John Ennis and Elma Beirne locked out of the home they paid for in the Ringfort Estate
Published:
Thu 13 Nov 2025, 12:22 PM
Last updated:
Thu 13 Nov 2025, 3:05 PM
More than five years after putting down deposits, buyers in the Ringfort estate in Rathmolyon now face the risk of losing the homes they’ve paid for, as the developer moves to liquidate the company behind the project.
The company, Meathamatics Ltd controlled by businessman Joe Elias, is holding a creditors’ meeting on Tuesday next to appoint a liquidator, leaving 16 largely completed homes in legal and financial limbo.
Five local families put deposits down on new homes in the estate in 2020 and 2021. Now, even though the houses are finished and connected to utilities they are still waiting for their keys and face the prospect of losing the homes they’ve already paid for.
Originally 15 families entered contracts in July 2021; eight have since rescinded, leaving five remaining.
One of the affected buyers, Elma Beirne, said that what began as a dream of home ownership for her and her husband John Ennis has turned into “six years of heartbreak and frustration.”
“It felt like the start of a new chapter a chance to put down roots, raise our children, and finally have a place to call our own. Instead, we’ve spent the better part of six years paying rent, storing furniture, and living with a constant sense of uncertainty,” said Elma.
The family paid a €5,000 booking deposit in October 2020 and a further €24,500 early the following year for a four bedroom home worth €295,000 of the plans.
They signed contracts in July 2021 and were told their home would be ready by December 2022. That never happened. Elma and John have a 19-month-old toddler and are expecting their second child, yet they remain locked out of their completed home
“We were never warned the project was in jeopardy. We believed, as any buyer would, that the developer was doing everything in his power to deliver our homes, ” said Elma.
By early 2023, buyers were told they would each need to pay an extra €60,000 to make the project viable. They refused.
Soon after, a company called Spudmuckers Ltd, owned by Joe Elias repaid the development’s original HBFI loan and became lender to Meathmatics Ltd. Within months, Spudmuckers had appointed receivers, effectively taking control of the site.
After months of talks with the receivers Interpath Advisory, five families agreed in May 2024 to pay an additional €26,000 each to get their homes finished.
“We accepted and signed, believing the end was near. By late 2024 every house on the site was structurally complete. The lights were on, the utilities connected. All that remained were the roads and landscaping.”
But no contracts were issued and, instead, residents recently learned that there are being moves made to wind up Meathmatics Ltd.
“The financial and emotional toll has been immense,” said Elma. ” We’ve spent over €50,000 in rent since 2020, not to mention storage costs and lost savings. One family from our group was evicted from their rental home earlier this year and is now living in a single bedroom with their young child.
“We live less than 200 yards from the site. Every time we pass it, every time we walk past the home we were supposed to live in years ago, we feel a mix of heartbreak and anger.”
“Our contracts are binding. Our payments are made. The homes are built. Yet, because of corporate manipulation and a system that allows developers to protect themselves first, we’re still waiting. Our home is built. The lights are on. But five years later, the door is still locked and now we’re facing into our sixth Christmas waiting to move in.”
The Ringfort development, led by Meathmatics Ltd and built by MDS Construction, has been beset by delays, financial disputes, and corporate restructuring since 2021.
The Ringfort residents are demanding accountability and transparency from all parties involved in the stalled development. They are calling on the Revenue Commissioners to pursue any outstanding tax liabilities and Help-to-Buy repayments, the Corporate Enforcement Authority to scrutinise the receivership and liquidation process, and both the Department of Housing and Meath County Council to step in to ensure that their contracts are honoured and the homes are finally completed.
An article published in The Currency this week reported that an investment company controlled by Joe Elias, Spudmuckers Ltd, is owed between €5 million and €7 million in relation to the Ringfort project.
According to the report, Meathmatics Ltd agreed to sell 14 of the 16 homes in 2021, but surging construction costs left a shortfall of up to €1 million between the agreed sale prices and the cost of completion. In early 2023, Meathmatics wrote to purchasers seeking an additional €60,000 per home to make the project viable but could not reach agreement with all buyers.
Interpath Advisory were appointed receivers in 2023 on foot of a debt owed to Spudmuckers, which then stood at around €4.5 million. Following this, Elias is understood to have offered to refund buyers their deposits, with a number accepting. Around five families, however, did not accept the offer.
The Currency also reported that Elias remains willing to refund the deposits from his personal resources, outside the liquidation process.
Published:
Thu 13 Nov 2025, 12:22 PM
Last updated:
Thu 13 Nov 2025, 3:05 PM