Purchase
The day on which you pay the money and move into the property is called "the completion date". To enable you to make the financial arrangements and arrange for moving at some time before completion, a deal is struck whereby the price and date and the machinery of completion are agreed. This is done formally by document and is called "exchange of contracts". Until that date either party is free to withdraw from the transaction with impunity. And please note:
- The seller is obliged only to take reasonable care of the property.
- You have to pay part of the purchase price to the sellers solicitors. This "deposit" will probably be forfeited if you fail for whatever reason to complete. It is therefore vital that before we exchange you are confident that you will complete.
Searches
In order to protect you and your lender, we are required to carry out searches on the property you are proposing to buy. These include:
- The local land charges register, which details any obligations owners have to the local authority or government. Once a search is completed you will receive an official search certificate.
- Other local authority records, such as planning decisions, road building proposals and rights of way. You should check how wide an area the search covers and, if possible, look around for yourself or check the internet. It is often the slowest part of the transaction, apart from securing the mortgage offer.
- Drainage and water services to the property detailing whether waste water goes into a public or private sewer.
- The environmental search, which investigates whether the property is on contaminated land or at risk from other environmental factors, such as flooding and subsidence.
- An optional planning search with details of local planning applications, the location of nearby phone masts and general information about the area, such as council tax bands and local amenities.
- An optional chancel check search to find out if property is at risk from a potential chancel repair liability (repairs to local church).
Once positive replies to the above questions have been obtained we will then be in a position to exchange, provided you are able to send me the monies to fund the deposit payable on exchange.
Other matters you should consider
- The time of buying a house is probably the time to re-consider your Will and Inheritance Tax issues generally, please advise if we can be of assistance.
- If, should you eventually sell the property, it has risen in value, you may have to pay Capital Gains Tax on the difference between what you receive for the property and what the property cost to acquire, improve and sell, after allowing for inflation. If the house is your main residence then no Capital Gains tax is chargeable at all, but you should bear in mind that you are only entitled to have one main residence.
| before exchange | |
|---|---|
| What you need to do |
What we need to do |
| Consider funding arrangements: what Mortgage will you need, bearing in mind Improvement/decorating costs, moving fees etc. Arrange survey. Confirm responses to preliminary enquiries we send you |
We will obtain the necessary papers from the seller’s solicitors and will put in hand the requisite searches. Once received, we will report to you on the same and raise any additional enquiries with the seller’s solicitors. |
| Sign contract or authorise Russell Jones and Walker to sign on your behalf | |
| Consider how is the deposit to be funded. We need 5 working days to clear any cheque ready for exchange, if there is no adequate deposit that can be used from a related sale. | |
| Arrange Buildings Insurance to be put on risk from exchange of contracts. | |
| Are removal arrangements in place? | |
| After exchange | |
| Agree arrangements to collect the keys. The majority of buyer’s collect keys from the estate agents, if one involved. | We will carry out the requisite pre-completion searches, order any mortgage advance and will prepare a completion statement. |
| On completion | |
| Arrange to collect keys from the seller or estate agent | We will proceed to register your ownership of the property at HM Land Registry. |
Co-purchasing
If you are buying a property with someone else then please download a separate information sheet - co-purchasing.
FAQ's
Frequently asked questions when purchasing a property.
Contact us now
Please contact a member of the property team, for information or a quote, on 020 7339 6305/020 7339 6515 or email property@rjw.co.uk.
Co-purchasing a property