The Solicitors Process When Buying & Selling A House

When it comes to selling and buying a new property, the whole process can seem stressful; especially when there is lots to do.

Even if you are only buying a property, you will need to instruct a solicitor to help you purchase and sell your property. In short, a solicitor or licensed conveyancer will sort out all the legal aspects of your property. So, they are key to helping your transaction go through.

Due to this, it is a good idea for you to understand what steps will be involved with your solicitor or conveyancer. This blog will convey the steps that will be taken by your conveyancer in order to get your house sale done and dusted.

The process for Conveyancing when selling a property

To start, the seller’s conveyancer will be instructed.
The seller’s conveyancer will then send a letter setting out all the terms and conditions plus their costs
The conveyancer will then carry out identify checks whilst sending out property information forms for the seller to complete. There will be extra information that will be need to be completed if the property is a leasehold
The seller will then complete the property information, contents form and all the complete fittings
The seller’s conveyancer will then contact the Land Registry to gain any other documents including title deeds and details around the amount outstanding on their mortgage
From doing so, the conveyancer will then prepare any drafts of contacts and supporting contract documents needed to send to the buyer and their conveyancer
The buyer’s conveyancer will then check through these contracts and raise any pre-contact enquiries if needs be
If there are any pre-contact enquiries raised, the seller and seller’s conveyancer will answer these
From doing so, the buyer’s conveyancer will then confirm whether they are happy with these pre-contact enquiries.
This will then action the buyer and seller to agree a completion date and make the contracts formally exchanged. This basically means both parties are now legally committed to the sale. The seller’s conveyancer will then create a settlement figure for the outstanding amount on the existing mortgage, if needed. The buyer’s conveyancer will generate drafts of any transfer deeds that need to be sent to the seller’s conveyancer
The seller’s conveyancer will then check these transfer deeds and will send them to the seller to gain a signature
On the completion date, the seller must vacate the property and arrange a time to pass the keys over; this is usually done through an estate agent.
Once all payments are sorted, the remainder of the money from the sale will be given to the seller.

The process for Conveyancing when buying a property

The buyer of the property will make an offer which will be accepted by the seller
Then, the buyer’s conveyancer will be instructed to make an acceptance on the offer
The buyer will then need to arrange a survey on the property and apply for a mortgage if needed
The buyer’s conveyancer will confirm any instructions via letter. This letter will contain the cost and any fixed fees
From doing so, the buyer’s conveyancer will be in contact with the seller’s conveyancer to gain a contract pack
The buyer’s conveyancer will then check the pack and raise any pre-contact enquiries. The necessary searches will be made and copies of the mortgage will be obtained
The seller’s conveyancer will then answer to these pre-contact enquiries and return them as soon as possible
Any reviews or reports from the buyer’s conveyancer will be given to the buyer. The buyer will raise any concerns if anything is unclear within the report
If the buyer is happy to continue, arrangements will be made so they can pay a deposit for their conveyancer
The seller and the buyer will then agree a date to formally exchange their contracts
The buyer’s conveyancer will then prepare a draft to transfer and complete any deeds/information forms. These will then be sent to the seller’s conveyancer
The seller’s solicitor will need to approve the drafts of the title deed and make it into a final copy. This will then need to be signed by the buyer in readiness for completion
From this action, the buyer’s conveyancer will then prepare a completion statement, apply for the buyer’s mortgage and carry out any pre-completion searches
When the day comes for completion, the seller will then leave the property when agreed and the seller will gain the rest of the proceedings from the buyer
The seller’s conveyancer will give the keys to the estate agent for the buyer to collect
The buyer’s conveyancer will make sure the stamp duty has been paid and the title deeds are in the buyers name.