We do our best to progress your transaction as quickly as possible, but time scales cannot be guaranteed by anyone!

When will I need to pay any money?
If you are purchasing a property, your conveyancer will ask you for approximately £150.00 at the outset of the transaction to cover search fees that will need to be paid out on your behalf. The balance of the purchase price including your legal expenses etc. will be payable shortly before completion unless you are borrowing more than 90% of the purchase price, in which case it will normally be required before exchange of contracts (see also 'How much deposit will I have to pay?')

How much deposit will I have to pay?
It is normal for a deposit to be paid to the seller's conveyancers on exchange of contracts. Many people think that 10% is required but this is not usually the case. If you are buying and selling we can usually use your buyer's deposit in connection with your purchase so you will not have to find anything at all.

If you are buying only, the amount of the deposit will usually depend on how
much you are borrowing from your lender (if any). If you are borrowing less than 90% of the purchase price then the maximum amount you will need to pay on exchange of contracts will be 10% of the purchase price. If you are borrowing more than this we can usually negotiate with the seller to accept whatever amount you are putting down or even just the amount of your legal fees and disbursements if you are borrowing 100% or more.

Will I need a Survey?
If you are obtaining a mortgage, the lender will wish for its own purposes to have a valuation carried out. Although this may give you an indication of whether they think the property is worth the amount you have asked to borrow, you can not rely on it if things go wrong.

For an extra fee, you can usually request that a Homebuyers Report be carried out and this will give you additional information about the property that you will be entitled to rely on.

If the property is quite old and you have particular concern about the condition of the property, you can obtain a full structural report which is much more detailed. Most surveyors will be prepared to quote you for this type of survey.

It is important to remember the old saying 'BUYER BEWARE', because after you have exchanged contracts you will be liable for any problems discovered with the property, unless you have been misled.

What Searches do you carry out and why?

Local authority search - This search reveals details of matters such as the planning history, proposals for new road schemes, planning breaches, tree
preservation orders, conservation areas and other matters over which the council have control and may affect the enjoyment or value of the property. Your mortgage lender (if any) will require you to have one of these.

Drainage search - This search will show whether or not the surface and other foul drains run into a public or private sewer.

Environmental search - It is now recommended that buyers also carry out an environmental search to check if there are any landfill or waste disposal sites in the area, if the property has been built on an old industrial site and
whether there are any risks from contaminated land, toxic emissions, flooding, subsidence etc.

When do I need to arrange Buildings Insurance?
Unless your lender is arranging the building insurance, or the property is leasehold and the insurance is dealt with by the freeholder, you must arrange buildings insurance from the day you exchange contracts.

The amount of cover should be the estimated cost of re-building the property if it burns to the ground, which is not always the same as the current market value. If you had a survey or you are obtaining a mortgage your surveyor or lenders valuer will usually have suggested a minimum recommended amount of cover in their report.

What happens with the keys?
These are usually left with the estate agents, and the Buyer collects them once the estate agents have been advised by the seller's conveyancers that the money has been paid over on completion day. If there is no agent, then the seller will hand them direct to the Buyer on the advice of his conveyancer.

Either way, it is important to make the arrangements in advance to prevent the Buyer turning up and waiting outside with his removal van.

Although we always try to ensure that everything is finalised as early as possible on the day of completion and usually it is dealt with by mid-day, there can sometimes be a delay - if for example your conveyancer is still waiting for mortgage monies to arrive or there is a long chain. If this happens please don't panic or get upset because your conveyancer will almost always resolve the problem by early afternoon- if not sooner.

When will I get my money?
If you are just selling, or there is a surplus due back to you after completion of your sale and purchase, we will always try to send this to you on the day of completion or, if not the next working day.

Payment is usually made by cheque, but for larger sums we can arrange to transfer the money direct to your bank if you request this in advance and provide us with your account details. There will be a bank transfer fee for this service.

What should I do about Life cover?
We recommend that you arrange sufficient Life cover for your mortgage liability and this must be arranged before exchange of contracts. You should consult your financial adviser or lender.