FAQs

On this page you will find answers to our most frequently asked questions about the Agency and its work. Click on the question that matches your criteria to view the answer.

Questions about the Properties Enforced Listing

  • Why is a property listed as “for sale” on the NAMA website, but listed as “sold” on the Sales Agent website?

    The information displayed on the NAMA website is provided by the insolvency practitioner at the end of each month. The data provided by the insolvency practitioner is for the previous month e.g. at the end of July the insolvency practitioner provides data for June. In a small number of cases, the property may be sold in between. The insolvency practitioner will update the information provided to NAMA in the next reporting period.

  • Where do I find the Enforced Properties Listing on the NAMA website?

    You can find the Enforced Properties Listing by clicking on the Property section page of this website

  • I am interested in buying property on NAMA’s books. How can I do so?

    NAMA was set up to acquire loans from certain financial institutions and it does not own property as such. In most cases, the property securing these loans is under the control of the debtor. A borrower whose loans have been deemed eligible and have been transferred to the Group. The borrower is referred to by the Group as a debtor. A debtor connection is a group of loans that are connected to a debtor and will remain so as long as the debtor continues to meet his obligations. If, therefore, you have a specific property in mind that you wish to purchase, it is best to approach the debtor directly. Debtors, as part of their business plan agreements with NAMA, will have agreed to the sale of some or all of their property and these will be offered for sale through normal sales channels.

    In the case of certain debtors, NAMA has had to take enforcement action and the property securing the loans is now under the control of receivers or other insolvency agents appointed by NAMA.

  • My company can assist NAMA manage or sell the assets that are listed on the Enforced Properties Listing. How can I outline to NAMA the range of services that my company can offer?

    As NAMA is a public body, strict guidelines are in place regarding the procurement of services. In many cases, NAMA will already have panels of providers in place to provide specific property services. All such panels are formed through an open public procurement process which is advertised at www.etenders.gov.ie. You can at any time however liaise with the appointed insolvency practitioner should you wish to provide services to them with respect to management or sale of assets over which they stand appointed.

  • Can I rent an asset that is listed on the Register?

    Where you have an interest in renting, rather than buying, the property that is listed, please email the sales agent (where appointed) to determine whether the property listed is available to rent. Where the sales agent is not appointed, please email the insolvency practitioner who will advise you accordingly.

  • I want to know the identity of the original owner of the property. Will the sales agent, receiver or NAMA provide me with this information?

    No. NAMA, the sales agent or the insolvency practitioner will not be able to provide you with details of the original owner of the property. Only information regarding the specific properties that have been the subject of an enforcement action by NAMA, and the strategy for those properties (where this is developed at the time), can be provided.

  • I want to find out if a particular property is held as security by NAMA for loans to particular borrowers. The property is not listed on the Enforced Properties Listing. Can NAMA provide me with confirmation?

    No. NAMA cannot divulge details of property that it may hold as security Includes (a) a Charge, (b) a guarantee, indemnity or Surety, (c) a right of set-off, (d) a debenture, (e) a bill of exchange, (f) a promissory note, (g) collateral, (h) any other means of securing—(i) the payment of a debt, or (ii) the discharge or performance of an obligation or liability, and (i) any other agreement or arrangement having a similar effect.. NAMA can only provide details of properties where an enforcement action has been taken by NAMA on that property. All properties where an enforcement action has been taken in Ireland, Northern Ireland and Great Britain will be listed on the Enforced Properties Listing. In all other cases, NAMA will neither confirm nor deny that it has security over a property but will pass your interest onto the debtor.

  • Can a property be sold to me without the property having first been advertised for sale via a sales agent?

    As a state agency, NAMA’s policy is for properties to be sold on an open market, competitive basis in a manner that is in accordance with prevailing market norms for the asset class and the jurisdiction in which the asset is located. The principal methods of sale are (a) private treaty (b) public auction (c) public tender (d) sealed bids and (e) other disposal mechanisms tailored to the specific characteristics of the underlying property. In certain limited circumstances, NAMA may agree an alternative form of property disposal as recommended by the insolvency practitioner.

    At all times, NAMA will operate in a manner that is in accordance with the insolvency practitioner’s statutory obligation to achieve the best possible price reasonably obtainable for the property at the time of sale. Where an insolvency practitioner is appointed, he/she will determine the most appropriate method of sale for the property in order to secure the best possible price.

  • How can I place a bid on a particular property that is already for sale with a sales agent?

    Where an asset is for sale with a sales agent, please contact the sales agent directly who will provide you with property details. The sales agent will manage the sales process on behalf of the insolvency practitioner.

    Where a sales agent is not yet appointed, please email the insolvency practitioner who will record your interest. When the sales agent is appointed, the insolvency practitioner will provide your contact details to him/her and you will be contacted by the sales agent to be advised of property details, pricing etc.

  • How do I find out the price of a property that is listed on the Enforced Properties Listing?

    Where a sales agent is appointed, contact the sales agent who will provide you with details of the method of sale and an indication of the price of the property that is for sale. Where a sales agent is not yet appointed, please email the insolvency practitioner who will record your interest. When the sales agent is appointed, you will be contacted by the sales agent to be advised of property details, pricing etc.

  • How much can I expect to pay for an asset that is listed on the NAMA website?

    The insolvency practitioner has a legal responsibility to achieve the best possible price reasonably obtainable for the property at the time of sale. The insolvency practitioner, in liaison with NAMA, will manage the sales process having due regard to market factors and will determine an appropriate price level having taken professional advice.

  • When registering an interest with the insolvency practitioner, what information do I need to provide?

    At a minimum, you should provide:

    The name of the property in which you have an interest*

    • Your full name
    • Your full postal address
    • Your contact phone number
    • Your Email address (where available)

     

    *Where the property listed comprises a mix of residential, retail, office units, please describe, as specifically as possible, the property in which you have an interest. For example, state:

    • I am interested in a 2-bed apartment in X scheme
    • I am interested in a retail unit, 2,500 sq ft if available, in X scheme
    • I am interested in office space, fully fitted out if available, in X scheme
  • Where a property is not currently on the open market for sale, and where I register an interest in a particular property, when can I expect to hear back with respect to the interest that I have registered?

    The insolvency practitioner will maintain a record of all interests that are registered. You must email the insolvency practitioner at the given email address in order for your interest to be registered.  These interests will then be passed on to the sales agent when the sales agent is appointed who will in turn contact you to advise you of property details, pricing etc. The timing of the property being placed on the market for sale will vary from property to property depending on the particular circumstances of that property. However, the insolvency practitioner, in most cases, will be in a position to guide you with an indicative timeframe.

  • Where a property is not currently on the open market for sale, how long do I have to wait until it comes on the open market?

    Properties will be offered for sale as soon as is practically possible. However, in some cases the insolvency practitioner will defer the sale of the property due to specific circumstances such as legal issues or because steps are to be taken to enhance or improve the property in order to achieve the best possible price. As such, in certain circumstances, the appointment of an insolvency practitioner will not immediately result in the property being placed on the open market for sale. The timeframe for disposing each property will therefore be determined on a case-by-case basis.

  • Where an asset is listed on the Enforced Properties Listing, and where a sales agent is not yet appointed, what additional information can I obtain on that asset to determine whether I want to register an interest or not?

    The insolvency practitioner will provide enquirers with such a level of detail as they consider appropriate to enable the enquirer make an informed investment decision. There may however be occasions, for varying reasons, primarily legal issues, where the insolvency practitioner may not be able to provide you with full information on the property. When a sales agent is appointed, the normal level of information that is typically available to interested purchasers for the given asset class (e.g. private residential, commercial investment) will be disclosed by the sales agent with respect to the property that is for sale.

  • How do I know whether a property is currently on the open market for sale?

    When a property is on the open market for sale, the insolvency practitioner will appoint a sales agent to manage and execute the sales process. NAMA will publish, on the Enforced Properties Listing, contact details of the sales agent when he/she is appointed. This will be updated at the end of each month.

    If you are interested in a property that is not currently on the open market for sale (i.e. with no sales agent appointed), please email the insolvency practitioner who will record your interest. When the sales agent is appointed, the insolvency practitioner will provide your contact details to the sales agent who will in turn contact you to outline property details, pricing etc.

  • Are all properties listed on the Enforced Properties Listing currently available to buy?

    It is NAMA’s view that properties should be offered for sale as soon as is practically possible. Some properties require additional work before they can be put for sale. The insolvency practitioner will however determine the appropriate time to place the property on the open market for sale.

  • Are all NAMA enforced properties for sale?

    Insolvency practitioners have been appointed over all of the properties listed and it is the role of the insolvency practitioner to dispose of the property, achieving the best possible price reasonably obtainable for the property at the time of sale. However, in some cases the insolvency practitioner may defer the sale of the property given (for example) specific circumstances such as legal issues or he/she will decide to take steps to enhance or improve the property in order to achieve the best possible price. As such, the appointment of an insolvency practitioner may not immediately result in the property being placed on the open market for sale.

  • What is an Insolvency Practitioner? What is his/her role in the sales process of NAMA properties that have been enforced against?

    An insolvency practitioner is a generic term used to describe the party that has been appointed by either a bank/NAMA or a court to take charge of a property with a view to disposing it to repay the loan that is secured by the property. In most cases in Ireland, the insolvency practitioner listed by NAMA on the enforced properties list will be a receiver and/or statutory receiver.

    The powers of the insolvency practitioner (receiver), where appointed, will be determined by the law and the original mortgage (or debenture) documentation entered into by the borrower and the bank. In some cases, a power to manage and trade the property will exist alongside the power to dispose of the property.

Questions about Social Housing

  • Can NAMA, through its debtors and receivers, contribute to meeting demand for social housing in Ireland?

    Yes. NAMA is working closely with the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government and the Minister of State for Housing and Planning in relation to the delivery of social housing and all parties are committed to the maximum possible delivery of residential units under this important initiative. As at end June 2017, NAMA had identified over 6,945 residential properties as potentially suitable for social housing. Of these, demand has been confirmed by local authorities for 2,768 properties, of which 2,398 have now been delivered for social housing use. Confirmation of demand is a matter for local authorities and is not something in which NAMA has a role.

    Once demand for a property has been confirmed by a local authority, NAMA facilitates contact and negotiation between its debtor. A debtor connection is a group of loans that are connected to a debtor or receiver and the local authority or Approved Housing Body (‘AHB’) to acquire the property. Contractual arrangements can take the form of a lease or purchase. In general, purchases are completed by AHBs and the properties acquired are then made available to local authorities under a payment and availability agreement. NAMA’s experience is that once demand has been confirmed for properties and contracts signed there is no impediment to the early delivery of the properties by NAMA debtors and receivers. To help further streamline delivery, NAMA has also established a special purpose vehicle. A legal entity created to fulfill a narrow, specific or temporary well-defined objective. (National Asset Residential Property Services Limited  ‘NARPSL’), to take ownership of properties where there is an established demand and then lease them long-term to an AHB or Local Authority.

    The Agency’s identification of over 6,945 units represents potentially one of the single largest allocations of social housing in the history of the State

  • How do local authorities access the NAMA related housing units identified as being available for social housing provision?

    Following proactive engagement between NAMA, the Housing and Sustainable Communities Agency (Housing Agency) and the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, a process has been established to ascertain whether the identified residential properties are suitable for the social housing needs of local authorities and other prescribed housing bodies.  An important consideration for local authorities when assessing the suitability of identified houses and apartments is the requirement to provide for an appropriate mix of housing tenures and to avoid undue segregation in housing within developments and specific areas. 

    The onus is on local authorities to establish the suitability of the property concerned.  Once demand has been confirmed, NAMA facilitates contact and negotiation between its debtor.  A borrower whose loans have been deemed eligible and have been transferred to the Group. The borrower is referred to by the Group as a debtor. A debtor connection is a group of loans that are connected to a debtor/receiver and the authority concerned.  Contractual arrangements can take the form of a lease, or, in certain circumstances in the case of Approved Housing Bodies (AHBs), there is scope to acquire the properties which are then made available to local authorities under a payment and availability agreement.

    In addition, following a review by NAMA of the issues involved in the delivery of properties to the social housing sector, a special purpose vehicle was established. A legal entity created to fulfill a narrow, specific or temporary well-defined objective., National Asset Residential Property Services Limited, has been established to facilitate its commitment to provide residential properties for social housing purposes and to provide local authorities and AHBs with an opportunity to access properties located in key areas of demand.  The SPV will operate by purchasing properties directly from debtors or receivers and making them available to local authorities and AHBs by way of a long term lease. In this way a number of the issues arising from the provision of properties for social housing can be addressed and the process can move more quickly.

  • Who do I contact?

    All expressions of interests or queries from housing associations in relation any of the properties identified by NAMA should be directed to the Housing Agency – http://www.housing.ie/

  • Is there a schedule of total units delivered to date?

    A schedule of social housing units delivered by NAMA to date is available under Social Housing

Questions about NAMA itself and the loans it has acquired

  • How long will NAMA exist?

    NAMA will be wound up when the Minister for Finance determines that its continued existence is no longer necessary. Staff employed by NAMA are on fixed purpose contracts which means that their contracts will be terminated when the Agency’s work is concluded. 

  • What does NAMA mean for debtors?

    NAMA has acquired the loans of some 850 debtors to date. The Agency will directly manage the debts of the largest 180 of these debtors. The rest will be managed by the participating institutions under delegated authority from NAMA.

    NAMA’s objective is to obtain the best return for taxpayers. It must make a judgement in each case whether its objective is best achieved through working with the debtor. A borrower whose loans have been deemed eligible and have been transferred to the Group. The borrower is referred to by the Group as a debtor. A debtor connection is a group of loans that are connected to a debtor. or enforcing against him. The decision to support a debtor or enforce against him is heavily influenced by the outcome of the business plan process which begins as soon as a debtor’s loans are acquired. Agreement with a debtor on a viable business plan allows NAMA to work with the debtor consensually to ensure repayment, to the greatest extent feasible, of the loans due. Where it makes commercial sense to advance further money to a debtor in order to complete a project which can then be sold to pay down debt, NAMA will do so.

    However, where a debtor cannot meet his obligations or is unwilling to reach a reasonable accommodation with NAMA, the Agency will initiate enforcement action to take control of the assets underlying the loan.

    For more information on the debtor business plan process, please see the Debtor Business Plans page of this website.

    For more information of NAMA governance and accountability, please see the Governance section of this website.

  • What is NAMA’s financial objective in relation to its acquired loans?

    Under Section 10 of the NAMA Act, NAMA is required to obtain the best achievable financial return for the State having regard to the cost of acquiring and dealing with loans and any other costs incurred in preserving or enhancing the value of property securing them. Over time, NAMA aims to recover loan acquisition and ancillary costs from receipts of loan interest and principal from debtors and from loan repayments generated by sales of property assets by debtors or by receivers appointed by NAMA.

    The NAMA Business Plan (published in July 2010) projected, under its central scenario, that the Agency would return a profit to the taxpayer of €1.0 billion in Net Present Value. A value on a given date of a future payment or series of future payments, discounted to reflect the time value of money and other factors such as investment risk. (NPV) terms over its lifetime (expected to be about ten years).

  • Why is it necessary to pay fees to advisers?

    The transfer of loan balances in the order of €74 billion from certain financial institutions to NAMA is an exceptionally large transaction. For all parties to the transaction – the State as the purchaser of loans, the institutions as sellers and the EU Commission as overseer of State aid rules – it was vital that the transaction be valued rigorously and comprehensively. This necessitated the involvement of professional advisors in their capacity as valuers, lawyers and financial experts to carry out the due diligenceA comprehensive appraisal of a business especially to establish the value of its assets and liabilities. There are two types of due diligence carried out by the Group, Legal and Property due diligence on the loans and on the underlying property and other assets.

     NAMA secured these services on a very cost-effective basis due to a competitive and thorough public procurement process used by the Agency. The cost of the services – €30m in 2010 – has been recouped from the banks through a deduction in the price paid by NAMA for the loans. The benefits of rigorous due diligence have exceeded the costs by a significant multiple – the identification of deficiencies in loan security Includes (a) a Charge, (b) a guarantee, indemnity or Surety, (c) a right of set-off, (d) a debenture, (e) a bill of exchange, (f) a promissory note, (g) collateral, (h) any other means of securing—(i) the payment of a debt, or (ii) the discharge or performance of an obligation or liability, and (i) any other agreement or arrangement having a similar effect. has meant that NAMA has saved closed to €300m on what it would otherwise have paid for the loans concerned.  

  • How was the market value of property determined?

    In order to ensure consistency of treatment for all loans, regardless of when they were acquired by NAMA, it was considered that a single reference valuation date should be used for the purpose of valuing underlying property assets. This date was fixed at 30th November 2009. Each property was, in the first place, valued by an expert valuer employed by the participating institution. A Credit Institution that has been designated by the Minister under Section 67 of the Act 2009 as a Participating Institution, including any of its subsidiaries that have not been excluded under that section but also owing a legal duty of care to NAMA. NAMA reviewed each valuation and, where it considered a valuation to be excessive, it referred it to an independent third-party valuer. This third-party valuation is accepted by NAMA and used as part of the loan valuation.

  • What is the NAMA ‘discount’ or ‘haircut’?

    In simple terms the discount is the difference between the nominal value of a loan (the outstanding loan balance) and the price NAMA paid for it. To date, the portfolio of loans has been acquired by NAMA at an average discount of 57% – nominal loan balances to the order of €74 billion have been acquired for a consideration of €31.8 billion, a discount of over €42 billion or 57%.

  • How were the loans valued?

    The valuation methodology for the transfer price of loans was determined by the EU Commission and requires NAMA to take a view on the long-term economic value. The value as determined by NAMA in accordance with the NAMA Act that an asset can reasonably be expected to attain in a stable financial system when the crisis conditions prevailing at the time of the passing of the Act are ameliorated. of the property assets securing the loans. Taking into account also the impact of prospective enforcement costs and discounting, the price paid for each loan tends to be closely aligned to the current market value. The estimated amount for which a property would exchange between a willing buyer and seller in an arm’s-length transaction of the property securing it. For instance, a loan for €10m may originally have been advanced by a bank for a property which was then valued at €11m). A borrower whose loans have been deemed eligible and have been transferred to the Group. The borrower is referred to by the Group as a debtor. A debtor connection is a group of loans that are connected to a debtor equity of €1m). The property is currently considered to be worth €6m. The effect of applying the valuation methodology is that NAMA pays close to €6m for the loan. Where there are defects in security Includes (a) a Charge, (b) a guarantee, indemnity or Surety, (c) a right of set-off, (d) a debenture, (e) a bill of exchange, (f) a promissory note, (g) collateral, (h) any other means of securing—(i) the payment of a debt, or (ii) the discharge or performance of an obligation or liability, and (i) any other agreement or arrangement having a similar effect. and documentation which could reduce further the sales proceeds of the property, appropriate discounts are applied to reflect the likely impact of these defects.  

  • Why did NAMA acquire these loans?

    NAMA was established to take property-related loans off the balance sheets of the participating institutions and to give them Government-guaranteed securities which could be used as collateral, a borrower’s pledge of specific property to a lender, to be forfeited in the event of default with the European Central Bank. As a result, the five institutions were provided with over €30 billion in liquidity which they would not otherwise have been able to access.

  • What loans has NAMA acquired?

    NAMA has discretion to acquire eligible assets as defined by the NAMA Act. These include loans advanced for land and development purposes and associated property loans. To date, NAMA has acquired property-related loans with nominal balances in the order of €74 billion from the five institutions participating in the NAMA scheme. The loans were advanced to 850 debtors and relate to some 16,000 properties. As payment, NAMA issued securities to a value of €31.8 billion to the institutions concerned (95% of the consideration is in the form of Government Guaranteed Senior Bonds and 5% is in the form of subordinated debt, i.e. Debt which is repayable only after other debts have been repaid).

  • Why does NAMA not publish a list of all its debtors?

    NAMA is prohibited under the NAMA Act from disclosing confidential information. Confidential information is specifically defined to include information relating to debtors. Furthermore, the Act provides that, on acquisition of a loan, NAMA takes over the obligations of the participating institution. A Credit Institution that has been designated by the Minister under Section 67 of the Act 2009 as a Participating Institution, including any of its subsidiaries that have not been excluded under that section  under the loan, one of which is the contractual duty of confidentiality which the debtor. A borrower whose loans have been deemed eligible and have been transferred to the Group. The borrower is referred to by the Group as a debtor. A debtor connection is a group of loans that are connected to a debtor. enjoyed while still a customer of the participating institution. For these reasons, NAMA cannot disclose details about debtors as to do so would leave it open to litigation. Information about individual debtors or guarantors is also protected against disclosure by the Data Protection Acts with which NAMA must comply as a data controller. A change in the law would therefore be required to enable NAMA to disclose information about debtors.

Questions about The Freedom of Information (FOI) Act, 2014

  • NAMA and The Freedom of Information Act, 2014

    The Freedom of Information (FOI) Act, 2014 was signed into law on 14th October 2014 and provides for a six month lead in for new bodies coming under the scope of the legislation.  NAMA, therefore, will start to process FOI requests from mid-April 2015.  

    The FOI legislation provides that every person has the following rights:

    • the right to access records held by FOI bodies listed in the Act;
    • the right to have personal information altered or deleted where such information is incomplete, incorrect or misleading; and
    • the right to be given reasons for a decision taken by FOI bodies that affects them.

     

     

  • How does FOI work?

    The FOI Act 2014 gives you the right to access records held by FOI bodies including NAMA. The release of records is subject to a number of exemptions which are set out in the FOI Act 2014.

    If an FOI body does not release certain records, it is obliged to set out the reasons for doing so in a decision letter.

  • How do I make an FOI request?

    Detailed information on how to make an FOI request to NAMA is available under Making a Request for Information.

  • Will I be charged for requesting information under the FOI Act?

    There is no charge for making an FOI request. However, fees known as search, retrieval and copying fees may apply in certain circumstances. Further details are available under Fees.

  • How soon after making an FOI request can I expect a reply?

    Under the FOI Act, a request for records will be acknowledged within two weeks and, in most cases, responded to within four weeks.  A week is defined in the Act to mean five consecutive week-days, excluding Saturdays and public holidays (Sundays are also excluded as they are not considered week-days).

    In certain circumstances, NAMA may extend the decision period by a further four weeks.

  • What’s the next step if I am unhappy with a decision on my request?

    If you are dissatisfied with NAMA’s response to your request, you can seek to have the decision re-examined by a more senior member of staff within NAMA. This is known as an internal review. 

    Applications for an internal review should be addressed to the FOI Unit, National Asset Management Agency, Treasury Building, Grand Canal Street, Dublin 2 – Email: foi@nama.ie / Tel: +353 1 238 5060. There is a fee for a non-personal Internal Review application of €30 (€10 for medical card holders). Further details are available under Fees.

  • Can I get help in making a request?

    Yes, if you require help, the FOI Unit can help assist you with drafting your request. The FOI Unit is also available to provide assistance to persons with a disability to exercise their rights under the FOI Act.