How to find development land in Dublin before it is marketed

Most Dublin development land changes hands without a sign on the gate. The reason a site will move is usually in a public record months before an agent is instructed: an owner whose permission is about to die, a register entry that costs 7% of the site's value every year, a council notice that it intends to sell. Buildable reads those records for the four Dublin councils and puts every site on one map. These are the six signals, in the order they tend to matter to a buyer.

1. A permission running out

A planning permission lasts five years from the grant unless the permission says otherwise (Planning and Development Act 2000, s.40). A grant of 10 or more homes with no commencement notice and less than a year left is the strongest signal on the map: the owner must start, get an extension, or watch the value of the consent disappear. The list is at permissions running out, by council.

On 25 September 2026 the largest in Dublin City was Holy Cross College: 1,614 homes granted on 4 November 2021, expiring on 4 November 2026, not started.

2. Permitted, not started

A live grant of 10 or more homes with no commencement notice, and more than a year to run. Less urgent than a lapsing one, but it tells you who holds a consent they have not used. See permitted, not built.

3. Permission expired

The permission lapsed in the last two years without a start. The owner has sunk the cost of a planning application and has nothing to show for it; some will reapply, others will sell. They appear under permissions running out with the expiry date.

4. Stalled

A scheme of 10 or more homes (or 1,000 m² or more) that lodged a commencement notice at least three years ago, whose planned end date passed over a year ago, and that has no completion certificate. Some are finished schemes that never lodged a certificate, so check the site before you ring anyone. The list: stalled sites.

5. On the derelict sites register

Each council keeps a register of derelict sites (Derelict Sites Act 1990, s.8) and can charge the owner a levy of 7% of the market value every year the site stays on it (s.23). A registered site costs its owner money while it sits. See derelict sites and the levy and the new Derelict Property Tax.

6. A council land sale

Before a council sells, leases or swaps land it must give its elected members notice under s.183 of the Local Government Act 2001. The notice, on a meeting agenda, is often the only public trace of the sale. See council land for sale and how to buy council land.

Two background layers

Neither is a reason to sell on its own, but both narrow a search.

• The RZLT map. Land zoned and serviced for housing is liable for the Residential Zoned Land Tax. Parcels of 0.1 ha or more with no live permission for homes are on RZLT land.
• Public land. The Land Development Agency keeps a register of relevant public lands, with a public web map. Those parcels are on public land.

What to do with a signal

1. Open the site on the map and read its facts: area, zoning, every signal with its source and date.
2. Read the planning file. Each permission links to its full record on Planning Register.
3. Find the owner. A plain folio from Tailte Éireann's landdirect.ie costs €5. See who owns this site.
4. Approach with the reason in hand. "Your permission for 48 homes lapses in March" is a better opening letter than "are you selling?".

Frequently asked questions

Is a site with a signal for sale?

No. A signal is a public reason the site may change hands. It is not a listing, and many owners will not sell.

Which councils are covered?

Dublin City, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, Fingal and South Dublin. Other counties are on the waitlist.

How fresh is the data?

The site list is rebuilt nightly from the stored registers. Every signal carries its source and the date the register was read, and each week's new signals are archived at this week.