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What does a conveyancing solicitor do?

Mon 20 May 2019

Lee Whitelock, Director MNAEA

Conveyancing is extremely important. The reason being, it affects a number of other legal processes. For instance, wills, trusts, employment and matrimony. Therefore, those buying and selling a property cannot afford to get it wrong. With that being said, here’s everything you need to know about conveyancing solicitors and the conveyancing process:
 

What Does Conveyancing Involve?

Conveyancing comprises the transfer of home ownership from a seller to a buyer. The process begins when the seller accepts an offer and ends when the buyer acquires the keys to their new property. Conveyancers carry out property searches on behalf of a buyer and are responsible for providing legal contracts and advice.  
 

Who Carries Out the Conveyancing?

According to law, homebuyers can carry out the conveyancing themselves, which may be referred to as DIY conveyancing. Yet, the process is complicated and buyers are at risk of hindering their rights as a property owner if they fail to conduct a vital search, for example.

 
Thus, conveyancing usually falls on either a conveyancing solicitor or a licensed conveyancer. Conveyancing solicitors are fully qualified to conduct conveyancing on behalf of a buyer and have a wider knowledge of many legal aspects. Licensed conveyancers are specialist lawyers who only deal in property law and conveyancing.
 

What Are the Duties of a Conveyancing Solicitor?

The duties of a conveyancing solicitor are plentiful. Here is a breakdown of their duties during the whole process:  
 
  •     Legal Contracts
A conveyancing solicitor goes through the draft contract and supporting documents and forms with the buyer. They note any queries and raise them with the seller’s solicitor.
 
  •     Property Searches
They carry out a number of specialist searches related to legal aspects. This includes local authority searches, environmental searches, water authority searches and checking the title deeds at the Land Registry.
 
  •     Contract Signing
At this point the buyer’s solicitor checks that queries have been returned. They also organise a date to exchange contracts, as well as arrangements for the buyer to transfer the deposit into their account.
 
  •     Exchange of Contracts
On the agreed date, both solicitors read out the contracts to make sure the details are identical. Then they send them via post. The buyer is now in a legally binding contract to purchase the property.
 
  •     Exchange to Completion
The conveyancing solicitor ensures that the deeds to the property are now frozen for 30 working days. And the buyer and seller get ready for the move. On the day of completion, the seller’s solicitor confirms that the full payment for the property has been received. They then leave the keys with the estate agent.
 
  •     Post-Completion
The solicitor makes sure all loose ends are tied up, such as processing the buyer’s stamp duty payment. And at this point conveyancing process is complete.

 
Our team of experts act as a point of contact for every party, including solicitors, during a sale. For more information on conveyancing, feel free to send us a message.