How the opportunity score works
Buildable reads public records every night and flags Dublin sites with a reason to sell now. Each site gets a score from 0 to 100 so you know where to look first.
1. The signals
A signal is a public fact about a site. Some say far more than others:
| Signal | Strength | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Permission running out | Highest | The owner must build or lose the permission. |
| Council selling land | Highest | The council has decided to sell. |
| Stalled build | High | Started, then stopped. |
| Permission expired | High | Expired without a start. A reapplication opportunity. |
| Derelict site | High | On a council register; a 7% annual levy applies. |
| On the RZLT map, no permission | Medium | 3% land tax each year and nothing permitted yet. |
| Permitted, not started | Medium | Permitted, not started, not yet urgent. |
| Refused, could be redesigned | Medium | Refused, but a revised scheme could work. |
| Publicly owned land | Medium | Owned by a public body. |
| Underused site | Lower | Built far below what the zoning allows. |
| On the RZLT map (3% land tax) | Lower | On the land tax map. |
Fresh and urgent signals count more: a permission running out within three months scores higher than one with a year left.
2. The score
- Signals first. The strongest signal sets the score; others add to it, never past 100.
- Size. 0.5–5 hectares scores best. Very small or very large sites score lower.
- Zoning. Residential and mixed-use zoning score best; industrial and open space lower.
Strong 65+ · Worth a look 40–64 · Weak under 40.
3. Where the data comes from
- Planning applications and decisions from every Dublin council
- Appeals (An Coimisiún Pleanála) and commencement notices (BCMS)
- The councils' derelict sites registers
- The Residential Zoned Land Tax maps
- Council land disposals (s.183) from council meeting records
- The Land Development Agency's register of public land
Every fact on a site page links to its source. The planning records are gathered by Planning Register, our sister site, and Planning Register’s sources page shows how fresh each one is.
4. What the score is not
It’s a guide to where to look first. It isn’t a valuation, a prediction or advice. Records can lag: councils publish at different speeds, and the date each source was last updated is shown on the map.
Who runs Buildable
Buildable is built in Dublin by John McEnroe, who also runs Planning Register, the planning applications, appeals and deadlines around any Irish address, and Cara, which helps people buying a home deal with the estate agent.