Conveyancing is a well-known term for property dealers, buyers, sellers, and mortgagors. It handles all legal matters from putting a house on sale to giving keys to new owners or vice versa. As you can assume, this process is not easy at all. Therefore, we have written this step-by-step conveyancing guide to give you an idea about what happens during property transactions.
Table of Contents
Finding reputed solicitor
People must hire a solicitor, who can prepare agreements considering both parties’ rights, requirements, deals, etc. Many commercial websites provide hassle-free quotes from expert conveyancers where we can check deals without sharing personal details. We can also take recommendations from our real estate agents or friends. Comparing the quotes is mandatory to have an idea of the trending market rate. Finally, we have to pick reliable services at a fair rate, which will get conveyancing covered as per our conditions.
Signing sale agreements with solicitors
The employed conveyancer will make a draft contract stating their work, remuneration, needed deposits, and other information. Estate owners have to sign it to employ him as their official representative. Now, he will act according to their instructions and give legal advice when necessary. The other party will also consult with another solicitor.
Seller’s and buyer’s solicitors will contact
The seller’s representative will create multiple legal forms that describe the house information, such as property conditions, fittings, fixtures, area, address, price, etc. The seller should recheck all details before making final copies. Then, these papers go to the buyer’s lawyer, who might conduct some inquiries and searches to validate that information. If everything seems satisfactory, the involved parties can finalize the deal. Otherwise, they have to talk about the problems and try to sort them out. Once they reach a mutual agreement, they can select a date for exchanging contracts.
Exchanging contracts
The solicitors check whether both contracts are identical or not. They hand over the papers to their respective clients. Now, the seller and buyer have to sign and send the papers to the other party. When it’s done, they have to proceed according to the rules of the contracts; none can ask for further modifications or deal cancellation. If anyone breaks rules, the other side can take legal action.
Transaction of a non-refundable deposit
In general, buyers have to transfer a certain amount to the seller’s account which is usually 10 percent or less of the overall deal. It defines their commitment to complete the sale. This money will be lost if he fails to do so on time. Plus, he might need to pay the seller more for the accrued interest on the amount. Coming to the seller’s side, they can no longer accept other offers for that property.
Fixing a date
Both parties sit again to fix a completion period, which should be perfect for gathering money from mortgage lenders and taking care of other formalities. It can take a few weeks or less, depending on the financial stability of the buyer. His lawyer will perform a final land registry check to ensure that nobody else has rights over the house. This step is crucial to be safe from fraud sellers and problematic lands.
Sale completion
On the expected day, the buyer’s conveyancer will send the due amount to the seller. As soon as he receives the amount, the buyer will be the new legal owner of the property. The old owner(seller) has to hand over the keys to him and leave as soon as possible. The conveyancing process is finally over. However, the solicitor still has a few post-completion tasks, such as paying stamp duty tax, sharing papers with the mortgage lenders, making an ownership certificate, etc.
