Is sale agreed legally binding in Ireland?

No. Until contracts are signed by both sides either party can walk away, and the booking deposit is refundable. That is the position you are in for most of the process.

How long does it take from sale agreed to getting the keys?

Two to three months is normal and four is not unusual. The delay is almost never the buyer: it is usually a title issue on the seller's side, a missing certificate, a chain, or a probate sale where the grant has not issued.

Is approval in principle the same as a mortgage offer?

No. Approval in principle is a lender's view of you before it has seen the property. The loan offer is the commitment, it comes after the valuation, and it has an expiry date that a long delay can outlast.

Can I lose my booking deposit?

The booking deposit is refundable up until contracts are signed. What you cannot recover is what you have already spent on a survey, a valuation and legal work, which is the real cost of a sale that falls through.

Sale agreed to closing, and what is actually happening

Sale agreed binds nobody. What happens between then and the keys, roughly how long each part takes, and where the time actually goes.

Sale agreed is not a contract. Until contracts are signed by both sides, either can walk away and the only thing at risk is your booking deposit, which is refundable. That is uncomfortable and it is the position you are in for most of the process.

The order things happen in

Booking deposit paid to the agent. Refundable. It takes the house off the market in practice rather than in law.
Your solicitor receives the contract and title from the seller's side, and raises requisitions on them.
Survey and the bank's valuation, usually in parallel with the legal work.
Formal loan offer issues, which is the first point at which the money is genuinely committed.
Contracts signed and the balance of the deposit paid. From here it is binding on both sides.
Closing. Funds move, keys hand over, and your solicitor files the Stamp Duty return afterwards.

Where the time goes

Almost never the buyer. The usual causes of delay are a title issue on the seller's side, a missing certificate for work done years ago, a chain where somebody else's purchase has stalled, or a probate sale where the grant has not issued. Two to three months from sale agreed to keys is normal and four is not unusual.

What to have ready before you go sale agreed

A solicitor already chosen and instructed. Finding one after you go sale agreed adds a week for no reason.
The cash for Stamp Duty and fees identified separately from the deposit.
Approval in principle in writing, with the date it expires noted.

Questions people ask

Is sale agreed legally binding in Ireland?: No. Until contracts are signed by both sides either party can walk away, and the booking deposit is refundable. That is the position you are in for most of the process.
How long does it take from sale agreed to getting the keys?: Two to three months is normal and four is not unusual. The delay is almost never the buyer: it is usually a title issue on the seller's side, a missing certificate, a chain, or a probate sale where the grant has not issued.
Is approval in principle the same as a mortgage offer?: No. Approval in principle is a lender's view of you before it has seen the property. The loan offer is the commitment, it comes after the valuation, and it has an expiry date that a long delay can outlast.
Can I lose my booking deposit?: The booking deposit is refundable up until contracts are signed. What you cannot recover is what you have already spent on a survey, a valuation and legal work, which is the real cost of a sale that falls through.

Figures checked 8 August 2026.