I was sending out a fee proposal today and what struck me was the amount of costs that are incurred before you even get planning. Costs that don’t go to me or comprise any part of my fee:

So when you’re thinking about applying for planning permission in Ireland don’t forget:

• Percolation tests
• Possible Natura reports
• Newspaper site notice costs
• Topographical site surveys
• OS maps
• Planning fees to the council
• Erection of profile poles to help the planner

Add these together and you’re looking at a cost of €3000+ that potentially could be just thrown away if you don’t get planning.

And that’s before you’ve even thought about paying your architect and forgetting about the fees to a Quantity Surveyor & Structural Engineer.