Slater Heelis Buying and Selling Guide

Slater Heelis Buying and Selling Guide

slater heelis

e xceeding expectations A guide to selling and buying a property

Selling and Buying a Property

Moving house is often stated to be one of the most stressful life events. Choosing the right legal representative can make a big difference to how your property matter progresses. We want to help and we take pride in the residential conveyancing services we offer. Using our property lawyers means you will get the support and assistance you need to make the process go as smoothly as possible. With our roots firmly in the North West we are often able to pre-empt issues that are likely to arise in relation to properties that are local to us. Our well-established practice means that we have experience in dealing with property transactions throughout England and Wales. We have great connections with both local and nationwide Estate Agents and other firms of solicitors, meaning that we can work well together to complete your matter as quickly as possible. The size of our Firm and our Conveyancing Quality Scheme accreditation means we are likely to be on your mortgage lender’s panel which can avoid an unnecessary delay.

We work hard to ensure that our fee quotes are competitive but also allow us to provide you with the service level that you deserve. Our team will work with you, meaning that if you choose to use us, you will have a named contact who will act for you in the matter and you will able to speak to them or a member of our support team without delay at any time during the working week. We’ll take the time to explain every step of the process and to reassure you when there are delays and the action that we can take to move things forward. We have prepared a handy guide to the process here so that you can track your process throughout the transaction. We are often asked to give an estimate of the likely timeframe at the outset of the matter. We’ll be honest with you – it’s never certain, but if things go smoothly it can be between 2 to 3 months. If there is a long chain of transactions the timeframe can be longer and sometimes there are unforeseen issues that can cause a delay. We firmly believe that how we communicate with you is the key and we strive to do that well at every stage.

Selling and Buying Guide

Sale

Purchase

Instructions You will have received our quotation for the costs and disbursements relating to your property sale/purchase. If you want to instruct us to act for you please let us know.

File Opening We will send you an Engagement Letter and our Terms of Business and some other forms which you will be required to complete. We will ask you for some money on account.

Money Laundering We have to comply with Money Laundering legislation and part of this is ensuring that we have adequately verified your identity and the source of any funds passing through our client account.

Memorandum of Sale This is sent out by the Estate Agents (if applicable) and confirms the details of the sale/purchase along with the details of the legal representatives appointed by each party.

Receiving the Contract The seller’s solicitor will send us a Contract Pack which contains the draft Contract and the information held by the Land Registry relating to the property. We should also get the Fittings and Contents Form at this stage which provides details about the items being left at the property.

Sending Out the Contract Pack We send out the Contract Pack which confirms the sale price, the property boundaries and the items which are being left at the property.

Dealing With Enquiries The buyer’s solicitor may have questions relating to the property and the Contract Pack and they will be sent to us.

Submitting the Searches Once we have a Land Registry Plan relating to the property you are buying we can request your searches.

Your Mortgage We will ask you for information relating to any mortgage you have in connection with this property so that we can ensure that your mortgage can be redeemed (paid off) on Completion.

Raising Enquiries We will raise any queries we have on the Contract Pack and searches with the seller’s solicitor.

Your Mortgage Offer We will receive instructions to act for your Lender in relation to your purchase and we will receive a copy of your Mortgage Offer which we will report to you on. You will need to sign a Mortgage Deed.

You may find that there is a time where you are waiting for your purchasers to confirm they are ready to proceed. They need be sure all their funding is in place and that they are happy with their purchase.

Selling and Buying Guide

Sale

Purchase

Pre-Exchange We will report to you on the Title to the Property, the Searches, the Contract and any other matters we think you should be aware of before proceeding. If you are happy to proceed you will need to sign the Contract in readiness for Exchange and we will need your deposit. We also need to be sure that we have enough time to request your Mortgage and for you to send any additional funds to us to enable us to complete. We will also ask you to sign the Stamp Duty Land Tax Return.

Pre-Exchange You need to have signed the Contract in readiness for Exchange and the information from your Mortgage Lender needs to have been received.

Exchange of Contracts Exchange of Contracts is the point in the transaction when everyone is ready to be contractually committed. Once Contracts have been exchanged neither party can pull out of the deal without there being financial consequences. The Completion Date is agreed prior to Exchange and the date is then written into the Contract. The actual Exchange takes place over the telephone between the two legal representatives and there is no need for you to be present at the office.

We will send out the Transfer Deed which will transfer ownership of the property to your buyers which you will need to sign and return to us ahead of the Completion Date.

Depending on the specific details of your purchase, you may also need to sign a Transfer Deed. You will need to send any additional funds that we require from you in order to complete.

Completion Day This is the day that the seller moves out of the property and the buyer moves in. The money being paid for the property is transferred from the buyer’s legal representative to the seller’s legal representative.

Post Completion Matters There are various matters we have to attend to on or after the Completion Date.

We pay the Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) and submit your SDLT Return to HMRC. We apply to the Land Registry to register you as the new owner and provide the Land Registry with any Mortgage Deed so that your new mortgage is noted on the Land Registry records. We will pay our bill having collected the amount due from you to complete your purchase including our costs prior to the Completion Date. We notify you when the registration process is complete.

We pay money over to your Mortgage Lender to ensure that they remove the charge that is secured against the property you are selling. Unless you instruct us otherwise, we pay the Estate Agent’s invoice. We will pay our bill from the sale proceeds. We send any balance that is due to you from the sale proceeds to your bank account (unless the sale proceeds are being used on a connected purchase).

Exceeding expectations Slater Heelis is a respected, full-service law firm delivering legal advice from our Manchester, Sale and Timperley offices. As a local client-focused firm, being part of the communities in which we live and work is of utmost importance. We pride ourselves on being able to deliver in-depth legal expertise to individuals and businesses alike. We are compassionate solicitors who work hard to achieve the outcome you desire and build relationships that last.

Get in touch with our team

With specialists across all fields of law, we will help you achieve the results you want.

[email protected] 0161 969 3131 slaterheelis.co.uk

exceeding expectations

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