Buying a property is exciting but it can be a stressful time, especially if your purchase is dependent on selling a property.

With a sale to co-ordinate, multiple people to deal with and lots to organise and get in place before you can exchange contracts, it’s important to choose the right conveyancer to help you through the process.

Expert conveyancing for your property sale and purchase

At Home Property Lawyers our helpful and friendly conveyancers will support you, working with the estate agents and the seller’s solicitors to ensure your sale and purchase proceeds as smoothly as possible.

Our experienced team are here to ensure that every stage of the process is managed quickly and, with a dedicated and contactable conveyancer assigned to you from start to finish, you will be kept fully informed throughout.

Stages of selling a property
  1. We will send you a pack of information and some forms to complete and return. You will need to complete a Fixtures and Fittings Form and a Property Information Form (Protocol forms) which we will forward to your buyer’s solicitors.
  2. You will be asked to provide money on account for third party expenses. These can include copies of the deeds (Official Copies) & evidence of your identity and your address.
  3. Once we have your completed documents, we will get copies of the deeds. These can usually be obtained quickly from Land Registry.
  4. We will then prepare and send a contract, your completed Protocol forms and Official Copies to your buyer’s solicitors.
  5. We will send you the contract and a plan to sign at this stage. We can then ensure the boundaries of the property you are selling are correct and have a signed copy in readiness for exchange of contracts.
  6. If you have a mortgage, we will obtain a redemption figure from your bank or building society to ensure we have enough funds to repay the mortgage on completion.
  7. Once your buyer’s solicitors have received our contract pack, they will request searches and raise enquiries regarding the property which we will discuss with you and respond to. The Buyer’s search results will take around 10-14 days, so things may be a little quiet during this time.
  8. Once the buyer has their mortgage arranged and the buyer’s solicitors have completed their enquiries and searches, they can advise their clients, have documents signed, agree a completion date and commit (exchange contracts) to moving (completion).
  9. Upon completion we will receive the sale monies from the buyers solicitors, we will repay your mortgage (if any), our fees and pay your estate agent fees, the balance will then be sent to you or used in connection with a purchase if you are also buying a property.
  10. You will need to vacate the property on completion, usually by 12.30 – 1pm. You will need to ensure items referred to as staying in the Fixtures and Fittings form are left behind and that items not agreed to remain and all rubbish is removed from the property.
Stages of buying a property

Gathering information

  1. We will send you a pack of information and some forms to complete and return.
  2. You will be asked to provide money on account for third party expenses such as searches.
  3. You may be asked for evidence of your identity and your address if not provided by the estate agent.
  4. If your deposit is a gift, we will need proof of the gift, ID and address verification for the person giving the gift.. You will need to tell your lender of any gift as soon as possible to avoid any issues later in the transaction.
  5. We will contact the seller’s solicitors to request:
    1. The contract
    2. Details of the title to the property
    3. A Fixtures and Fittings Form
    4. A Property Information Form (Protocol forms)

    When we receive the contract pack we will check the title and raise our initial enquiries with the seller’s solicitors.

  6. If not already provided to us, we will request searches such as:
    1. Local Authority Search
    2. Environmental Search
    3. Drainage Search

    Once we receive the results, we will review them and raise any further enquiries with the seller’s solicitors.

  7. A property report will be prepared setting out key information relating to the property. We will send this to you with:
    1. A plan so we can ensure the boundaries of the property you are buying are correct
    2. A contract
    3. A Transfer Deed (TR1)
    4. Completed Protocol forms
    5. Copy documents

Mortgage and money

  1. If you are obtaining a mortgage, your lender will send us a mortgage offer. Once received, we will review the offer and deal with any special conditions so that on completion we can get the mortgage funds from your lender.
  2. If you have a Help-To-Buy ISA you will need to provide us with your closing statement at least three weeks before completion. You can get this from the bank or building Society managing your ISA. We will need this together with a signed First Time Buyer declaration to enable us to obtain the bonus. It is imperative that you provide this to us; any delay could result in the bonus being delayed. If we do not have this on completion you will lose the bonus as we are unable to utilise this after completion under the scheme rules. Further information can be found here.
  3. Once we and your lender (if applicable) are satisfied regarding enquiries and searches, we can discuss a completion date with your seller’s solicitors and commit (exchange contracts) to moving (completion).
  4. In readiness for exchange of contracts we will require your deposit, unless this is being passed on from your related sale. We will discuss this with you as we approach exchange of contracts.
  5. We will carry out final searches before completion in case anything has changed. We will also request the funds from your lender (if applicable) and any balance funds from you. On the day of completion we will pay the purchase monies to the seller’s solicitors.

Completion

  1. On the day of completion, once the seller’s solicitors receive the funds, we can confirm completion and you can collect your keys.
  2. Following completion, funds will come in from your sale and we will send on to your seller’s solicitors. We will pay your stamp duty land tax to HMRC and we will deal with registration of your ownership and your lenders charge with the Land Registry.

Why might the process of buying and selling take longer?

Although the process of a buying and selling property is quite straightforward, occasionally there are things that can complicate and delay matters, particularly when processing both types of transaction at the same time, for example:

  • Several people in the chain, all with different transactions and circumstances to accommodate.
  • An adverse survey which down-values a property or means that estimates or essential work needs to be carried out before completion.
  • Someone in the chain unable to secure a mortgage.
  • Problems with the property title, such as missing documents, inaccurate plan, defective lease, breach of covenants or lack of necessary planning permissions or building regulations.
  • The property being a leasehold, which requires additional information from third parties
  • Adverse search results which result in further investigations.
  • People simply changing their mind about moving.

Should any of the above issues arise, it’s important that you have a conveyancer who will keep you informed and help find solutions to progress your purchase through to the exchange of contracts.

Already have an idea of what you require?

Contact us

Call us on

01522 503 500
Choosing Home Property Lawyers gives you:
  • A friendly and caring expert conveyancer, assigned to you.
  • Efficient and proactive service from a team of professionals.
  • Helpful and responsive communication, keeping you informed throughout your sale and purchase.
Already have an idea of what you require?

Contact us

Call us on

01522 503 500

Get your home conveyancing quote today!

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Dominic Reeve, Conveyancing Executive image
what our team says

“I moved to Lincoln in September 2012 to attend university where I studied English Literature. I fell in love with the city and knew when I graduated in September 2015 I didn’t want to move back to my small Suffolk village. I applied to be a Legal Administrator in the Conveyancing Department at Home Property Lawyers and was lucky enough to be offered the job, which started only 10 days after my graduation. After being in the Admin team for 6 months I was promoted to Conveyancing Assistant where I was moulded by two experienced Senior Conveyancers over the course of just under two years, learning to be a Conveyancing Executive myself. In February 2018 I was promoted to Conveyancing Executive and I can honestly say there is no job quite like it… There is nothing better than making that call at the end of the process to confirm that we have completed and hearing the excitement in a clients voice. That’s the reason I do the job! Now in 2022 having been working at Home Property Lawyers for over six and a half years I have come full circle and am in the process of buying my first home In the city. This has given me a brand new insight into the process and I can absolutely sympathise with and appreciate the stresses involved in the process which I think has really helped me to be empathetic towards my clients and make the process as smooth as it can possibly be for them.”

Dominic Reeve, Conveyancing Executive