Will tax man find me?: I bought a Spanish apartment as an investment some years ago, mostly with cash but also with a small personal loan. I didn't declare it to the Irish Revenue. Could they possibly find out about it?
The Revenue has declared its interest in finding out about properties owned by Irish people, particularly in France and Spain. No one knows just how many properties have been bought by Irish people and, thanks to at least some of them being bought for cash, there would appear to be no easy way to find out. If a buyer has a mortgage either here or abroad then it would be relatively simple to find out who owns what. But even with a cash sale it's not impossible to detect ownership because, even though there is no mortgage, there will still be a paper trail - a lot will depend on how determined the Revenue are.
A non resident in Spain, for example, has to get a non-resident identity card from the local police and local taxes must also be paid. The Revenue also has the power to make Irish estate agents hand over information, although industry sources suggest that only about 10 per cent of properties abroad are bought using an Irish estate agent. The majority of properties are bought either privately or through local estate agents. Also, there has been increased cooperation between tax authorities across the EU. Tax in Spain can be complex for non residents, and there are a number of differences between owning a property in Spain as an investment and owning one here. One example of this is that even if an investor never rents out their apartment in Spain there would be a presumed rent of up to two per cent of the rateable value of the property and the deemed rent would be taxable at a rate of 25 per cent by the Spanish authorities. It is crucial that anyone contemplating buying property abroad gets independent financial advice particularly in relation to tax implications. This is horribly tedious and boring when compared with talking about sea views and swimming pools but if you consider the staggering amount of interest and penalties the Revenue can load onto a tax bill then it's worth coming clean now or, best of all, getting it right from the start. Take independent financial advice now.
Crumbling cork floor: I want to replace the flooring in a sunroom. It is cork tile which was probably laid in the early 1960s. When I started to take the tiles up they crumbled and a good bit stayed stuck to the concrete floor along with great gloops of glue. I don't want to chip away at them in case I cut away chunks of the concrete sub floor. Any suggestions?
Removing properly laid cork tiles is messy but is easy when you get a good run at it. Some people have success with a blow torch but the mixture of highly flammable glue, cork and a naked flame is a dangerous one in the hands of an inexperienced DIYer. A better option would be an electric hot-air gun to soften up the old glue. Scrape the glue from the floor using a wide stripping knife. Remember to wear protective gloves and safety glasses. Incidentally many types of flooring will happily go down on top of cork tiles if the cork is in good condition.
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Unfortunately, it is not possible to respond to all questions received. 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.
