Finders Tackle Housing Issue

Probate genealogy company Finders International has recently launched a new service across Ireland relating to vacant and derelict properties. Given the very nature of the services provided by Finders, it was felt that it could help identify some of the vast amount of unused properties in Ireland. More known by solicitors for its ability to trace beneficiaries and unknown next of kin to estates, Finders has begun to realise that it is in the unique position of being able to establish title and identify and locate the owners or beneficial owners of such properties nationwide.

Business development manager for Finders, Padraic Grennan, explains what the service entails. “There are many reasons why a property might become empty or derelict,” says Grennan. “We are assisting solicitors, members of the public and local authorities who have problems in identifying who the owners of certain properties are.”

If the owner of a property passes away being the last surviving member of their family, having not married or had children themselves, it can sometimes be difficult to identify the owners of that property. It is cases like this that Grennan and his colleagues are working on regularly. A recent case of a derelict house in Co Meath for example, saw them tracing beneficial owners in Canada and the US who were completely unaware of their entitlement. “The goal is to have these empty homes placed back on the marketplace so that they can be sold, refurbished and back in circulation as housing stock. It’s a solution to a very small part of the housing crisis we are facing today,” said Grennan

This article has been first published in “the Parchment” Summer 2017 issue 72