What Is Conveyancing

Conveyancing is the legal work involved in transferring ownership of a property or land, usually carried out by a solicitor or licensed conveyancer.

While a property inspection will establish any potential structural problems, it won't uncover points which will impact on the property and the land on which it is built. It is for these reasons that a professional conveyancing solicitor or licensed conveyancer is needed.

Matters reminiscent of leaseholds, restrictions of usage, access to services such as water and electricity, rights of method and ground rents may affect the house, its purchase or sale and your ability to successfully complete the transaction.

Your conveyancing solicitor will take duty for checking these with a purpose to guarantee you're aware of all the problems affecting the property before making a commitment to purchase or sell. Your solicitor can even draw up the mandatory documentation for transferring a property's legal title from one party to another.

Typical Conveyancer duties include:

Checking the authorized title documentation (e.g. the contract and Land Registry data) and elevating enquiries to clarify any info provided within the contract pack
Conducting searches with numerous authorities to find out whether there are flood risks, financial liabilities, boundary disputes, prospective building developments.
Offering the client buyer with a detailed report on the legal title, contract and supporting paperwork supplied by the seller
Submit a tax return and zanzibar01 pay the required Stamp Duty Land Tax to HM Revenue & Customs.
Drawing up draft contracts detailing what is included within the transaction, resembling fixtures, fittings and contents
Forward documentation concerning the transfer of ownership to the Land Registry.
Advising on additional prices such as stamp duty, leasehold notice fees, land registry fees and different compulsory expenditure
Request cost of the mortgage advance from your lender.
Liaising with mortgage lenders to ensure the funds will be made available when crucial
Producing the transfer documents required for the acquisition or sale of a house to undergo
Conducting all remaining checks previous to the alternate of contracts, after which neither party can pull out without incurring critical prices
Exchanging contracts, bringing completion day one step closer
Liaise with the seller's solicitor to receive a contract pack
Arranging for the switch to be filed with the land registry
Request and procure a duplicate of your mortgage offer.
Organising the payment of all related fees.

You should appoint a solicitor/conveyancer as soon as you consider selling or shopping for a property - even before you've got made a proposal on a house (or somebody has made you a proposal) - as this will help to hurry up the process by bringing them on board early.

If you are buying a house, you may count on trade of contracts to take place within 6-8 weeks of receipt of the contract pack. However, be aware that if you're in a long chain of transactions, delays across the chain can have an impact on your own completion. Every house is individual and the conveyancing process reflects this.