Conveyancing is the business of transferring ownership of land or property from one person to another. You can do your own conveyancing but it is time consuming, complicated and needs to be accurate in terms of the legal aspect. There are three basic steps to the conveyancing process:
If you're selling
Your solicitor, or licensed conveyancer, will contact your mortgage lender for the property title deeds and land registry. You will need to dig out any guarantees on the property (for instance, damp or timber treatments) that are not held with the title deeds. You'll also be asked to complete a property information form covering issues such as council-tax banding and who owns boundary walls. There will also be a fixtures, fittings and contents form detailing the extras included in the agreed price (and what is available at extra cost).
Your solicitor will draft a contract and send it with all the other relevant papers to the buyer's solicitor and in due course, he'll answer any further queries raised by the buyer and her solicitor.
If you're buying
Your solicitor will ask for part of the conveyancing fee up front to cover the cost of searches required before your lender can issue a mortgage offer. Once paid, the searches will be conducted.
The usual searches
The local authority search shows details of any planning permission on the property itself, and outlines plans for any roads to be built within 200 metres of the property. But it doesn't reveal developments that may be in the pipeline on neighbouring property. For that you will need to get an additional plan search.
Your lender will also want a drainage search to establish whether the sewers used by the property are public or private; a land registry search to ensure the property still belongs to the seller; and a search of the bankruptcy register to check that you're not a bankrupt.
Other location-specific searches you might need
Depending on where in the country you're buying, there may be various other searches stipulated. Some Cornish properties require a tin-mining search, for example, while in Cheshire it may be necessary to carry out a brine search (brine extraction has caused subsidence problems in some parts of the county). Those in certain parts of London, meanwhile, may need a London Underground search to establish whether plans for Tube line developments will have an impact. It may also be worth carrying out an environmental search, which will tell you if the property is in an area at risk of flooding, or built on contaminated land.
As well as carrying out the various searches, your solicitor will go through the draft contract and information received from the seller's solicitor, and will make any further enquiries necessary.
Getting a survey
The mortgage lender requires a valuation to ensure the property is worth what you are planning to pay for it. A valuation is all a lender requires, but if you are worried about the property's condition commission a more in-depth survey. Once the searches and survey have been completed, your lender has made a firm mortgage offer in writing, the contract details have been finalised (including an agreed completion date when the property becomes yours), and everybody's happy, then both sides are ready to sign the contract.
Exchange of contracts
Up until this point, either party may walk away from the deal without any penalty. Once you exchange contracts, the whole thing becomes legally binding. On the day of exchange, the solicitors swap the signed contracts.
At this point, the buyer, via the solicitor, pays the seller a deposit on the purchase price. Before completion can take place, the buyer's solicitor sends a draft Land Registry form to the seller's solicitor for the seller to approve and sign. This is simply to authorise the Land Registry to transfer the ownership of the property from seller to buyer. The buyer also has to complete the mortgage documents, so that the money will be available to hand over to the seller on the completion date.
Completion
Completion occurs on the day when the buyer takes possession of the keys to their new home. On the date agreed, your solicitor sends the balance owed to the seller's solicitor, and receives the title deeds of the property in return. These are forwarded on to your mortgage lender for safekeeping; they cannot be passed on to a new buyer unless your mortgage is paid off at the same time. And this is the time to settle up any outstanding fees, including those for Land Registry services and stamp duty.
If you're selling, your solicitor clears the balance of your mortgage with the cash received, and gives you whatever cash is left (or puts it towards your next house). Be aware, however, that it can be more complicated if you're buying a flat with a lease to be checked, or if you buy a house that is not already registered with the Land Registry.
Finding a professional
Any solicitor is legally allowed to carry out conveyancing but, in practice, it makes sense to use one with experience. Some firms specialise exclusively in property matters; others have dedicated conveyancing departments.
Alternatively, you can use a licensed conveyancer, who is a trained specialist but has not necessarily qualified as a general solicitor. The Council for Licensed Conveyancers can help you find a professional in your local area.
Conveyancing costs
The price you pay for the services of a solicitor or licensed conveyancer will vary according to where they're based. Expect to pay for a number of disbursements, including Land Registry fees, search costs, bank transfer fees and land tax or stamp duty.