Timings to be expected

Instructing a legal company

• This should typically happen within 24 hours. However, some legal companies don’t have the capacity to deal with new instructions on the day they arrive.

Identity checks

• These are dependent on the speed you provide the legal company with the details. They have to have them on file before they can process any of the legal paperwork.

Securing searches

• These can be secured typically within a few days, but the timing very much depends on the local authority’s ability to deliver the information required.
• Some are very quick and helpful during the conveyancing process while others can take 6-8 weeks or more and seem to take little responsibility for the fact they are affecting people’s lives.

Organising survey

• Typically a survey will take a couple of weeks to organise and for the report, including a valuation if you ordered one.
• This should be passed to your legal company straightaway.

Receiving mortgage offer

• The mortgage offer timings partly depend on what work you did beforehand to secure one.
• If you had a mortgage agreement in principle (AIP) or have a mortgage broker you work with regularly, then it might only take a few weeks.
• If you are starting from scratch, it may take 6-8 weeks or even longer, especially if a complex purchase.

Receiving the seller’s draft contract and property information

• This depends on how well organised the seller is.
• If well prepared, the contract could be ready within a matter of days or a week of making an offer.
• Unfortunately, most sellers don’t instruct a conveyancer until an offer has been received.
• Starting from scratch, it can easily take 2-4 weeks to secure the contract.

Between exchange and completion?

• In theory exchange and completion can be done on the same day, but only really if a cash purchase or specialist funding is secured.
• For most it is two weeks, but if you are trading down having lived in a property for many years, then do make sure you give yourself enough time to get rid of what you can’t or don’t want to take with you. This might mean you need four weeks instead of two.
• It is also worth contacting local removal companies to find out what notice they need to move. Ideally do this prior to exchanging. If the timing of the company you want to use is four weeks, then that’s what you need to secure between exchange and completion.

Conveyancing forms you’ll encounter

Epitome of title (EPT)

• Documents that prove the seller is the current owner of the property (named on the title) and has the right to sell it.
• Used when a property is not on the national property register (Land Registry – England & Wales or Registers of Scotland – Scotland).
• Can include details of rights given to the seller (easements) when the property is linked to another property or is on land owned by someone else.
• Rare to come across as all properties now need to be registered – a property can only be found to be unregistered when it’s sold.

Transfer of ownership documents

• Used to transfer the ownership of the property from the seller to you.
• These are filled out by your Solicitor / Licensed Conveyancer and sent to the national property register.
• There are different levels of ownership – you can own all of the property or a part of it – and there will be different forms for each level of ownership.
• Different forms are also used if the property belongs to someone who’s died or if ownership of more than one property is being transferred.

Transfer of Ownership Documents

SDLT / LBTT Return

• For paying Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) in England and Wales or the Land & Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) in Scotland.
• Filled out and submitted by your Solicitor / Licensed Conveyancer and sent to; HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) for England and Wales / Revenue Scotland for Scotland.
• Done online or by post.

Contract Pack

• Other than the contract itself, this pack will also contain forms filled out by the seller and their conveyancer.
• Your conveyancer will look through these and send you a report on their contents.
• If there are issues, your conveyancer will give advice on what you should (or can) do and will ask the seller’s conveyancer questions if needed (replies to requisitions).

The following forms must be completed and agreed before the sale of the property can go through:

TA6 / SPIF / PIF – Sellers Property Information Form

Contains information about the property such as:

• Boundaries
• Disputes & complaints
• Notices and proposals
• Building works, alterations and planning applications
• Warranties & guarantees
• Connections to utilities
• Council Tax
• Environmental issues

TA7 – Leasehold Information Form

Used for leasehold properties only.

Gives information about the property such as:

• Ground rent, service charge & building insurance
• The management of the building
• Landlord contact details
• Notices
• Consents
• Complaints
• Alternations
• Enfranchisements

TA10 – Fittings and Contents Form

• Details which fixtures / fittings and contents the seller is including in the purchase price.

TA8 – New Home Information Form (new builds only)

• Six-page form detailing such things as whether supplies (gas, electricity, water) are yet connected to the building and, if not, when they will be.
• Includes details of the boiler and heating system and whether they are yet fully operational, as well as guarantees and, if applicable, leasehold information.

LPE1 – Leasehold Property Enquiries Form

• Used for leasehold properties only.
• Your solicitor will receive it as part of the seller’s Leasehold Information Pack.
• This is a form the seller requests their landlord or managing agent to complete.

Will contain information about:

• The landlord’s identity
• The name of the management company (if there is one)
• Who maintains parts of the property
• Where money is paid (ground rent, service charges & building insurance)
• Disputes & enfranchisements
• Service charge estimates

Top 5 Tips: Taking care of your paperwork

1. Make sure you keep all the documents you get when buying a property, safely in one place. You will need all of these if you sell it.
2. If you think you need or haven’t received any documents, speak to your Solicitor/Licensed Conveyancer.
3. Scan all the documents and save them digitally in case the paper originals become damaged. I use the very simply & cheap Scanner Pro App for iPhone or Android.
4. Store all paper documents in a sturdy file with plastic folders so they are protected.
5. Keep all documents in a safely locked storage system as you don’t want them to get into the wrong hands.

What is the completion statement?

This is basically ‘the bill’ for your property purchase.

It’s a document given to you by your Solicitor / Licensed Conveyancer, which details all the payments you’ve made (and need to pay) to them throughout your transaction.

1. A draft completion statement is sent to you upon your conveyancer’s receipt of your mortgage offer or if buying with cash, before exchange of contracts when requesting deposit monies.
2. A further second draft is sent between exchange and completion and a final is sent on completion.
3. Everything in the completion statement has to be paid and cleared with the bank before the completion deadline in order for your purchase to go through.

What’s in the completion statement?

Items that need to be paid by you will be listed with prices, and include:

Property searches

• To be paid by you on instruction.
• These are fees paid for important checks to be done on the property and the land it’s on.
• Also include certain insurances where needed and cost for Land Registry to give you a plan of the property so you can see where your property finishes and others start.

Stamp duty (SDLT) in England/Wales or Land & Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) in Scotland

• To be paid by you before completion.
• Your Solicitor/Licensed Conveyancer then has 30 days after completion to pay it.
• Use the GOV.UK SDLT calculator to check the amount.

Land registration fee

• To be paid by you before completion.
• Your Solicitor/Licensed Conveyancer then pays Land Registry (England & Wales) or Registers of Scotland (Scotland) post completion.
• This is money given to H M Land Registry to change the ownership of the property.
• The fee you pay depends how much you paid for the property.
• View the official fee scale here

Purchase price

• To be paid by you before completion.
• This is the amount you are paying for the property.
• If you are taking a mortgage, your lender will supply monies and if you don’t need a mortgage, this will be paid by you.
• The deposit will be taken out of this and paid on exchange of contracts, then the rest is paid on completion.

Chattels / fixtures payments

• To be paid by you before completion.
• This is money you have agreed to pay for any extra fixtures/fittings being left by the seller, like appliances.

Solicitor’s / licensed conveyancer’s basic fees

• To be paid by you before completion.
• This is the amount you pay to use the services of a Solicitor / Licensed conveyancer (this is separate to the disbursements which are payments to 3rd parties such as environmental searches etc.).

Online ID fee

• To be paid by you before completion.
• This is the cost per person to have your identity (or other owners/buyers of the property) checked by your conveyancer – needed to comply with Anti Money Laundering Regulations.

Pre-completion checks

• To be paid by you before completion.
• This is money to pay for a last minute check / search that you have not been declared bankrupt and also to ensure that nothing has happened since exchange that could affect ownership of the property.

Lawyer checker

• To be paid by you before completion.
• This is a fee for a service which checks the bank account details of the seller’s Solicitor/Licensed Conveyancer to make sure it’s not a fraudulent account.
• This isn’t always done, but it is advised to use.

Costs relating to leasehold / new build properties

Service charges

• To be paid by you before completion.
• This is money you need to give back to the seller if they have pre-paid this.
• This will only be for during the time you have owned the property.

Ground rent

• To be paid by you before completion.
• This is money you need to pay only for during the time you have owned the property.

Landlord notice fee

• To be paid by you before completion.
• Your Solicitor/Licensed Conveyancer then pays post-completion.
• This is money paid to the person who owns the property freehold (landlord) to register you as new owner of the leasehold.

Landlord engrossment fee

• To be paid by you before completion.
• Your conveyancer then pays post-completion.
• This is money to be paid for new build properties so the landlord can issue a new lease to you.

More: What to do if you think your conveyancer has overcharged you

Common conveyancing issues when buying with a mortgage

Gifting (being given money for your deposit)

• If you receive a gift of money to help you with the deposit, you must tell your mortgage lender and the will want evidence that it is a gift, rather than a loan, and will want to trace it back to the original bank account, to stay in line with money laundering regulations.
• Tip: Make sure the person you are getting the money from is available to give their signature to the lender, confirming they don’t need the money to be paid back to them.
• Tip: Let your lender and Solicitor/Licensed Conveyancer know your deposit has been gifted as soon as you can.

Getting a mortgage offer

• You cannot receive a firm mortgage offer until you have made an offer on a property, and this can take several weeks in some cases.
• Tip: Make sure you keep all important documents like bills, bank statements, pay slips and tax returns for at least the 3 consecutive months in the run up to applying for your mortgage, as your lender will need all of these.
• Tip: Use a whole of market independent financial advisor or mortgage broker.

The valuation survey

• Your lender will send a surveyor to access the property and decide how much they think it is worth (a valuation).
• If your lender finds the property is worth less than what you are being expected to pay, they may lower your mortgage offer.
• Tip: If the property is down valued, first step is to try and renegotiate the price with the seller.
• If the seller won’t budge and you still want to buy, you can borrow the rest of the money from another lender.
• Alternatively, shop around for another lender who will lend you more or gives a higher valuation.
• Your lender may also want to organise a structural survey – when someone comes to check the state of the property.
• Tip: Try to have surveys done as soon as your offer is accepted.

Offer expiring

• Most mortgage offers last 3-6 months, after this time, you will need to apply for another mortgage.
• Tip: Check how long your offer will last for.
• Tip: Ask your lender for an extension on the offer time if you need to.

Poor lender administration

• Unfortunately, not all lenders are sharp when it comes to progressing the paperwork involved in issuing a mortgage.
• This can slow you down so get a good broker because they will keep the pressure on your lender – This can often mean they secure the property for you when otherwise you might have lost it due to delays.
• Tip: Don’t be the cause of delays yourself – Make sure all forms are filled in correctly and have someone check over common mistakes with; National Insurance Number, Financial background details (i.e. Credit Report Information, money in/money out), Income & References (people who confirm you can pay off the mortgage).

Affordability tests

• Since the Mortgage Market Reviews in 2014, more stringent affordability tests take longer to perform. You need to provide more supporting documents and greater detail about your spending patterns – they’re more of a faff basically.
• Don’t expect all lenders to agree on what you can afford to borrow.
• It’s also worth noting that if your circumstances change between the original interview and purchase, you should inform your lender as it may affect your offer.
• If you are buying more investment property and building a portfolio you may have to provide a business plan.
• Tip: Budget your spending for as long as you can before getting a mortgage to make sure you know where your money is going.
• Tip: Keep clear records of what you are spending your money on or keep your bank statements and make sure you know what each payment is for.

Lender withholding funds

• In some cases, the lender may wish to withhold funds until you have had a certain problem fixed with the property – eg. damp or rewiring.
• You can try to renegotiate the purchase price with the vendor, or your lender may be willing to release the funds if you can prove you have the work booked with a reputable tradesperson.
• If not, and you still wish to proceed, you will need to find the money from elsewhere.
• Whichever route you take, it will take time to organise and delay proceedings.