Sales Buyers Guide
This guide is designed to help you through the house buying process. We are also available to advise you at any stage.
Once your offer has been accepted, we will ask you for your solicitor’s details. It is best to choose a local solicitor so that you can call in to see them to have any legal problems explained in detail, should they occur. It also means that you are able to collect any documents from them and sign papers with no delays. We can give you the names and numbers of local solicitors if you need them.
When you have appointed your solicitor, we will write to you and your solicitor and the vendor and their solicitor to start the conveyancing process. At this time, if there is no HIP available on the property, you should pay your solicitor funds to apply for searches. It is important to do this early because these searches take about 5 or 6 weeks to come through.
This is also the time to put your mortgage arrangements in hand. You may have a mortgage certificate or a mortgage promise but you need to complete the application form with your mortgage adviser and pay the valuation fees. We have an in-house Independent Mortgage Adviser, Adam Davis of Hurst Financial, who can help. Just let us know if you require these services. We will contact you once your mortgage valuation has been booked. It is often cheaper to have the valuer carry out a Homebuyers Survey or Full Building Survey at the same time as the Mortgage Valuation. Just discuss this with your Financial Adviser at the time you complete the application.
The buying process takes 7 to 8 weeks on average. Much depends on the number of other properties in the chain and the speed at which solicitors work. We will keep tabs on the process and give you regular updates. You may also contact your solicitor at any stage.
If you decide to commission a Homebuyers Survey or Buildings Survey, you should have a written report in about 14 days. The surveyor may recommend further investigations by specialist contractors and we can help put you in touch with damp and woodworm specialists, electricians, builders roofers etc if required.
About 14 days after the mortgage valuation, you should receive the mortgage offer. Your solicitor receives a copy too and checks it through. You will be required to sign the mortgage offer and the contract once your solicitor has prepared it. At this stage, you may wish to consider moving dates. We will help by talking to the other people in the chain and your solicitor will check that the other solicitors in the chain are ready too.
If you are the first link in the chain with no property to sell, your solicitor will ask you for cleared funds for the deposit. This money will be paid on exchange of contracts. When everyone in the chain has signed their contract and agreed the moving or completion date, solicitors will be ready to exchange contracts. Your solicitor will telephone you to confirm you wish to proceed so make sure they have all your contact numbers. Once exchanged, the contract is legally binding. You will move into the property on the agreed completion date.
We usually hear that the transaction has completed before 2pm. We cannot release the keys to you until the solicitor for the vendor has received the cash or mortgage money from your bank or building society. We will telephone you as soon as we have the go-ahead from the vendor’s solicitor and ask you to collect the keys from our office.
