What Is Conveyancing? What Do I Need To Do When I Buy A House?

What is Conveyancing?

Conveyancing is the legal process of transferring property ownership from one party to another. This work is carried out by legal professionals. As part of the process, there are a number of stages to the transaction and the process can take around 12 weeks depending how long the chain is and if there are other organisations that the Conveyancer will need to liaise with, for example if the property is leasehold the Conveyancer will need certain information from the Landlord.

Key Stages of the Conveyancing Process

1. Instruction of a Conveyancer

Once an offer on a property is accepted, you must appoint a Conveyancer to represent you. This legal professional will handle all necessary tasks on your behalf, ensuring that your interests are protected throughout the transaction.

2. Pre-Contractual Phase

During this time the sellers Conveyancer will prepare a draft contract and will issue contract papers to the buyers solicitor. This will include the property information form and fixtures and fittings form which will provide information about the property, and what items the seller intends to leave at the property on completion. Once received, the buyers Conveyancer will review the legal documents, raise enquiries, undertake searches and consider how the purchase is to be financed.

Property Searches

Your Conveyancer will conduct various searches to uncover any potential issues that might affect the property. These typically include:

• Local Authority Search: Checks for any local issues or restrictions affecting the property.

• Water and Drainage Search: Ensures the property is connected to public water supplies and checks for any public drains that might affect future developments.

• Environmental Search: Assesses risks like flooding, contamination, or ground stability.

• Coal and Mining Search: if the property is in a mining area, this search will assess the previous land use and the risks of subsidence at the property as a result of coal mining.

Should I have a survey?

The searches that are carried out by the Conveyancer are desktop searches and are not surveys. Surveys are carried out by a Surveyor who will visit the property and write a report about the physical condition of the property. The Surveyor may identify issues with the property and you may consider not proceeding with the purchase once received. It is therefore advisable to consider obtaining a survey as early as possible to avoid any delays and unnecessary costs if you decide to withdraw from the purchase due to any issues that have been revealed.

3. Mortgage and Financing

If the buyer is obtaining a mortgage, the Conveyancer will liaise with the lender to ensure all conditions are met. This includes reviewing the mortgage offer and ensuring that the lender's interests are protected. You will also be required to provide bank statements showing how the deposit is being funded. If you are selling your property and the property is mortgaged, your Conveyancer will obtain a redemption statement as this will need to be redeemed and the lender remove their charge from the legal title on completion.

4. Signing the legal paperwork

Once all enquiries are satisfied and the buyers Conveyancer is happy to proceed, both seller and buyer will need to sign the contract documentation in readiness for exchange of contracts.

5. Exchange of Contracts

Once everyone has signed the documents and a completion date has been agreed, contracts are exchanged. At this point, a deposit (usually around 10% of the purchase price) is offered. Once exchanged contracts are legally binding and neither party can withdraw without incurring penalties and losing the deposit offered.

6. Completion

This is when the seller must vacate the property and hand over the keys to the buyer. The buyer will officially take possession of the property.

Tips for a Smooth Conveyancing Experience

• Choose a Reputable Conveyancer: Research and select a Conveyancer with a proven track record to ensure competent handling of your transaction.

• Stay Proactive: Maintain regular communication with your Conveyancer, promptly provide any requested documents, and address enquiries quickly to prevent unnecessary delays.

• Understand Your Obligations: Familiarize yourself with each stage of the process and any associated costs, such as search fees, conveyancing fees, third party fees and stamp duty, to avoid unexpected expenses.

Next Steps...

At Timms Solicitors, our legal professionals are on hand to help and support you along your journey. We offer legal expertise to ensure that there are no unexpected delays along the way and to help the conveyancing process go as smoothly as possible. If you are looking for a conveyancing quote, contact us on freephone 0800 011 6666 or at legal@timms-law.com.