What is an OMC when buying an apartment?

The Owners' Management Company is the company that owns and runs the common areas of the development, and every apartment owner is automatically a member. When you buy, you take on a share of its costs and its problems, which is why checking the OMC's health is as important as checking the apartment itself.

Is a high service charge a bad sign?

Not necessarily. A realistic charge that funds a healthy sinking fund is often safer than a suspiciously low one that leaves the OMC unable to pay for major works, which then arrive as special levies. Look at the budget and the reserve together, not the headline figure alone.

What is a sinking fund and why does it matter to a buyer?

A sinking fund is the OMC's ring-fenced savings for large future works like a roof or a lift, required under section 19 of the MUD Act 2011. A well-funded reserve means big works are already paid for; a thin one means they will be funded by levies on owners, including you.

What are remediation levies?

In some developments, owners face levies to fund fire-safety or defects remediation, sometimes running to several thousand euro per unit. Always ask whether any remediation is planned or under way, because a levy approved before you complete can still fall to you afterwards.

Can I get the checklist as a PDF?

Yes. Use the Print / save PDF button on the checklist to save or print a clean copy to bring to viewings and to your solicitor. There is no sign-up and no email required.

Free resource

The apartment buyer's OMC checklist.

Before you buy an apartment in Ireland, check the company that runs the building. These are the questions to put to the agent and your solicitor, each with why it matters, free to use and print. No sign-up.

Start the checklist What is an OMC?

The charge is only the start

A low service charge can hide an empty sinking fund and a levy around the corner. This checklist surfaces the full cost of the building, not just the headline.

Ask before you are committed

Most of these answers are easy to get before you bid, and painful to discover after you complete. The list is ordered so you can work through it with the agent and your solicitor.

Plain English, not legalese

Every item says why it matters in one line, so you know what a bad answer actually means for you as an owner. It is general information, not legal advice.

The checklist

Twenty questions, six areas.

Tick as you go, then print or save the list to bring to viewings and to your solicitor.

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The service charge

What you will actually pay every year, and how it is worked out.

The sinking fund

The reserve that pays for big future works like the roof or the lift.

Arrears & financial health

Whether the OMC is actually collecting what it is owed.

Governance & the AGM

Whether the company running your building is actually functioning.

Insurance & compliance

The risks that can turn into a bill with your name on it.

The sale pack & the small print

The documents your solicitor needs, and the clauses that catch buyers out.

Why it matters

Why the OMC matters as much as the apartment

When you buy an apartment in an Irish multi-unit development, you are not just buying the unit. You are joining the Owners' Management Company that owns and runs the roof, the lifts, the grounds, the insurance and the shared services, and you take on a share of its costs and its problems. A beautiful apartment in a badly run OMC can cost you far more, in levies, disputes and stress, than the sticker price ever suggested.

The three questions that catch buyers out

First, the sinking fund: is there one, and is it real? A low service charge often hides an empty reserve, which means the next big job arrives as a special levy. Second, arrears: if a lot of owners are not paying, the ones who do, soon including you, carry the gap. Third, remediation: fire-safety and defects work can run to thousands of euro per unit, and a levy approved before you complete can still land on you afterwards. The checklist above puts each of these in front of you before you are committed.

Who to ask, and when

Most of these answers come from three sources: the selling agent, the OMC's managing agent, and the OMC sale pack your solicitor requests. Ask the easy financial and governance questions early, before you bid, and rely on your solicitor to pull the sale pack and the formal documents once you go sale-agreed. Bring the printed checklist to viewings so nothing gets forgotten in the excitement. This is general information, not legal advice; your solicitor is the right person to advise on your specific purchase.

Questions

Buying into an OMC, answered plainly.

Check the current service charge for that specific unit and the budget behind it; whether there is a sinking fund and its balance; the level of arrears across the development; whether the OMC's CRO filings and AGMs are up to date; that block insurance is adequate; the fire-safety and remediation status; and that your solicitor has the OMC sale pack. This free checklist walks through each, with why it matters.

Run an OMC, or manage one?

This is the health check. Cuan is how it stays healthy.

The best answer to every question on this list is an OMC run properly: charges collected, a funded sinking fund, arrears chased, and the board able to prove it. That is what Cuan does.

See OMC software Read the guides