A selection of your property queries answered.

Contract wasn't sent to solicitor

Over three weeks ago I put down a deposit on a new apartment and the estate agent said that the next thing that would happen would be that contracts would be issued to my solicitors and then I would have 21 days to pay the full deposit. So far my solicitor has not received the contracts and there seems to be no clear indication as to when this might happen. Where does this leave me?

In an ideal world, new developments would not go on the market until all the behind-the-scenes paperwork was complete and contracts were ready to be posted off to the buyer's solicitor the minute a booking deposit was put down. But as everyone knows by now, the buying and selling of property does not take place in such a world.

What often happens - and it appears to have happened with you - is that the contracts are simply not ready, that the apartments were put on the market before all the legal details were complete. A number of documents, for example, the relevant maps, have to be put together before a contract can be issued and it's the gathering of these that is usually the source of the hold-up.

This column recently heard of a case where the buyer was waiting two months for the contract to be issued - in her case the delay suited, as it gave her time to gather up funds, but that's not the case for everyone.

Your solicitor should be able to get an accurate idea of when your contract should be issued or at the very least, get the reason for the hold-up. This should put your mind at rest that there is nothing sinister going on.

Estate agents specialising in new homes are very used to this sort of thing and should be able to give you a timescale so if you haven't asked the agent directly, do so.

You might also mention how unhappy you are with the situation. It's always in the developer's interest to issue contracts as soon as possible simply because no developer wants buyers to have time to look around at other developments and to change their minds. After the contract is issued, you still have 21 days to get your snag list done and sign.

The problem is our neighbours

We live in a semi-detached house and are putting it on the market soon. The problem is the neighbours. Their house is in bits, broken window in the front door, torn net curtains and the front garden is overgrown and full of motorbike parts. There is a broken-down car in the driveway. The whole thing is an eyesore. We can't ask them to do anything about it as we don't get on but we are seriously concerned that it will prevent the sale of the house. Is there anything that we can do?

There's no doubt that most housebuyers do take a good look next door and you have no way of knowing exactly how they will be influenced by your neighbours.

Buyers tend to take a broader view and will also be interested in how the rest of the houses in your estate are kept.

Are they more like your's or your neighbours? If it's the former, buyers might take the view that the next door situation can't go on forever and at some point a new owner will clear up.

From your description, it seems to be down to aesthetics - there aren't, for example, piles of rotting rubbish in the front garden which might be of immediate interest to the local authority.

Send your queries to Property Questions, The Irish Times, 10-16 D'Olier Street, Dublin 2 or e-mail propertyquestions@irish-times.ie.

Unfortunately, it is not possible to respond to all questions. The above is a representative sample of queries received. This column is a readers' service and is not intended to replace professional advice. No individual correspondence will be entered into.