{"id":15886,"date":"2016-10-19T09:18:48","date_gmt":"2016-10-19T09:18:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.propertysurveying.co.uk\/newsletter\/?page_id=15886"},"modified":"2016-10-19T11:20:58","modified_gmt":"2016-10-19T11:20:58","slug":"what-exactly-is-conveyancing","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.propertysurveying.co.uk\/newsletter\/?page_id=15886","title":{"rendered":"What exactly is Conveyancing?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Buying and selling land and\/or property can seem costly to anyone unfamiliar with the process.\u00c2\u00a0 The most complex and, therefore, the most costly process being the legal transfer of title of ownership for that land or property from one person to another – known as \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcconveyancing\u00e2\u20ac\u2122.<\/p>\n

Generally, conveyancing is done by a legal specialist, although there are no regulations that say you have to engage a qualified solicitor or professional conveyancer to do this; if you feel brave enough, you can do it yourself.\u00c2\u00a0 Where the land and\/or property has, or needs, a mortgage, however, most commercial lenders insist that a legally qualified person does the conveyancing.<\/p>\n

Section Two (2) of the\u00c2\u00a0Law of Property (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1989<\/a> requires a contract for the sale of land or property to be in writing. Enshrined in English law since the Statute of Frauds in 1677, it was intended to promote good faith and prevent dishonesty.<\/p>\n

The buyer and the seller (or vendor) each appoint a solicitor or conveyancer, who communicate directly on their clients\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 behalf. \u00c2\u00a0Solicitors and conveyancers will search for information not known to either the estate agent or the owner of the property; information that may need mitigating or that can affect transfer such as \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcrights of way\u00e2\u20ac\u2122, boundaries, local mining works, flood risks or proposed building plans.<\/p>\n

So what are the stages in this transfer process? <\/strong><\/p>\n

Fundamentally, there is a pre-contract stage, pre-completion, and after completion.<\/p>\n

In England and Wales, agreements between buyer and seller are not legally binding until the contracts have been exchanged. \u00c2\u00a0The buyer\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s solicitors carry out searches and the seller\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s solicitors draw up the contract, which is provided in duplicate.\u00c2\u00a0 Both the seller and the purchaser sign their copy, which are then exchanged, making them legally binding. \u00c2\u00a0This procedure takes on average of 12 weeks, although this can vary depending on the outcome of searches and the complexity of the sale. \u00c2\u00a0Up until that point, either party is able to pull out for whatever reason.<\/p>\n

Offers are often initially made without or prior to a building survey being carried out; a condition known as \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcSale subject to survey\u00e2\u20ac\u2122.\u00c2\u00a0 This gives the buyer the opportunity either to pull out and avoid further costs or to revise their offer if the survey shows some otherwise unknown and potentially costly defects.<\/p>\n

Equally, the seller may choose to sell to another buyer who comes in with a higher offer, or a cash buyer, before the contract is signed leaving the original buyer in the unfortunate situation of having paid for a survey on a property they can no longer buy, as well as solicitor\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s fees. This is referred to as \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcgazumping\u00e2\u20ac\u2122. \u00c2\u00a0(So much for good faith and prevention of dishonesty!)<\/p>\n

In Scotland, gazumping is rare<\/a>, because the acceptance of an offer or bid is accepted as a legally binding agreement, and the solicitors appointed sign and exchange contracts on behalf of the clients. \u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0Potential buyers in Scotland still obtain a survey before making an offer, however, there is a deadline after which no more bids can be made. \u00c2\u00a0Whilst the unsuccessful buyers may end up with a survey of no use to them, this is the only out-of-pocket expense incurred.<\/p>\n

Throughout the UK, however, and before signing the contract, the buyer will need to check that all fixtures and fittings to be left are listed and that there are no outstanding enquiries. \u00c2\u00a0At this stage, the buyer will need to arrange for the deposit monies \u00e2\u20ac\u201c generally 10% – to be made available to the solicitor, and agree a date for completion; this being the actual date keys to the new property are physically handed over to the new owner.<\/p>\n

Once the solicitors are satisfied that the duplicate contracts are identical and signed and the deposit is paid, the \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcdeal is sealed\u00e2\u20ac\u2122.<\/p>\n

At this point, the deeds to the property are \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcfrozen\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 for 30 days to allow time for the Land Registry to transfer the title to the buyer\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s name. During this pre-completion stage, both buyer and seller agree and organise their respective moving days. \u00c2\u00a0The buyer also arranges for their solicitor to have access to all remaining funds in order to pay the full balance on the property.<\/p>\n

On completion date, all monies and keys exchange hands. \u00c2\u00a0Thereafter, the seller (if they have not already done so) vacates the property and the buyer moves in. Shortly after, the buyer\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s solicitor will pay any Stamp Duty tax due, send a copy of the deeds to the mortgage lender where applicable, and a bill for their services to the buyer. \u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0The Land Registry will send the new documents to the new owner, leaving him\/her to enjoy their new purchase, safe in the assurance that they have now full and legal title to the land and property.<\/p>\n

It is worth adding, in the unusual event that the buyer pulls out at the contracts exchange stage, the buyer forfeits their deposit, or, where the seller has agreed to accept less than 10%, the remaining balance of the deposit, which becomes payable to the seller in full.\u00c2\u00a0 There is the additional risk that the seller may sue for breach of contract, which may include the difference in the final sale price where the property is re-sold to another buyer but for less money that the original offer.<\/p>\n

In the extremely rare cases where the seller pulls out, the buyer can demand the immediate return of the deposit, and he\/she can also sue the seller for breach of contract.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, most sales proceed successfully to post completion.<\/p>\n

\u00c2\u00a9 www.propertysurveying.co.uk PP<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Buying and selling land and\/or property can seem costly to anyone unfamiliar with the process.\u00c2\u00a0 The most complex and, therefore, the most costly process being the legal transfer of title of ownership for that land or property from one person to another – known as \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcconveyancing\u00e2\u20ac\u2122. Generally, conveyancing is done by a legal specialist, although … Continue reading “What exactly is Conveyancing?”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"folder":[],"class_list":["post-15886","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\nWhat exactly is Conveyancing? - Property Surveying NEWSLETTER<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.propertysurveying.co.uk\/newsletter\/?page_id=15886\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What exactly is Conveyancing? - Property Surveying NEWSLETTER\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Buying and selling land and\/or property can seem costly to anyone unfamiliar with the process.\u00c2\u00a0 The most complex and, therefore, the most costly process being the legal transfer of title of ownership for that land or property from one person to another – known as \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcconveyancing\u00e2\u20ac\u2122. 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