Conveyancing – Top 10 FAQs

This is the process that involves the transfer of the legal ownership of a property, from one person to another. This includes all the administrative work involved in transferring the ownership, including searches on the property. Your conveyancer will also liaise with the other’s conveyancer and selling agents to manage the steps from acceptance of your initial offer, exchange of contracts through to completion.

 A conveyancer manages your conveyancing and they can be a solicitor, property lawyer or a licensed conveyancer, who works on your behalf to find information about the property including any restrictions on its use, from the number of buyers and sellers involved in the process, to ultimately ensuring the legal title is transferred from the seller to the buyer. 

A conveyancer is a solicitor, property lawyer or licensed conveyancer who is legally trained to help you buy, sell and let your property. They can advise you as to your rights connected with your property, including advising on leasehold property and the restrictions contained in a lease. A conveyancer can demystify the jargon associated with property and conveyancing 

The cost of a conveyancing service can vary depending on the value of the property and the type of property you are acquiring. For an instant quote, please use our free online conveyancing calculator.  

A good conveyancer will be able to handle your matter with confidence, keep you regularly updated, give you support and advice, meet your exchange and completion dates, recommend the next steps and provide you with all the assurances required during the process. Our conveyancer will ensure we provide all these personal services giving you regular property progress throughout each stage of the process. Consider a local legal expert who knows the area and will be able to provide the services on your doorstep.

If you are looking to buy, sell or looking to re-mortgage your property, you will need a qualified conveyancer to help you through the legal processes. You will also need to have appointed a reliable conveyancer if you are planning on making an offer on a property, as the estate agent will request these details from you.

Your conveyancer will carry out property searches and surveys which is an investigation into the property you are buying, your mortgage lender, and giving you as much information as possible about the property. The sole purpose of the property search and survey is to identify things which may be out of the ordinary, or required before you purchase the property such as a boiler service, structural, damp issues and more. Your conveyancer will also be able to tell you whether the property is listed or whether you would encounter any difficulties and will advise the actions to take. Searches and surveys are always carried out before the ‘exchange of contracts’ to give you an indication of whether your conveyancer will need to manage any property-related legal problems.

When you reach completion, your conveyancer will manage all the steps involved in completing the process on your behalf. This will include requesting funds from your mortgage lender, the transfer of the funds for the property to the other solicitor, submitting your Stamp Duty Land Tax return and paying any duty to HMRC and registering your name as the owner if you are buying at Land Registry.

Your conveyancer will ask for your personal identification, details of the property, influences that may affect when you would like to exchange and complete, how you plan to pay for the property, mortgage application, plans to carry out work, purchasing with someone else, whether you are in a chain or own other residential properties. You may not be asked for all these details, however at some stage you may need to provide this information to ensure legally you can buy the property.

Many estate agents have a panel of solicitors who they recommend. Always ask the question whether you are required to use their panel solicitor or if you can source your own. You may find that the panel of solicitors recommended could work faster with your agent because of the business relationship or knowledge of the development. We recommend to all potential clients to research the conveyancing solicitor and ensure they happy with their services prior to proceeding.