Process of a Purchase Transaction

You’ve had an offer accepted on your dream home, these are exciting times!  Buying a house can be stressful, particularly as many buyers are unsure of the conveyancing process once a solicitor has been instructed to represent them.  This article will set out what happens in a typical purchase transaction so you know what is involved and how the process of buying a home works.

So, what happens in a typical transaction once you have completed your initial instruction papers and supplied us with your ID and proof of funding? 

Firstly, we will contact the solicitors acting for the seller to obtain the contract pack.  This pack contains details of the title to the property (document which contains essential information about the property, including the owners and any restrictions or rights which affect the property) and paperwork the seller has completed providing information such as whether any improvement works have been carried out. The contract pack is then checked, with pre-contract enquiries (questions) raised on the content. 

The enquiries are raised on your behalf to ensure there are no issues with the property which could be problematic for you in the future.  The number of enquiries raised depends on the complexity of the title and the level of detail provided by the seller in the paperwork they have completed. It is around this point in the transaction that your lender will send us your mortgage offer (if you are purchasing with the aid of a mortgage).  We will also order the necessary searches on your behalf.  If you are buying without a mortgage you will be given the option of whether to order searches, but we would always recommend these are carried out. At this stage in the process there is a lot of behind the scenes work taking place, not just by us but also the seller’s solicitors.

Once the seller’s solicitors have replied to the enquiries we have raised, these will be reviewed, along with the search results and mortgage offer.  When the enquiries are satisfactory it is time to send you the property report.  This report will contain an overview of the of the key points of the contract pack and will be accompanied by the contract and Transfer for you to sign.

Once you have read the report and are happy to proceed you will need to sign and return both the contract and Transfer to us and arrange for any deposit monies to be paid to us in preparation for exchange of contracts.  It is at this point when completion dates (moving dates) can be agreed between the parties involved in the transaction.

Once a completion date is agreed and all parties are ready to exchange we will take your authority to exchange contracts.  Exchange is carried out in a telephone call between the solicitors and will make the completion date legally binding, preventing either party from withdrawing from the transaction without incurring a financial penalty. 

On the day of completion we will send the funds for the purchase to the seller’s solicitors as early as possible.  Once they receive the money completion takes place and keys for the property are authorised to be released to you.  We would normally estimate completion to take place around lunchtime, but this is often dependent on the banking system.

Following completion we will deal with submitting the stamp duty land tax return on your behalf and register the property in your name at Land Registry.

The length of time a purchase transaction will take to reach completion depends on a number of factors. These can include if there is a chain or if the title to the property you are purchasing is complex.  We would estimate it will take 8-10 weeks to complete on a freehold purchase whereas leasehold purchases (which can be more complicated) will take 10-12 weeks.

If you have found a property to purchase and would like to obtain a quote for us to act on your behalf or if you have any questions around the Conveyancing process please contact the team on 033 03001103

Alternatively, you can request a call back using the link below.