Conveyancing

We will act on your behalf in connection with the sale of your property, guiding you through the process from accepting an offer on your property, through to handover of the keys, and also the post-completion formalities.

The purchase of a property is a huge commitment, and can be quite stressful. However, we can alleviate the stress by dealing with all the legal formalities of your purchase, from receiving the contract through to exchange, completion and the registration process.

Remortgaging is when you decide to switch lenders, perhaps to get a better deal or to release some equity from your property. We can act on your behalf and advise you through the legal process.

Shared ownership is when you purchase a percentage of the value of a property, usually from a housing association or council. You will pay rent to the housing association for the share you have not purchased. You can later increase your share (known as ‘staircasing’) up to 100%, whereupon you will own the property outright.

As a lease term gets shorter, the property can become more difficult to sell. Therefore, a short lease will impact on the value of the property, and many mortgage lenders will not lend if the lease is too short. A lease extension can be achieved by agreeing terms with the freeholder to extend the lease.

A transfer of equity is when you want to add or remove someone from the title deeds of a property. If you have a mortgage on the property, the lender’s consent is required before you can proceed with the transfer.

The government has introduced Help to Buy schemes to enable people to buy their own homes. For instance, there is an Equity Loan that can only be used for new-build properties. The government will provide a loan of up to 20% to help towards the purchase; you can obtain a 75% mortgage but must provide the remaining 5%. You will not be charged loan fees on the government loan for the first five years of owning your home. The government has also set up Help to Buy ISAs for first-time buyers only, who can claim up to £3,000.00 to help buy a property. The amount you receive will depend on the amount you have saved.

A Declaration of Trust is an agreement between the owners of the property, setting out the share each person will own. A Declaration can be tailored to your particular circumstances, e.g. where one person is making a higher contribution towards the purchase price of the property or the running costs of the property. The Declaration of Trust is made to protect the different investments made by each person when the property is sold.

This is a way of releasing some capital from your property through a specialist lender. Equity release is a way of retaining your house while obtaining a lump sum which you need not pay back during your lifetime. The amount taken will have to be repaid to the lender, usually when the homeowner dies.

This is a way of releasing some capital from your property from a specialist lender. Equity release is a way of retaining your house while obtaining a lump sum without having to pay it back during your lifetime.  The amount taken will have to be repaid to the lender usually when the homeowner dies.

If you decide to purchase a property at an auction, as soon as the auctioneer’s gavel goes down you have entered into a binding contract. In effect, you have exchanged contracts, and will have usually 20 working days in which to complete. It is recommended that you instruct a solicitor to go through the legal paperwork on your behalf before the auction, to advise you of any problems that may arise from the paperwork.

Right to Buy allows council tenants to purchase their home from the local authority at a discounted price. You will need to instruct a solicitor to advise you on the legal paperwork and on carrying out the purchase procedures.