: what to file before you start
What to include with a commencement notice for a new house in Ireland, who signs it, when to file it and how to report changes.
The build
If your builder goes bust or walks off the job
What to do when your builder stops work on your self-build in Ireland: secure the site, value the work, close the insurance gap, restart and recover money.
Regulations
Assigned certifier: who to appoint and what to agree
Choose an assigned certifier for your Irish self-build: eligible professions, inspection plans, fees, records and what to agree before work starts.
Regulations
Building Regulations: what your house must meet
What the Irish Building Regulations require for a new house, Part by Part from A to M, who is legally responsible, and how technical guidance fits in.
Regulations
Fire safety and access rules for your new house
Does a self-build house need a fire safety certificate or disability access certificate? What the regulations exempt, and what Parts B and M still require.