What to Expect – Purchase Transactions

At the outset of the transaction, we will write to you with full details of our costs and other regulatory information as required by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. We will also send out various forms that need to be completed in relation to the transaction. We are required to verify your identity in accordance with both Anti-Money Laundering and Land Registration Regulations.  We will also meet you face to face in person or by video call.

We usually request £350.00-£500.00 on account of fees and disbursements at the outset of the transaction to enable us to pay disbursements as they fall due.

We will ask you whether you will be applying for a Mortgage to assist you with the transaction. Some Lenders will instruct us to act on their behalf also but others will require representation from another firm of Solicitors. If you are having a Mortgage, the terms of the UK Finance Lenders Handbook will need to be complied with. https://lendershandbook.ukfinance.org.uk/lenders-handbook/

If there are Estate Agents involved in the transaction, you should give them our details and they will write to us with their Memorandum of Sale and a copy of their Sales Particulars. We will then have the necessary details to be able to make contact with the Solicitors acting for your Seller.

We recommend in all cases that you consult an independent surveyor for advice on valuation and survey.

Your Seller’s Solicitors will send to us a full package of documentation relating to the property including two copies of the proposed Contract as drafted by them, a copy of the Title documentation and various forms completed by the Seller.

If the property is leasehold, the Seller’s Solicitors will supply a copy of the Lease. Various enquiries will need to be made with the Landlord/Managing Agents.

We will submit the relevant searches on your behalf, consider the paperwork provided by the Seller’s Solicitors and raise some additional enquiries. Once replies to the enquiries are received, we will report fully to you in writing. We will also report to you on the results of the searches and your Mortgage Offer if applicable. We will consider the terms of the draft Contract prepared by the Seller’s Solicitors and negotiate amendments with them if necessary.

Once you have taken the opportunity to consider our written report(s) in relation to the property, we will ask you to meet with us in order that all documentation in relation to the transaction can be signed in readiness for exchange of contracts. At that stage, we can deal with any questions you may have in relation to the paperwork.

You will be required to pay a deposit when contracts are exchanged (usually 10% of the purchase price). We will advise you when this should be transmitted to our bank account in order that we can then send it to the Seller’s Solicitors once exchange of contracts has taken place.

When both parties have signed their respective copies of the Contract and are ready to proceed further, we will discuss with you proposed completion dates (i.e. when the Seller must vacate the property and you will be able to move in) and then obtain your authority to exchange contracts.

You will need to arrange buildings insurance cover for the property with effect from the date of exchange of contracts. If you are obtaining a Mortgage, full details often need to be provided to us in order that we can ensure the Lender’s requirements are met.

Once contracts are exchanged, the transaction becomes legally binding and the completion date is fixed.

We will then carry out some further searches and obtain the balance of the purchase price from you and any mortgage advance from the Lender.

On the completion date we will transmit the purchase monies to the Seller’s Solicitors and notify you once the transaction has been completed and you can collect the keys.

We will then submit the relevant Stamp Duty Land Tax Return to HMRC, receive the relevant documentation from the Seller’s Solicitors and send the necessary application to the Land Registry for you to be registered as the new owner of the property. Once registration has taken place, we shall send you a copy of the revised Title documentation.

As accredited members of The Law Society Conveyancing Quality Scheme we will keep you, the Estate Agents and the Seller’s Solicitors regularly updated throughout the transaction. Orchid Law aims to reduce stress and worry for clients where possible during their transaction and we are often available outside usual office hours for your convenience.

We are sometimes asked to give an estimate of timescale, this is extremely difficult to predict as depends on various factors. If there is no chain involved in a transaction and no mortgages are needed it is feasible that completion could be achieved in a period of
six weeks, if a party requires a mortgage this time period would be extended depending on the time the mortgage company take to process all matters leading to the actual issuing of the Offer.  If there are a chain of transactions the timescale will be set by the speed of the slowest party in the chain and can often be several months.

For a quotation in relation to your particular transaction, please complete the Conveyancing Quote request or call us on 01233 822250.