Conveyancing is the transfer of the legal title of a property from one person to another.

Conveyancing usually involves three major landmarks: (1) a seller accepts an offer from a potential buyer to purchase their property; (2) contracts are exchanged – this commits the seller to sell and the buyer to buyer with penalties if either party withdraws and (3) completion – the legal ownership of the property passes to the seller to the buyer.

Stage 1 – Agreement of sale

Once the sale has been agreed, your solicitor will:

• Obtain your title deeds either from you or your mortgage lender (if you have one) and ask you to fill in a few detailed questionnaires giving information about the property and its contents;
• Prepare and send out a package of legal information and a contract for sale to your buyer’s solicitors
• Request a settlement figure for your mortgage (if you have one) and any other secured loans
• Liaise with all the relevant parties in the transaction including estate agents and deal with any questions raised by the buyer’s solicitors with your input.

This would normally take 3/4 weeks

Stage 2 – Exchange of contracts

Once contracts have been exchanged, your solicitor will:

• Receive the deposit as a down-payment and commitment from your buyer to purchase and the buyer’s signed contract from their solicitor
• Organise final accounts and prepare a final settlement figure for your approval
• Approve the deed of transfer (which the buyer needs to have following completion to become registered as the owner of the property) and arrange for you to sign it.

This would normally take a week

Stage 3 – Completion

Upon completion, your solicitor will:

• Pay off the mortgage, estate agent’s fees and any fees due from the sale on your authority
• Hand over the deeds to the buyer’s solicitors and send any balance of money to you.

This would normally take a week

The average transaction normally takes 4-6 weeks from acceptance of offer to completion but can take less time or more depending on what (if any) issues may arise.  We find that the main hold-ups are when people have used low cost conveyancing firms and we don’t have a dedicated person to speak to on the other side.

At Bookers & Bolton we pride ourselves on the quality and efficiency of our work.  We will advise you what needs to be done, how much it will cost and how long it will take. There will be no hidden extras and you can always contact a member of the team.  Call our property experts to discuss your needs on 01420 82881 or email mailto:enquiries@bookersandbolton.co.uk for an INSTANT ESTIMATE.