Moving home can be a stressful time, and often, you may be unaware of what the process looks like.
In this article, Property Expert Edward Carter outlines the conveyancing process from instructing a lawyer to collecting the keys to your new home. The process is as follows...
Case Creation
This is the initial stage of the process, where you will be asked to complete our administration process. This includes:
- Filling in a questionnaire, confirming your personal details and information regarding the property you are purchasing.
- Providing identification documents.
- Making payment of money on account, which will be used to order property searches.
What types of house surveys are there?
Once your offer has been accepted and you have instructed your solicitor, the next steps is to obtain a survey on the property from a surveyor.
It is always best to instruct a surveyor as they will identify any defects in the property which may cause issues and cost you more, in the future .
Surveys that you can obtain usually fall into these categories:
- Mortgage Lender’s Valuation Survey
- Full Structural Survey
- RICS Homebuyer Survey and Valuation
How long does a house survey take?
How long a house survey takes, really depends on the size of the property and the type of survey you have requested.
A RICS Homebuyer Survey and Valuation takes typically between 90 minutes and 4 hours, whilst a Full Structural Survey can take much longer.
Is it worth getting a survey on a house?
We will always recommend that you get a survey when buying a property, as it will give you a full view of any potential issues or risks before you purchase.
If any issues arise in the survey you can:
- Get on top of them early and if needed investigate further.
- Take into account any possible costs to fix them.
- Speak to the seller regarding any amendments to the sale price in light of the issues.
- Make a final decision on proceeding to purchase the property.
Whilst surveys can cost a few hundred pounds, they could lead to you saving much more money in the future.
Read our dedicated article on property surveys, choosing a surveyor and cost considerations here.
What is included in a property search?
Property searches provide information that you will need to be aware of before choosing to purchase the property.
In most cases, the following searches are carried out:
- Environmental Search
- Drainage and Water Search
- Local Authority Search
Searches will only give you information within the boundaries of your property, so will not give you any details of works or planning permissions related to neighbouring properties.
Apart from searches, you may want to inspect the registers of neighbouring properties at the Planning Authority to find out whether any entries may affect your enjoyment of your property.
Depending on the location of the property, a specialist property search may be needed.
What is a specialist property search?
Examples of a specialist property search are:
- Chancel Check
- Highways Search
- Commons Registration Search
- Tin Mining Search
- Coal Mining Search
- Forestry Commission Search
- Radon Gas Search
- Index Map Search (for unregistered titles)
Please do let your lawyer know if you believe a specialist search is required. You can get in touch with one of our Residential Property experts by calling 01202 499255.
Pre-exchange
This is where most of the legal work occurs. The pre-exchange process looks like this:
- Receiving the contract papers from the seller’s solicitors. This includes a draft contract and transfer, protocol forms and any other documents relevant to the property.
- If the property is leasehold, the seller’s solicitors will request and provide information from the Landlord or Management Company.
- Searches will be ordered.
- Any enquiries will be raised by your solicitor and sent to the seller’s solicitors for a response.
- Your lender (if purchasing with a mortgage) will provide your solicitor with a copy of your mortgage.
- You will receive reports from your lawyer, along with paperwork for signature and return.
- Payment of your deposit funds (usually 10%).
Exchange
Once the chain is ready to exchange and a completion date is agreed, your solicitor and the seller’s solicitor will exchange the signed contracts.
From this point, the contracts become binding and the completion date is set in stone.
Pre-completion
Following exchange, your solicitor will provide you with a completion statement, detailing the funds needed for completion.
If you are purchasing with a mortgage, your solicitor will request funds from your lender, which will take between 5-10 working days to arrive.
Completion
The final step in the process is moving into your new home!
Once the transaction completes, your solicitor will let you know that you can pick up the keys to the property.
Whilst you are busy settling into your new home, your solicitor will pay any Stamp Duty required and register the property in your name at Land Registry.
You will receive a copy of the updated register once this has been completed at Land Registry.
How long does conveyancing take on average?
Whilst the length of each transaction differs, the conveyancing process usually takes between 8-12 weeks from your offer being accepted to the moment you move into your new home.
Occasionally, especially with leasehold or complex titles there may be some delays, however, we will always keep you informed of any issues and shall ensure the process moves as smoothly as possible.
How much does conveyancing cost?
The majority of solicitors base their fees on the value of the property. This is usually due to more risk being incurred on a higher value purchase. Whether your property is a new build or leasehold will also affect the cost of the fees.
To find out more about additional solicitor and third party fees, you can read our full conveyancing costs article here. Alternatively, you can use our online conveyancing costs calculator here.
At Frettens, we will do our best to keep your costs down wherever possible. In fact, you can read our cost-saving tips below.
How to save costs on your purchase
Your home will most likely be the single biggest purchase that you make in your lifetime, so it is important to save costs wherever you can.
A possible way of saving is by opening and paying into an ISA account. ISAs are Government backed savings accounts that can help you raise funds for a deposit. Find out more here.
You could also get a gift or a loan from your parents towards your purchase. We’ve written about the ‘Bank of Mum and Dad’ and how to use it correctly here.
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