The property market in Liverpool is booming. With new homes being built every day and properties on the market, now is the time to buy and sell property in the city.
Whether you’re looking to buy your first family home or sell your portfolio, you’re going to need legal support. At Brown Turner Ross, we have supported countless people in buying and selling properties. In this guide, we will outline exactly what conveyancing is and why you need a conveyancing solicitor in Liverpool.
What is Conveyancing and Why Does it Matter?
Conveyancing is the legal procedure that transfers property ownership from a seller to a buyer, guaranteeing the transaction’s security and legality. This step of the selling and buying process is essential as it provides legal protection for all parties and verifies the property’s condition.
Without conveyancing, it would be near impossible to guarantee a legally binding and smooth transfer of the property title.
Key Steps of Conveyancing
If you work with a conveyancer, they can ensure you follow the correct legal procedures to sell or buy a property. The key steps of conveyancing are:
Drafting Contracts
At this stage of the process, your conveyancer or solicitor will draft the contract of sale, setting out all the key details of the property transaction. In this documentation, they will set out the key details of the transaction, ensuring that they consider legal issues that could affect the property sale
Handling Legal Checks
The conveyancer carries out essential legal due diligence at this point in the process. This requires investigating the property titles, reviewing searches and ensuring no restrictions may affect the buyer’s use of the property.
At this point, any concerns raised by the seller or buyer’s side should be resolved before contracts are exchanged.
Dealing with Land Registration
After the sale concludes, the buyer’s conveyancer submits an application to HM Land Registry to formally transfer ownership. This process updates the public register to list the buyer as the new legal owner and records any mortgages or legal charges associated with the property.
Managing Funds
The conveyancer is responsible for handling all financial aspects of the transaction, including collecting the deposit, transferring the money earned from the sale and paying off any existing mortgages. Your conveyancer will also ensure that Stamp Duty Land Tax is settled.
Why You Should Use Local Conveyancing Solicitors in Liverpool
When buying or selling a property in Liverpool, we strongly believe that you should work alongside a local conveyancing solicitor. Some of the benefits of working with a local solicitor in Liverpool include:
Local Knowledge
A conveyancing solicitor based in Liverpool will be familiar with local issues, from typical leasehold arrangements in city centre apartments to distinctive challenges with older properties throughout Merseyside. This local expertise allows them to identify potential problems early, provide clear explanations, and offer guidance tailored to your buying or selling area.
Faster Communication
Hiring a local solicitor typically results in faster and more personal communication. You can reach out via call, email, or schedule an in-person visit, providing reassurance compared to interacting with an impersonal online service. This approach often helps avoid delays and ensures a smooth process.
Local Connections
Local solicitors often collaborate with estate agents, surveyors, and other professionals within the Liverpool property market. These existing connections help streamline resolving queries, following up on paperwork, and maintaining your transaction’s progress. Additionally, their knowledge of local authorities and land registry offices can help expedite the process.
Finding the right solicitor in Liverpool can have a huge impact on the overall buying and selling process, making it easier for all involved parties.
What Could Go Wrong Without a Solicitor?
If you choose to buy or sell a property without the help of a conveyancer, you must be aware of some of the things that could go wrong without the help of a solicitor.
Common risks in legal and property transactions include contract disputes, title problems, delays, and fraud. It’s important to carefully balance the potential costs arising from these mistakes with the benefits of seeking professional legal advice, which can help manage and mitigate these risks more effectively.
How a Conveyancing Solicitor Supports You as a Buyer
Not sure if hiring a conveyancing solicitor is the right choice for you as a buyer? Buying a property in Liverpool may be more complex than you imagine, and here are some of the ways that a conveyancing solicitor can support you through this process.
Conducting Local Authority Searches
A conveyancer will arrange for the local council to conduct local authority searches directly, investigating the property’s history, planning permissions, and potential development plans that may impact your desire to complete your purchase.
Local authority searches are crucial to uncovering vital information about the property and ensuring that the buyer isn’t surprised by unexpected inconveniences.
Solicitors based in Liverpool already have established relationships with the local authority and so may find it easier to access the necessary information, which might support a buyer.
Checking the Title Deeds
A conveyancer will receive a package of documents from the seller’s conveyancer, which includes documents concerning the seller’s proof of ownership and information concerning the property’s history.
Your conveyancer will conduct a title check through the Land Registry to validate the seller’s right to sell and ensure that the buyer is not put into a difficult position after purchase.
Explaining Complex Legal Documents
Unless you have past legal experience, it is likely that a lot of the legal steps and jargon mentioned in your contracts will make little or no sense. A good conveyancer will help you understand any complex legal documents and ensure that you are not agreeing with any confusion.
As a leading law firm in Liverpool, we ensure that all of our clients do not enter into a legally binding contract without first confirming that they fully understand the agreement’s parameters.
Liaising With the Seller’s Solicitors
Buying a house can be stressful and time consuming, working with a conveyancing solicitor helps to remove some of the stress, as they take care of the communication between the buyer and the seller’s legal team.
If the contract changes or the buyer would like to negotiate the price, the buyer’s conveyancing solicitor will inform the seller’s solicitors.
How a Conveyancing Solicitor Supports You as a Seller
Working with a conveyancer is also beneficial to sellers. Conveyancers can make the entire selling process a lot easier by helping with the following tasks:
Preparing the Draft Contract of Sale
Conveyancers assist sellers in preparing a draft sale contract by collecting key property details via questionnaires, confirming ownership information, and drafting the formal contract for the buyer to review and negotiate on behalf of the seller.
They will ensure that the seller is completely happy with the outlined terms before forwarding the contract of sale to any buyer’s solicitors.
Responding to Buyer Queries and Requests
Conveyancers act as a conduit between buyers and sellers, raising and answering questions on behalf of the seller. During the sale of a house, there can be a lot of back-and-forth, which can be overwhelming for the seller.
They will handle any queries or problems that may arise, saving the seller from unnecessarily wasting time.
Handling Completion and Transfer of Funds
On the completion day, the seller’s conveyancer gets the sale money from the buyer’s conveyancer and uses it to settle any remaining mortgage, estate agent fees, and other charges. After these payments, the remaining balance is transferred to the seller.
Once the funds are received, the seller’s conveyancer confirms with the estate agent that the keys can be handed over to the buyer.
Ensuring Compliance with Legal Obligations
Conveyancers play a crucial role in ensuring legal compliance for sellers by verifying ownership and identity, conducting property searches to identify restrictions, accurately disclosing property details via forms such as the Property Information Form (TA6) and Energy Performance Certificate (EPC), settling existing mortgages, managing legal documents for contract exchange and completion, and ensuring all applicable taxes are paid.
What to Look for in a Good Conveyancing Solicitor
By now, we hope to have persuaded you that a conveyancer is a necessary part of selling or buying a property. If you now want to employ the help of a conveyancing solicitor, here are some characteristics of a conveyancer that you should look out for.
Accreditation and Experience
Working with a solicitor with proven accreditations and experience is one of the best ways to ensure legal protection and avoid costly mistakes. You should look for qualifications such as the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme, proving that they have been commended for their ability to adhere to strict standards while handling each case effectively.
In Liverpool, word of mouth can go a long way. When using a local solicitor, you can often come across others who have used that solicitor and can provide a review of their service.
Clear Pricing and Communication
Especially when working with a strict budget, it is important to find a conveyancing solicitor who can provide a clear pricing outline for their services and communicate the cost of your case.
Nothing is more frustrating than building a relationship with a solicitor only to discover later that their services are unaffordable. If a solicitor isn’t transparent about their costs from the outset, that often indicates they might come with a high price.
Track Record Within Liverpool
Reputation is everything for a solicitor in Liverpool, and if someone has been unhappy with a solicitor’s services, they aren’t going to remain quiet about it. Don’t be afraid to ask them about their track record and find out if they have previously worked with properties in Liverpool.
You can also use sites such as ReviewSolicitors and The Solicitors Regulation Authority to check a solicitor’s reputation and ensure that you would be comfortable working with the solicitor.
Availability and Responsiveness
The last thing you want is to make a significant financial commitment to a solicitor, only to encounter poor response times and a lack of communication or assistance when you need it most. This situation can lead to frustration and potentially harm your legal matters due to delays or inadequate support.
When working with a solicitor, ensure they can accommodate the availability you require.
Work With Brown Turner Ross Today
Through this guide, we hope to have given more insight into why conveyancers are an essential part of the house buying and selling process and what you should look for when selecting a conveyancer to work with.
At Brown Turner Ross, we have proudly represented a range of clients in both buying and selling properties, and we are ready to help more in their property ventures. Contact us today if you would like to work with us or require further advice concerning conveyancers.