Conveyancing

What is Conveyancing?

Conveyancing is the process by which legal title to property is transferred. Conveyancing is not a separate legal subject on its own but actually combines elements of property law, contract law and equity and trusts. At Francis Alexander Solictors Manchester our Conveyancing experts are on your side to ensure you get what you are paying for and don’t subsequently discover any problems with your new home.

What does exchange of contracts mean?

This is a crucial step in the house buying process. The reason it is important is that prior to exchange either party can walk away from the deal, but upon exchange an actual written contract exists, and deposits will have to be paid. Before you reach this point Francis Alexander’s Conveyancing specialists will already have made enquiries of the seller to ensure they have good title to sell, and they will have also sent the seller a long list of questions in which they clarify exactly what will be staying i.e. fixtures and fittings and what will be leaving. Francis Alexander will contact you to discuss the seller’s answers to this form and ensure what they say is staying is what you have agreed when you viewed the property.

When do i pay my deposit?

You will need to pay your deposit a few days before exchange of contracts. That is because we will need to have your cheque in our account as actual cleared funds before we can exchange.

The term deposit can cause some confusion. When most people talk about the deposit they mean the sum of money that the buyer is putting down him/herself to make up the difference between the mortgage offer and the purchase price. When your solicitor refers to the deposit he means the amount that must be paid on exchange of contracts.

How much will the deposit be?

As a standard term of sale contracts it will be 10% of the purchase price. At Francis Alexander we understand how difficult this can sometimes be and will normally ask for this figure to be reduced. We will have discussed this important issue with you in your initial meeting and you will already have an idea how much it will be.

Can't i just use the mortgage to pay the deposit?

No – technically the bank or building society won’t have actually transferred the mortgage proceeds until much later in the transaction. You may however be able to use the deposit on your sale if you have one. Francis Alexander will have discussed this with you and explained the best way to proceed.

What is a local search?

You may often hear solicitors talking about the results of searches in the house buying process. One important search is enquiries made with the local authority.

A local search is a list of questions about the property which Francis Alexander Solicitors Manchester will send to the local authority. It will answer questions such as: - Will I have to maintain the street outside my house or will the council? Are there proposals to build a new motorway next door? Are there any charges/debts for which I might become liable? Are there any planning conditions which will affect my proposed use of the property?; and a host of other questions and enquiries which Francis Alexander’s specialist Conveyancing solicitors will put on your behalf.

Why bother with all the searches?

Caveat emptor or put more simply Buyer Beware, is a cornerstone of Conveyancing in England and Wales. It means that you are deemed to have knowledge of certain matters which could affect the property and you will be bound by these matters whether you knew about them or not.

What other searches should i carry out?

Depending upon the location of the property there could be other searches related to water and drainage. Environmental searches to ensure the land is not contaminated, a coal mining search may reveal risk of subsidence, a commons registration search may reveal if people have rights to graze cattle on your front lawn!

This list is not exhaustive, but it should bring home to you the importance of obtaining the services of a specialist solicitor to help you through the house buying process. The fact that Francis Alexander also sells houses means that they may already be familiar with the house that you are purchasing, and will almost certainly be familiar with the local area. This local knowledge and continuity of service means we can advise you on what searches you need, ensure you’re not wasting money on irrelevant searches, and more importantly, that no essential searches are neglected.