Loreto Convent Light House Hill, Youghal

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• Granny flat planning permission in Ireland — the family-flat condition and the 2026 exemptionDublin councils granted 102 of the 122 granny-flat and family-flat applications they decided in the 12 months to September 2026. When an attached flat needs permission, what Class 3A exempts from 27 July 2026, and the condition every grant carries.
• Protected structures and architectural conservation areas — what needs permission, the free section 57 declaration, and what the register shows368 applications naming a protected structure were decided across the Greater Dublin councils in 12 months and 88% were granted. What being on the Record of Protected Structures means, what an ACA takes away from the ordinary exemptions, how to get a section 57 declaration, and what buyers should check.
• An Bord Pleanála appeal, now An Coimisiún Pleanála — four weeks, €220, and a 25% reversal rateThe Commission reversed the council in 25% of the 1,195 Dublin-area appeals decided in the two years to September 2026. Who can appeal, the four weeks, the €220 fee, why 240 appeals a year fail on procedure, and the odds by direction.
• The most refused planning application types in Dublin — retention first, apartments second, extensions lastRetention applications were refused 27% of the time across the Greater Dublin councils in 12 months (140 of 510 decided), apartments 20%, new houses 15% and extensions 7%. The refusal share by development type, why the mix matters more than the council, and what the register says about where each type fails.