The Conveyancing Process Explained

When you buy or sell your home, it’s a really exciting time! But it’s also important to understand what the Conveyancing Process means for you so that you can be aware of anything you may need to do as a buyer or a seller.

The process if you are selling a property:

To start the selling process, the seller must first instruct a Conveyancer. Once instructed, the Conveyancer sends the seller a letter outlining their terms and conditions of business, details of their fees and requests for ID Documents.

The Seller’s Conveyancer then completes checks on the seller’s identity, whilst also sending a ‘Fittings and Contents’ form and ‘Property Information’ form for the seller to complete. If you live in a leasehold property there will likely be other documents for you to complete.

Whilst you are completing these documents, the Conveyancer order official copies of the title register as from The Land Registry. They will also make enquiries with any mortgage lender as to the current outstanding balance.?

The Seller’s Conveyancer will prepare the contract and ensure all appropriate documentation is sent over to the Buyer’s Conveyancer, whereby the Buyer’s Conveyancer then checks everything over and raises any questions with the Seller’s Conveyancer. You, as the seller, may need to answer questions about the property at this point.?

Once the Buyer’s Conveyancer (with your input) confirms that they have received results from their searches and that they are happy with them, they also need to confirm that they accept answers to any queries and confirm that the buyers have a mortgage offer in place (if required).

The Seller and Buyer’s Conveyancers each agree on a completion date for the sale. Once this is agreed, contracts are then ‘exchanged’ which ensures that both buyer and seller are legally committed to fulfilling the transaction.?

The Seller’s Conveyancer will need to obtain an up-to-date settlement amount from the mortgage company to repay any outstanding monies due to them (if required).

In the meantime, the Buyer’s Conveyancer will have drafted a transfer deed for the property. The Seller’s Conveyancer needs to check this and send onto the seller in anticipation of completing the sale.

On the day of completion, once the transaction has completed, the seller must leave the property and ensure arrangements are in place to hand over keys (this is typically done via the Estate Agent).?

The Seller’s Conveyancer ensures that the title deeds and transfer deeds are sent onto the Buyer’s Conveyancer, and also ensures that any proceeds of sale are used to pay off any outstanding mortgage amount. The Seller’s Conveyancer pays the Estate Agent (if required) and also takes payment for their fees too.?

Once each of these payments has been made, any remaining money from the sale will be transferred to the seller.

The Process if you are buying a property:

Once you have made an offer on a property you would like to buy and it has been accepted by the person or organisation selling it, you can then instruct your own Conveyancer.?

You, as the buyer, are responsible for arranging a survey for the property.

In the meantime, your Conveyancer sends you a letter outlining their terms and conditions of business and details of fees, whilst contacting the Seller’s Conveyancer to ask them for the contract and any other documents relating to the property.

On receiving the details from the Seller’s Conveyancer, the Buyer’s Conveyancer will raise enquiries based on the documents received, complete the required searches on the property and also ensures there is a copy of the mortgage offer on file too (if required).?

The Seller’s Conveyancer will come back with answers to the enquiries and then the Buyer’s Conveyancer will confirm with you that all of the documents relating to the property have been approved, including the contract of sale and the result of the searches.

Once you would like to proceed with the purchase and are happy with all documentation, the deposit can then be paid to the Buyer’s Conveyancer from the seller, via the Seller’s Conveyancer.

The Seller and Buyer’s Conveyancers (with your input) each agree on a completion date for the sale. Once this is agreed, contracts are then ‘exchanged’ which ensures that both buyer and seller are legally committed to fulfilling the transaction.?

On the day of completion and when the transaction has completed, the seller must leave the property and ensure arrangements are in place to hand over keys (this is typically done via the Estate Agent).?

The Buyer’s Conveyancer then completes and sends the ‘Proceeds of Sale’ to the Seller’s Conveyancer, at which point the Seller’s Conveyancer ensures that the property keys can be handed over to the buyer.

It is the responsibility of the Buyer’s Conveyancer to send HMRC any stamp duty payable. The Buyer’s Conveyancer also receives the property’s title deeds, transfer deed, as well as a document that proves that the seller has paid the outstanding mortgage on the property.

Once this has all been confirmed, the Buyer’s Conveyancer is then able to register the property at The Land Registry, in the name of the buyer.

The buyer will then receive a copy of the registered title from The Land Registry, but this can take several weeks to be received.?