Buy a Property… and peace of mind

 

Before a property can be sold, there are a lot of legal checks which have to be done to make sure the seller is the actual legal owner of the property, and you are buying the actual property you want to buy. There are also checks to make sure that nothing is hidden that may affect the value of the property after you have completed. 

 

Thankfully these checks and protections make property fraud here in the UK extremely rare, certainly when compared with property transactions in countries like Spain. In these countries new homeowners have been known to find out years later that the land they live on was not actually allowed to be built on in the first place. 

 

Our legal system may be old-fashioned (over 1,000 years old) and can be slow at times, but our extensive process is worth it in the end. 

 

 

Exchange is the point at which you have your mortgage in place, have received a satisfactory survey, valuation, and council searches carried out, and you formally agree to buy the property. At that point, you must pay your deposit which is usually 10 per cent of the purchase price of the property.  

 

Exchange involves the exchange of contracts that make the sale of a house legally binding between the seller and buyer. This means that before contracts are exchanged, it is still possible for either the buyer or the seller to withdraw from the transaction. It also means that if you change your mind after contracts have been formally exchanged, you will forfeit your deposit.

 

It is sometimes possible for Completion to take place on the same day, but it is not recommended. It’s more likely to be a week or two after exchange. Completion is when you pay the balance of the house price and can finally start thinking about colour schemes and housewarming parties!

 

Completion is also the date that the legal ownership of the property is transferred over to the buyer. After final checks and searches, the buyer’s lawyer will pay the balance of the purchase money to the seller’s lawyer. Only after the funds are received can the transaction be completed and the estate agent is then free to release the keys to the buyer.

The average transaction can take somewhere from 8 to 12 weeks to complete, from the time you instruct a lawyer. 

 

 

Some people feel all lawyers are the same and do the same job. This is far from the truth. Local lawyers make it easy to sign documents the same day (which can sometimes help the process). Most online factory lawyers are extremely slow, which can mean you may lose a sale or miss out on a purchase.

 

At Hayward Moon we like to offer our clients the personal touch so they know who they are dealing with from the point of instruction. 

 

Sharon Harding has recently joined Hayward Moon as a Senior Conveyancing Executive based in its Histon office. Sharon says: “I set high standards for myself and pride myself on acting with discretion and always remaining calm under pressure”. 

She has experience in all aspects of residential property including, sales and purchases, remortgages and transfer of equity. Whether she is acting for a regular client or first time buyer, Sharon works closely with local estate agents to ensure the transaction proceeds as smoothly as possible.

Please note this article is provided for general information purposes only to clients and friends of Hayward Moon Limited. It is not intended to impart legal advice on any matter. Specialist advice should be taken in relation to specific circumstances. Whilst we endeavour to ensure that the information in this article is correct, no warranty, express or implied, is given as to its accuracy, and Hayward Moon Limited does not accept any liability for error or omission.