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| Buying property

We deal with a full range of property purchases, including leasehold purchases, unregistered land, and buy-to-let investment properties.

The main stages in the conveyancing process for a purchase are as follows:

Arrange a mortgage

If you will be taking out a mortgage, the first step is usually to look at your budget, decide how much you want to borrow and consider which mortgage lender you would like to approach. You can apply to them for a mortgage offer in principle. This is not a formal offer, but it will give you an indication of the amount they are likely to lend you.

Having a mortgage offer in principle will also be persuasive when making offers on property as it demonstrates that you have started the necessary work to secure a loan.

Instruct a conveyancing solicitor

You can ask us to represent you early on before you have an offer accepted. This will give us a chance to carry out some of the initial tasks upfront, such as setting up a file and carrying out the identity checks that are required by law.

We will then be ready to start work as soon as we receive the contract package from the seller’s solicitor once you have had an offer accepted. Carrying out these steps early will often reduce the number of weeks taken to reach readiness for the exchange of contracts.

Request a survey

When buying a property, you will usually be advised to have a survey carried out so that you are aware of the condition and any potential problems. Where necessary, you can negotiate with the seller to cover the cost of remedial works if issues are revealed in the survey.

Pre-contract searches and enquiries

As soon as we receive the contract papers from the seller’s solicitor, we will start the main body of work needed. This includes going through the property information, checking the legal title, applying for searches and sending a list of enquiries to the other side.

During this period, your lender will usually issue us with your mortgage offer. Once we have all of the information we need, we will report to you on the property, highlighting anything unusual that you should be aware of.

You can then sign the contract and the mortgage deed. You will need to let us have a deposit in readiness for the exchange of contracts.

Exchange of contracts and completion of your purchase

Once everyone in the chain is ready to proceed, we will discuss potential completion dates with you. When a date has been agreed upon, we will exchange contracts. This is the stage at which the transaction becomes legally binding, with the completion date set.

We will order your mortgage advance and let you know how much we will need from you in cleared funds to complete the purchase.

On the day of completion, we will let you know as soon as the transaction has gone through and you will be able to liaise with the estate agent to arrange picking up the keys.

| Selling property

If you are selling property and you would like us to represent you, please feel free to call us as soon as you decide to put your property on the market. This will help you to get the transaction off to a fast start, which can reduce the time taken to reach the exchange of contracts.

The first step will be for us to open a file and verify your identity. We will let you have a range of paperwork to be completed, including a property information form and a fixtures and fittings list. You may need to find documents to accompany these, such as guarantees. Starting early will give you the chance to find these before they are needed so that as soon as you accept an offer, we are ready to issue the contract papers.

We know that it is often important to push a sale through promptly and we will be proactive in dealing with matters, following up with your buyer’s solicitor as needed to make sure they are progressing the transaction effectively.

We always aim to provide information as quickly as possible once it has been requested and we are used to dealing with tight deadlines, including tying related purchases.

| Transferring property

It is sometimes necessary to transfer an interest in property. For example, you may be separating from a partner and want to transfer your shared home into your sole name or moving in with someone and taking up joint ownership.

Property ownership is not straightforward and it is important to speak to expert property solicitors before you go ahead. There are different ways of co-owning a home and we can explain these to you and establish which option is right for your situation.

If you have contributed a higher amount to the purchase of a property, we can make sure that this is protected for the future.

Where a mortgage lender is involved, we will liaise with them, ensuring we have the necessary consent to the transfer. We also deal with combined transfers and remortgages.

| Remortgaging property

If you are remortgaging a property, you will generally need a conveyancer to deal with the transaction. This is because the lender will need a full range of due diligence work carried out to satisfy them that the property is good security for their loan.

We are approved by the panels of all major high street lenders to represent them in remortgage transactions. This means that we can act for both you and them, as well as liaising with your existing lender to redeem their loan.

It can often be advantageous to complete a remortgage quickly, and we always do all we can to finalise matters without delay so that you can move to your new deal as soon as you want.

| Equity release

An equity release policy allows you to obtain a lump sum from a lender while still remaining in your home. Unlike a mortgage, you may not need to pay anything back each month, or you may be able to pay off the interest.

Because this type of policy is complex and you are giving up some of the equity in your home, you are required by law to have expert legal advice before you sign. We are experienced in providing the advice needed and we will make sure that you fully understand the implications of your equity release policy.

We will go through the terms and conditions and explain them clearly, answering any questions you may have. We will look at any options open to you in respect of payments and also discuss the long-term effects of this type of deal for you, your property and your estate.

For more information about our services, see our residential conveyancing solicitors page.