What is Conveyancing?
Conveyancing is the name for the legal process of transferring ownership of property such as land and buildings from one party to another.
The process
The process begins when the buyer and seller agree to the terms of the sale of a property (usually via an estate agent) and ends at the point of legal completion when the money changes hands and the keys are handed over. The process requires that both buyer and seller each appoint a specialist lawyer known as a ‘conveyancer’ to carry out the necessary legal work on their behalf. A conveyancer is usually a solicitor, licensed conveyancer, or legal executive.
The conveyancing system has a set process that has to be observed and there are many parts of that process. An average transaction takes between twelve and sixteen weeks. The process begins with the seller’s conveyancer providing a draft contract, the seller’s completed property questionnaires and a package of title papers evidencing the seller’s ownership together with copy title deeds and supporting papers such as planning permissions, building regulations approvals and guarantees) to the buyer’s conveyancer for review. The buyer’s conveyancer will then carry out a number of searches, the standard ones being a local, drainage and environmental search. The buyer’s conveyancer will then review the draft contract, the legal title to the property, all search results, any mortgage offer and their client’s source of purchase funds, updating their clients at each stage where appropriate. In many cases the buyer’s conveyancer, once they have reviewed the various searches and title papers will need to raise a number of enquiries with the seller’s conveyancer who may then need to obtain further instructions from their seller clients. Once the seller’s conveyancer has fully satisfied the buyer’s conveyancer’s enquiries the buyer’s conveyancer can then report to the buyer upon any matters relating to the property of which the buyer should be aware and provide the various papers for signature. Once all parties have returned their signed papers to their respective conveyancers’ arrangements can be made for the buyer to pay their deposit to their conveyancer and the parties’ conveyancers can agree a completion date. Contracts are then exchanged, making the transaction legally binding and fixing the completion date. On the completion date the monies are paid to by the buyer’s conveyancers to the seller’s conveyancers and once those funds are received the keys can be released to the buyer.
Talk to Tollers
We know that selling or buying a property and navigating your way through the process can be a daunting experience, particularly to first-time buyers. At Tollers our staff are extremely experienced and will provide friendly support to you throughout the transaction. We are easily contactable by telephone or email and our clients frequently advise in their feedback to us that they have found us to be approachable.
If you are looking to buy or sell a property…Talk to Tollers to obtain a quotation on 01604 258558.
The conveyancing services Tollers provide…
Offices mentioned: Northampton, Corby, Stevenage, Kempston, Milton Keynes, Oakham
People mentioned: Angela Aitken, Danielle Hull, Khama Langdon, Kirsten Blaikie, Louise Wilson, Lynsey Green, Sian Evans, Wayne Bedding, Mandy Stark
