Home

Freehold Purchase

Initial Actions.

On receipt of the details of the solicitors for the Sellers, we will write to them for a draft contract. They will supply us with replies to standard Property Information Forms and a Fixtures Fittings and Contents Schedule. We will report to you once we have received these.

We will raise any additional questions that we think are relevant. If you want us to raise any specific enquiries, then please let us have these in writing so that we can do so.

Mortgages

If you are obtaining a mortgage to assist you in the purchase of the property, please let us have in writing details of the Lender and the minimum amount you require to be able to proceed with your purchase of the property. This must be sufficient to cover the balance of the purchase price, plus legal costs, Stamp Duty, Land Registry Fees, and any other expenses, e.g. survey fees, arrangement fees, and if you have a related sale, all the fees and Estate Agents fees on you sale. 

The Council of Mortgage Lenders have issued strict rules of what they will accept as security for your loan. We may have to raise additional enquiries to cover these. If we do not receive satisfactory replies, it may be necessary to take out Indemnity Guarantee Insurance to protect both you and the Lenders. We will advise you on this and let you know how much this insurance is going to cost.

Searches

There are a number of that can and ought to be carried out on the property you are buying.

1. Local Search:  

 This is a standard list of questions answered by the Local Authority. They require a substantial fee for their replies and we will not be able to apply for the search without the funds from you to cover the fee. Sometimes these searches take over three weeks to be answered. If you do not want the transaction delayed, please let us have this fee as soon as we ask for it

 For an additional fee, they will answer extra questions. If you have any questions you wish us to raise, please let us have these in writing, so that we can add them to our search.

Please note that the search relates only to the property and does not reveal details of any planning applications or permissions for the development of neighbouring land or extension to neighbouring properties. If you require details of any such matters, it will be necessary for you to contact the Planning Department direct, and satisfy yourself.

2. Drainage Search

3. Contaminated Land, Environmental or Ecology Search

4. Radon Gas Search

5. Commons Search

6. Coal Mining and other searches

Exchange of Contracts

With our report on your property, we will send you the Contract and ask you to sign it and return it to us. Please check that the price is correct before you sign it.

We will hold the signed Contract until you are ready to proceed with your purchase. We will not exchange Contracts until we have your specific instructions that everything is ready to proceed. This will include:

1)   Any dependant sale being ready for a simultaneous exchange of Contracts and Completion.

2)   You have a satisfactory mortgage offer, and have satisfied all their conditions.

3)   You have readily available the balance of the money necessary to cover the transaction, and that these will not be delayed by having to give notice or obtain the funds by post.

4)   A Completion date has been agreed that is acceptable to everyone in you chain.

5)   You have checked you have available suitable removals to vacate your present property by 1 p.m. on the day of Completion, if you have a dependant sale.

6)   You have arranged:

i)      Your Buildings Insurance from the date of Exchange of Contracts

ii)   Returned any forms to your Lender that they may require e.g. Direct Debit Forms, Acceptance Forms etc.

iii) You have put in force any Life Insurance required by you Lender.

iv) You have dealt with all Mortgage Conditions. Failure to do so may result in your Completion being delayed. This could lead to you being sued for substantial compensation.

After Exchange of Contracts

If you have a mortgage we have to give notice to your Lender of the Completion date (this is called a “Report of Title”). They usually require SEVEN DAYS NOTICE. They will sometimes do it quicker than this, but they do not guarantee it. If your Completion is delayed because we have been unable to give them seven days notice, we will not accept responsibility for this or for any damages you may incur.

Your Lender will then tell us if any Conditions are still outstanding e.g. Re-inspection.

The Council of Mortgage Lenders require us, without exception, to carry out certain formalities.

1.    To personally witness you signature. It will therefore be necessary for you to come in and see us.

2.    You will have to prove your identity to ensure that there is no mortgage fraud or money laundering taking place. You will therefore have to bring your passport with you so we can take a copy to show to your Lender. This is the case even if your have already shown it to them. We are obliged to do it again.

3.    They also require us to advise you on exactly what you are signing, so that you cannot say at a later date that you did not understand. We will let you have a general information sheet, which you should read carefully. If you have any questions about your mortgage, be sure to ask them when you come in to see us.

4.    You also have to complete a questionnaire confirming that we have been given all the necessary information, and you have received all the appropriate advice. This will have to be completed by you, signed, and returned before we can draw down you mortgage funds.

 

We shall also need from you the balance of any funds that you are putting into the transaction, including any costs, stamp duty Land Registry fees etc. Your Lender will not allow us to Complete unless we have CLEARED funds to cover all of these. In order to have cleared funds, we shall need a cheque five working days in advance of completion, or a Bank Telegraphic Transfer, the day before completion for the balance of the funds.

 Completion

On the day of completion we will send off you purchase funds by Bank Telegraphic transfer, as soon as we are able to do so. If we have all the funds, then this will be first thing in the morning. If we are waiting for funds from you, your Lenders, or from your own sale, we can only send out the money after we have received the funds for which we are waiting.

The Seller should be out of the Property by 2 p.m. You should telephone us mid- morning, to make sure that everything is going smoothly.

After Completion

We still have a lot to do which will include all or some of the following:

1.    Report Completion to your Lender.

2.    Have the Transfer stamped by the Inland Revenue, with Stamp Duty, and submit to them the appropriate form containing all the details.

3.    Register the Transfer and Mortgage at the Land Registry, completing all their forms and discharging their fees.

4.    After Registration is complete, sending your deeds to the Lender. If they do not want all of the Deeds and Documents, they can either be kept by us, or passed on to you for safekeeping. You will probably need these when you come to sell the property, so you should keep them in a safe place.