Conveyancing is an essential step in buying or selling a property. It’s a broad term that covers the legal aspects of conveying a property from one person to another.
Property transactions are stressful and complex, even for people who have been through the process before. Thankfully, navigating a residential or commercial property transaction can be made significantly easier with the right Conveyancing solicitors helping you through it.
Let our specialist team of Conveyancing solicitors take the stress out of your property transaction.
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Our small team of Conveyancing solicitors are experts in all things property law, and are accredited under The Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. They deal with dozens of property transactions every week – both inside Greater Manchester and outside of it.
Based in Manchester and led by Colin Bethell, an experienced Conveyancing solicitor with more than 15 years of property experience, our team can provide you with expert legal advice and support in buying, selling or transfering of property.
Rather than the call centre approach that some firms adopt, we provide you with a knowledgeable and approachable single point of contact throughout the Conveyancing process. Every aspect of our service has been designed to make moving home as simple as possible.
What is Conveyancing?
Conveyancing covers the legal and administrative aspects of buying or selling property. In England and Wales, Conveyancing is generally done by specialised Conveyancing solicitor with a background in property law – though it can also be done by an unlicensed professional under a solicitor’s supervision.
Conveyancing is a broad term, and encompasses a range of complex legal processes- such as drafting contracts between the buyer and seller, conducting relevant “searches” with the local authority and environmental agencies, and formally registering the new property owner with the Land Registry.
Conveyancing is also necessary during a “transfer of equity” which is someone being added to, or removed from, co-ownership of a property. It also refers someone gifting a property without selling it.
If you are a buying a property for the first time, you can read our simple guide for first time buyers here.
How long does Conveyancing take?
Unfortunately, Conveyancing can be impacted by many different factors, so there is no specific fixed amount of time for the Conveyancing process! However, most transactions typically take Pabla & Pabla around 8 – 10 weeks.
It is worth noting that Conveyancing can take longer than this if the transaction is complex, or if one “side” of the purchase experiences delays. One of the biggest factors that can impact timeframes is the size and complexity of the “property chain”. A property chain is an interconnected series of sales and purchases that all depend on each other (there is more information in the FAQs below). The more properties involved in the chain, the higher the likelihood that there will be delays.
Thankfully, our Conveyancing team are experts in all things property transactions! Our Head of Conveyancing, Colin Bethell, has 15 years of experience, and sees the department handle dozens of property transactions every week.
What are the stages of Conveyancing?
Conveyancing consists of multiple steps – some simple and some complex – that legally mark the “conveyance” of a property from one person to another. The key steps are:
- Instructing: Hiring a solicitor to handle the legal and administrative side of a property purchase. This is referred to as “instructing” a solicitor.
- Contract Pack: The seller’s solicitors send a “contract pack” to the buyer’s solicitors – including things like a draft contract for sale, land registry documents, and any other important documentation.
- Enquiries: The buyer’s solicitors raise formal “enquiries” with the seller’s solicitors, and carry out relevant “searches” such as local authority searches, drainage and water searches, and environmental searches.
- Exchange of Contract: Both sides’ solicitors negotiate contracts with each other. Once both sides are happy, they “exchange” contracts and the buyer pays their deposit to the seller. Once contracts are “exchanged” they become legally binding and the completion date is agreed.
- Completion: The buyer transfers the agreed amount of money to the seller, and the buyer receives the keys from the estate agent.
- Post completion: The buyer’s solicitor pays Stamp Duty on their behalf if applicable, and registers them as the new owner of the property with the Land Registry.
Conveyancing FAQs:
Buying a home is often one of the biggest milestones people achieve in their lives. The main stages of the process are outlined below:
Pre-exchange of contract:
- The Conveyancing solicitor obtains and reports to the buyer (their client) on all documentation provided by the seller’s solicitor.
- They buyer’s solicitor raises relevant enquiries of the seller and carries out all necessary searches, such as local authority, drainage, and environmental.
Pre-completion:
- The buyer and seller exchange contracts via their solicitors. Once this has happened, the buyer and seller are contractually bound to an agreed completion date.
- The buyer’s solicitor obtains funds from them and their mortgage lender. They will ensure that the purchase funds are safely transferred and all documentation is received from the seller’s solicitor.
- The keys are released to the buyer on the agreed completion date.
Post-completion:
- The buyer’s solicitor pays Stamp Duty on their behalf, and logs them as the new owner of the property with the Land Registry.
Whether selling your home or investment property, you will want the transaction to be carried out quickly and efficiently. Here are the main stages of the process:
Pre-exchange of contract:
- Your solicitor will collate the legal title documentation and draft the sale contract. They will then provide these to the buyer’s solicitor.
- Your soilicitor will respond to the queries raised by the buyer’s solicitor, and liaise with throughout.
- Your solicitor will ensure that all sale documentation is signed in preparation of the sale.
Pre-completion:
- Exchange of contracts (when the buyer and seller are contractually bound to complete on a specified date).
- Requesting a statement from any existing mortgage lender and calculating the funds to be returned to you on completion.
Post-completion:
- You exchange contracts with the buyer via your respective solicitors. Your solicitor will ensure that the purchase funds are safely received and all documentation is sent to the buyer’s solicitor.
- On the day of completion, your solicitor will allow the keys to be released to the buyer.
- Your solicitor will deal with the repayment of your existing mortgage.
In terms of buying or selling a home, one of the biggest factors that impacts the timeframe taken is the length of the “property chain”, which is an interconnected series of home sales and purchases.
For example, let’s say Person A wants to sell their home. They will need to move into a new home themselves, which they purchase from Person B. Chances are, Person B will also need to move into a new home. They purchase this from Person C, and so on, and so on.
One end of the chain needs a buyer who doesn’t have a home to sell. The other end of the chain needs a seller who is not purchasing another property.
Each person in the property chain has their own team of solicitors who all need to complete the necessary Conveyancing steps before everyone can “complete” their buying and selling together. If one person in the chain has a delay, this generally impacts everyone else.
Generally speaking, shorter property chains complete faster than longer ones, as there are less chances of delays.
In England and Wales, properties like flats are purchased on a “leasehold” basis. This means that you own the property, but not the land it is on. The leaseholder usually has to make regular payments to the “freeholder” (the owner of the land) such as service charges or ground rent. Often, a Management Company is appointed to deal with administration of the service charges on behalf of the freeholder.
An LPE1 form is otherwise known as a Leasehold Property Enquiries form. Simply put, it is the document used by the buyer’s solicitor to obtain information from the Management Company on the property – such as payments and charges. It also covers important things like planned works on the property, deeds of covenant, and fire safety assessments.
Technically, yes, however doing so is incredibly hard and comes with significant risks. Conveyancing is time-consuming and very complicated. Anyone without substantial experience of contract drafting, property law, and negotiating with Estate Agents, would find the Conveyancing process immensely difficult. Furthermore, you would also be legally and financially liable for any mistakes you made.
It is also worth noting that many mortgage lenders require you to have a Conveyancer in place before your mortgage can proceed.
Ultimately, whilst England and Wales have no laws in place preventing you from doing Conveyancing yourself, this happens very rarely, and it is a job that is best handled by a professional.
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