The Conveyancing Process
Pre-Contract Stage
Instructing a Conveyancer
Instructing a Conveyancer
Before the Conveyancing process can commence a Seller will place their property on the market, whether personally or through an Estate Agent and a buyer will need their offer to be agreed by the seller.
Instructing a Conveyancer
Instructing a Conveyancer
Instructing a Conveyancer
Once the seller and buyer have agreed a price to be paid for the property, both parties will need to instruct a Conveyancer to carry out the legal work of transferring the property from the legal ownership of the Seller to the Buyer. Each party will agree terms and conditions with their Conveyancer and complete initial papers.
Drafting Contracts
Instructing a Conveyancer
Title Investigation
Once all the initial papers have been completed, the Identity of the parties have been verified and monies have been paid on account to cover disbursements, the Sellers Conveyancer will collate the initial forms and title deeds / register documents and will draft a Contract Pack which will be sent to the buyers Lawyer
Title Investigation
Dealing with Enquiries
Title Investigation
There are two parts to the title investigation process which the buyers Conveyancer will need to conduct. Firstly, searches will be ordered to establish whether there are any Environmental, Drainage or Local Authority orders, permissions or arrangements the buyer should be aware of. Secondly the title deeds and Contract will be reviewed and any enquiries raised to establish how the provisions within the deeds affect the day to day property ownership
Dealing with Enquiries
Dealing with Enquiries
Dealing with Enquiries
It is likely that the seller will receive enquiries in two parts. The first set of enquiries may be raised as soon as the contract papers have arrived and have been reviewed by the buyers lawyer. The buyers lawyer may raise these enquiries in lieu of receipt of search results as, in busy times, searches can take up to 3-4 weeks to arrive. Upon review of the searches, further enquiries may be required. The sellers lawyer will arrange for the seller to respond to enquiries and provide advice on how to deal with these enquiries
Reporting on Title
Dealing with Enquiries
Dealing with Enquiries
Once all title deeds have been reviewed, search results received and reviewed, and all replies to enquiries have been received by the buyers lawyer they are required to provide a full report to the buyer with all of the advice they feel the buyer may require to ensure they feel that the property is a good financial investment for them. Much like a surveyors report will deal with the structure of a property, the legal report will set out all the advice around the legal title
Signing the Contract and Transfer Deed
Signing the Contract and Transfer Deed
Signing the Contract and Transfer Deed
Once the Buyers Lawyer is content that they have all the information required to provide their report, they will also provide a Transfer Deed to the Sellers Conveyancer. The Contract and Transfer Deed will then be sent to the seller for signing in readiness for completion. The report to the buyer will include these documents for signing
Pre-exchange arrangements
Signing the Contract and Transfer Deed
Signing the Contract and Transfer Deed
The sellers lawyer will need to ensure they have obtained redemption figures for any and all mortgage lenders and financial companies who have a legal charge over the property before they are able to exchange contracts as they will be require to provide a legal promise to the solicitor for the buyer that all these charges will be removed from the title simultaneously with the transfer of the property to the buyer. The buyers lawyer will simultaneously arrange the draw down of mortgage funds which may be required from any mortgage lender assisting the buyer
Exchange and Completion
Signing the Contract and Transfer Deed
Exchange and Completion
Once all signed documents are held by the Conveyancers for the seller and buyer, and once all the financial arrangements are in place to both redeemed the sellers financial burdens, and complete the buyers financial arrangements, the Conveyancers for both seller and buyer will be able to exchange the signed contracts on behalf of the seller and buyer making the contracts binding upon the seller and buyer. The completion date will be set in stone and there will be no room for any further enquiries to be raised. Completion will take place on the date set in the Contract and is the process where the buyers lawyer sends completion monies to the sellers lawyer and the sellers lawyer will release the keys to the buyer, usually through the estate agent.