Q&A

Agent changed clause in contract without my consent

QI placed my property for sale with an agent who agreed a sale after some negotiation. But the agent, under the buyer's instructions, removed the subject to contract/ contract denied clause without my knowledge on receipt of the deposit. Is this an important clause, should the agent have agreed a "binding" sale without my knowledge or do I have grounds for a reprieve? A case of an over-eager agent perhaps?

AYou don't say if your agent is a member of a professional body for auctioneers and agents, but we ran your question by Alan Cooke, CEO of IAVI, the professional body to which many agents are signed up to, for his opinion. In his view, a receipt can be a "memorandum" sufficient to enforce a contract for sale unless conditioned by the term "subject to contract" or wording to that effect. But, unless you instructed the agent to proceed without the conditions you refer to, which are standard conditions, it seems that the agent acted outside their authority and would not have the power to bind you to the removal of the conditions. He doubts that a binding contract exists in such circumstances, but he advises that you immediately consult your solicitor and take whatever action is advised. Unless a satisfactory explanation is forthcoming from the agent as to why they took this action, it would not be in your best interest to permit the agency to continue and an alternate properly qualified agent should be appointed, with the transition being handled by your solicitor to reduce the possibility of exposure to a double claim for agency fees in the event of a sale. If the agent is a member of a professional body then a complaint to that body should be considered. If not, he suggests a complaint to the fledgling Property Services Regulatory Authority could be appropriate.

How much will attic insulation save us?

QIs there any way of measuring how much we might save if we insulate the attic? It seems a lot of these energy saving measures we should be taking in our houses have a long payback period and we don't intend staying forever in this house.

AYou are right that energy efficiency measures, particularly the expensive ones such as solar energy and geo thermal heating systems, seem to have relatively long payback periods but attic insulation is cheap and the results are felt immediately in both comfort levels in the house and the size of the heating bills. According to SEI (Sustainable Energy Ireland) insulating the 50sq m (540sq ft) attic space of a typical house costs around €254 and could save approximately €76 a year (up to 20 per cent of your fuel bill) so it would pay for itself in about three years. Definitely worth doing.

Your questions

Send your queries to Property questions, The Irish Times, The Irish Times Building, 24-28 Tara Street, Dublin 2 or email propertyquestions@irish-times.ie. This column is a readers' service and is not intended to replace professional advice. No individual correspondence will be entered into.