MCP Solicitors' Guide To Buying & Selling Your Property

Many people already have a solicitor, and if so, you should make contact with them immediately your offer to buy is accepted or you decide to sell. You will need to pass their details to the Estate Agent. If you are selling your property, you will require a Home Information Pack. MCP Solicitors can help you with both this and your conveyancing as we are HIP providers.

If you do not have a solicitor give some thought to the type of service you require. Most people would prefer their solicitor to be local and have knowledge of the area in which they are buying/selling.

Remember, the cheapest or most expensive quote may not be the best. Make sure there are no hidden extras in addition to the figures you are quoted. Moving house is an expensive time and you don't want any nasty surprises when this bill arrives.

Your MCP Solicitors' Conveyancing lawyers will give a full breakdown of costs before we commence work. We will advise throughout the transaction if any unforeseen costs are going to be incurred.

Before starting to view properties, it is advisable to agree your finance in principle. You will then know how much you can afford and this also ensures your solicitor receives your mortgage quickly once you have found a property. You will also receive a copy of the mortgage offer.

Remember, only you know what you discussed with the mortgage company or broker, so take the time to read through the offer and let your solicitor know immediately if it is not what you agreed. New mortgage offers can be issued very quickly and should not hold up the house purchase as long as it is done early.

The mortgage company will arrange for the property to be valued. This is purely for the mortgage company to decide if the house is worth the amount you have agreed and is not a full survey.

Therefore you should also consider the advantages of having a more detailed survey carried out, especially when buying an older property. Do not dismiss it due to the additional costs as it may save you money in the long term. If you are not obtaining a mortgage, it will be your decision and responsibility to arrange the survey.

You will need to insure the property you are buying from exchange of contracts. Before this, you will need to send a copy of the proposed policy to your solicitor.

If you are buying, your solicitor will receive a draft contract from the seller's solicitors, together with a copy of the Home Information Pack and any other papers. They will submit their searches and raise enquiries. Hopefully while this is happening, they will also receive your mortgage offer. Once they have all the information they require, they will report to you with the contract and other papers to sign. Once you have signed and returned the papers, your Solicitor will be in a position to exchange contracts.

If you are selling, your solicitor will send the contract and Home Information Pack together with any other papers to the buyer�s solicitors. They will then submit their searches and raise any enquires. Your solicitor may refer some of these enquiries to you. Answer them as fully and as quickly as you can and return them with any supporting paperwork to your solicitor. Once they have all the information they require and a completion date has been agreed, contracts can be exchanged.

Usually the following searches will be carried out:

• Local Authority Search - this checks against potential breaches of planning, road schemes or Orders made against the property
• Environmental Search - this checks any environmental issues in the area, for example contaminated land, subsidence, radon gas, flood risk etc.
• Water & Drainage Search - checks whether the sewers and pipelines are private or public
• Chancel Repair Search - checks whether the owners have a liability to contribute towards repairs to the local parish church

Remember, that if you are buying a property with a Home Information Pack, the Local Search and Water Search results are included within the Home Information Pack. This may alleviate the need for you to pay for your own searches.

If you are not obtaining a mortgage then we would advise you to still have the searches carried out, but this decision is ultimately yours.

Often when you are selling your house the buyer�s solicitors will send you enquiries. These are usually fairly simply and include questions such as:

• Has your house ever been burgled?
• Do you have any guarantees for recent building work?

10% of the asking price is the most which you will be asked to provide. If you do not have this, and many people do not, advise your Solicitor as early as possible so they can make the rest of the chain aware. Your solicitor will need this deposit before contracts can be exchanged. If you are also selling a property, the deposit from your sale will be used as the deposit on your purchase.

Once contracts have been exchanged, you are legally bound to buy/sell the property. If you are buying, your solicitor will request your mortgage money together with any money needed from you. If you are selling, they will obtain details of how much is required to repay your mortgage on completion. You can confirm any removals and also contact the gas, phone, electricity and water companies.

The money will be sent through the banking system from one solicitor to another. If you are buying, once the seller's solicitors receive the money, you will be able to collect the keys from the Estate Agent and move into your new home.

If you are selling, once your Solicitor receives the money, they will confirm to you to take the keys to the Estate Agent and repay any mortgage on the property on your behalf. Unless you instruct them otherwise, they will also pay your Estate Agent. Once all fees have been paid (including the solicitors) any money left over will be sent to you.