Conveyancing
We also recommend Williamson Hill Solicitors for conveyancing
The services of a conveyancer will usually be required, although not obligatory the purchase or sale of a property can obviously involve significant sums of money and therefore it is advisable to seek the services of a professional. We recommend you seek the advice of professionals regarding the conveyancing of your property purchase or sale.
Below is a brief explanation of the process from the perspective of both a buyer and a seller. This information is based on a straightforward transaction with no unusual problems arising, the procedure (briefly) is as follows:-
| If you’re selling a Conveyancer will:- | Buyers Conveyancer will:- |
| 1. Take your instructions and contact your Estate Agent (if any). | 1. Take your instructions and contact the Estate Agent (if any). |
| 2. Forward Seller’s Property Information Form and Fixtures Fittings and Contents List to you for completion. | 2. Make a search of the Local Authority (this can take two weeks to be returned). |
| 3. Obtain your deeds from your Building Society or Bank | 3. Obtain a draft Contract and copy deeds from your Seller’s Solicitors and let you have copies of the Seller’s Property Information Form and Fixtures Fittings and Contents List. |
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4. Prepare and send out a Draft Contract to your buyer’s Solicitors and let them have the Seller’s Property Information Form and Fixtures Fittings and Contents List completed by you. |
4. Check your Mortgage Offer for any special conditions. |
| 5. Obtain up-to-date copies of your deeds from the Land Registry. | 5. Raise enquiries of the Contract and legal papers (boundaries, disputes, guarantees etc). |
| 6. Reply to any further enquiries sent. | 6. Reply to any further enquiries sent. |
At the same time your seller’s solicitors and buyer’s solicitors will be carrying out the same procedures for their clients.
What Next?
When all of the above matters are completed and if your seller and buyer are ready, you will be in a position to exchange Contracts (this will legally bind both of you and your seller and buyer to complete transactions). At this stage they will ask you to sign the Contracts. You should now discuss with the seller and buyer the date you would like to move, bearing in mind that a conveyancer will need on average a further seven to fourteen days from exchange of Contracts to finalise preparations for completion. If two or more people are buying together a conveyancer will advise as to the methods of ownership, i.e. Joint Tenants or Tenants in Common.(see below)
AFTER EXCHANGE OF CONTRACTS AND BEFORE COMPLETION (MOVING DATE)
You will now have a date for completion and you should make arrangements with your removal firm and with your seller and buyer to have the gas and electricity meters read and the telephone transferred etc. on completion day. You should also deal with Council Tax, Water and Sewerage Rates.
They will continue with the transactions as follows:-
| If you’re selling a Conveyancer will:- | Buyers Conveyancer will:- |
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1. Approve the final legal documents of Transfer. |
1. Prepare the final legal documentof Transfer and Mortgage. |
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2. Reply to any final queries. |
2. Carry out final searches (bankruptcy). |
| 3. Obtain redemption statement(s) from your Building Society/Bank and Estate Agents account (if any). | 3. Report to and obtain the advance moniesfrom your lender (they require at least fiveworking days notice). |
Prior to completion they will arrange for you to sign the Transfer documents and your Mortgage Deed. If possible, these will be signed at the same time as signing the Contract. If there is a balance due from you this will need to be paid and cleared before completion. If you require more information or a quotation for these services please click here.
COMPLETION (MOVING DAY)
You should not need to see them on the moving day. Your buyer’s solicitors will send them the purchase money and in exchange they will hand over your deeds. They will then send your purchase money to the seller’s solicitors and obtain the deeds to your new house. A key and access to your new property is usually available between 12.00 noon and 2.30 p.m. on the date of completion. The keys will either be handed directly to you by the seller’s or be available for your collection from the Estate Agents once completion has taken place. After completion they will submit the Land Transaction Form to the Inland Revenue for the issue of the appropriate certificate. Thereafter they will send the Transfer and appropriate documentation to the Land Registry to register your ownership of the property. Once registration has been completed they will forward the relevant deeds to your lender and such deeds as they do not require to hold will be forward to you.
This is a short summary and we hope it helps you to understand what a conveyancer can do for you. All of the above can be achieved remotely and in many respects this can help keep costs down. If you would like more information on this or a quotation please click here.
Additional Information:-
JOINT TENANCIES
Where more than one person is purchasing a property, the parties must consider how they wish to own the same. Basically there are two methods:-
A. Beneficial Joint Tenancies
Where purchasers own their properties as Beneficial Joint Tenants then, in the event of the death of one owner, the remaining owner or owners receive the deceased’s share automatically. Thus, if a husband and wife own the property as Beneficial Joint Tenants, as is normally the case, and one of them dies, then the survivor automatically becomes the sole owner of the property.
B Tenants In Common
This situation is the reverse of that above, in that if one owner dies that owner can leave his or her interest or share in the property to whoever they wish.
Please let your solicitor know if you wish to own the property at Tenants in Common. If they do not hear from you then they will assume that you wish to own the property as Beneficial Joint Tenants.
If you would like more information on the involvement of a conveyancer of would like a quotation click here.
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