Start here · 13 steps
Building your own home in Ireland, from site to keys
Checked 21 Oct 2026the Central Bank's mortgage measures, Revenue's rules and the scheme operators' published terms.
A self-build is a home you have built on your own site. The mortgage pays out in stages as the house goes up, and you pay interest only on what has been drawn. This journey runs from the first sums to the BER at the end, with the professionals who sign at each stage. Every figure is dated and sourced.
This journey assumes: You have a site, or are buying one, and you will have a house built on it to live in.
Work out what you can borrow and what the build will cost
The Central Bank limits apply: 4 times your income as a first-time buyer, 3.5 times otherwise, and 90% of the site and build value together. The build cost comes from an architect or quantity surveyor, with a contingency on top. The calculator shows the drawdowns as dates and the cash you need before the first one.
Find a site and check it can be built on
Zoning, local-need rules in rural areas, road access, water, sewerage and a percolation test decide whether a house can go on a site. Have an architect look before you pay a deposit, and make any purchase contract subject to planning. A family site transferred to you still needs planning and a solicitor.
Appoint an architect or engineer
An architect (the RIAI register) or a chartered engineer (Engineers Ireland) designs the house, lodges the planning, draws what the builder builds, and signs the stage certificates your lender needs. Ask for a written fee proposal by stage, and check they can sign for your lender. Give them a budget before they draw a line.
Get planning permission
The application goes to the county council with drawings, a site notice and a newspaper notice. The council decides within a set time unless it asks for more information, and a refusal can be appealed. Conditions on the permission, such as a local-need occupancy clause, affect the mortgage and a later sale, so read them with your solicitor.
Check Help to Buy and the First Home Scheme
Both schemes cover a self-build. Help to Buy refunds up to €30,000 of tax you paid (€35,000 announced for 2027) on a build valued up to €500,000, and it is paid into your loan account at the first drawdown. The First Home Scheme can take an equity share of up to 30% in a self-build within your county's ceiling. First-time buyers only, on both.
Apply for the self-build mortgage
Not every lender does self-build; a broker on the Central Bank register knows which do. The lender wants the planning permission, the drawings, a fixed-price contract or a costed schedule, the site's title and your deposit. The loan offer sets out the stages at which it pays, and the certificate it needs for each.
Buy the site, or transfer it
Your solicitor (on the Law Society's register) checks the title, the right of way, the water and the planning, and registers you as the owner. A site is charged stamp duty at the rate for land, not the 1% for a home; your solicitor will tell you the figure. A gift of a site from a parent needs a valuation and a gift letter for the lender.
Choose a builder: tender or direct labour
A fixed-price contract with one builder costs more up front and gives the lender and you a certain figure. Direct labour, where you hire each trade yourself, can cost less but you carry the risk, and some lenders will not lend on it. Your architect runs the tender and checks the prices.
Building control and insurance before you start
A commencement notice goes to the council before work starts, and for most new houses an assigned certifier is named under the Building Control (Amendment) Regulations (the BCAR). The lender needs mortgage protection in place and a self-build insurance policy on the site before the first drawdown.
The stage drawdowns
The lender pays in stages: foundations, walls to wall plate, roof on, first fix, and completion. Before each one your architect or engineer visits and signs a stage certificate. You pay interest only on the money drawn so far, so every month of delay costs. Help to Buy arrives at the first drawdown.
Completion: the certificate, the BER and the connections
At the end the architect signs the certificate of compliance and the completion certificate goes on the building control register. A BER assessor on SEAI's register rates the new house; the lender usually wants the BER before the final drawdown. The electricity and water connections have their own lead times, so apply early.
Move in: full repayments start
Once the last stage is drawn, the interest-only period ends and full repayments begin. A new house usually has a high BER, which puts a green mortgage rate within reach: ask the lender about it now, not at the end of the fixed period. Buildings insurance replaces the site policy from the day you move in.
After: LPT, the fixed rate reminder and the five-year rule
A new home is valued for LPT when you move in and the tax runs from the next 1 November. If you used Help to Buy, you must live in the house for five years or repay part of it. Set a reminder for the end of your fixed rate.
Who you need on this journey
Mortgage advisor (broker)Ticked for you
Few lenders do self-build; a broker knows which
Conveyancing solicitorYou will need this
The site, the mortgage and the deeds
Architect or architectural technologistYou will need this
Design, planning and the stage certificates
BER assessorMost people use one
Needed before you can live in it
Mortgage protection and home insuranceMost people use one
Before the first drawdown
Questions people ask
How does a self-build mortgage work?
The lender pays the loan out in stages as the house goes up, usually foundations, walls, roof, first fix and completion, each released on a certificate from your architect or engineer. You pay interest only on what has been drawn until the last stage, then full repayments start.
Can I get Help to Buy on a self-build?
Yes, if everyone on the application is a first-time buyer and the house will be your home. The refund is up to €30,000 (€35,000 announced for 2027) and 10% of the value, up to a €500,000 valuation, and it is paid into your loan account at the first drawdown.
How much deposit do I need for a self-build?
At least 10% of the site and build cost together, under the 90% limit. If you already own the site, its value counts towards your side, which can cover most or all of the deposit. The lender still wants to see savings for the costs.
Do I need an architect for a self-build?
The lender needs a stage certificate before each drawdown from a qualified person with professional indemnity insurance: an architect, a chartered engineer or, with some lenders, a building surveyor. Most self-builds use one of them from design to completion.
What is the BCAR?
The Building Control (Amendment) Regulations. For most new houses an assigned certifier inspects during the build and certifies that it complies with the building regulations, and a commencement notice and a completion certificate go on the council's register.
Can I build on direct labour?
Some lenders allow it and some do not. On direct labour you hire each trade yourself and carry the risk on cost and timing. A broker on the Central Bank register can say which lenders accept it and what they ask for.