As well as a local search, additional searches may need to be conducted on your purchase property such as mining, drainage and environmental, depending on the location of your property.
The proportionate sum of money that an owner has to contribute or is entitled to receive. This is usually with regards to leasehold properties where outstanding ground rent and service charge need to be distributed correctly.
If you are planning to have a mortgage on the property you are due to purchase, it will be necessary to undertake this search for your mortgage lender to check for any history you may have as a bankrupt.
Most works carried out on a property require consent under building regulations from the local authority. Any works carried out without consent can lead to considerable problems and delays when properties are being sold.
An insurance policy taken out by the owner of a property against risks such as storm, flood and accidental damage. It will be a condition of your mortgage offer that this is in place.
A comprehensive inspection of a property. It is suitable for all properties and examines all accessible parts of the property. You can ask to have specific areas included, so that it covers any particular concerns you may have about the building. A Building Survey doesn't include a valuation, but your surveyor can provide this separately if you need one.
The day upon which your transaction completes with the balance of the purchase/sale monies being paid and title transferred. In the occurrence of a chain all parties will complete on the same day. In the case of a Remortgage, this is the day that the security on your property will be changed from your old lender to your new mortgage lender.
The party who holds the title deeds to your property. If you have a mortgage on your property they will be held by the current lender, if not they should be in your possession or held by an appointed solicitor.
A problem with the property such as an issue to do with access. It is usually possible to deal with these matters by obtaining an insurance policy which will allow the transaction to proceed.
Charges payable to third parties such as land registry/local authority. Such charges are estimated and may be slightly higher or lower than those quoted.
A drainage search is carried out with the water supply company to establish that the property has mains drainage and water. It is useful to establish whether there are any lengths of private drain, pumping stations, etc which might not be obvious from inspection but for which the buyer might be liable. It will also establish whether or not the sewers and drains at a property have been adopted by the water board.
Open market valuation of a property minus any outstanding mortgage balance and further charges secured on the property. If borrowings are greater, equity is negative.
The point in the legal process where all parties sign contracts and the solicitors exchange them. Following this legally binding agreement, neither party may withdraw without liability for breach of contract. Property insurance should now be in force.
Standard form sent to the seller to complete showing all items that will remain in the property when sold. Fixtures are those permanently fixed items that can be regarded as part of the property itself.
Central government agency responsible for maintaining records of the ownership of land in England and Wales. Whenever a property is purchased or mortgaged you are required to register the transaction at HMLR who charge a fee to the purchaser to update their records. This fee is related to the value of the property.
A Homebuyer Survey and Valuation (HSV), also known as a Homebuyer's Report, is a survey most suitable for conventional properties built within the last 150 years, which are in reasonable condition. It doesn't detail every aspect of the property, and only focuses on urgent matters needing attention. It's not usually suitable for properties in need of renovation, or if you're planning major alterations.
The process of checking the title deeds to ensure the seller of the property is legally able to pass the title to a new buyer. If there are not sufficient records outlining previous ownership of the property, your mortgage application amongst other things may be affected.
A Landlord is the owner of a property who leases the property out to a tenant under the terms of the lease. The landlord may employ a management company to collect ground rent/service charge payments when they are due.
This is a document that the inland revenue require completing and sending to them with the payment of stamp duty on a purchase. This has all the information required to notify the inland revenue of the details of the purchase.
A legally binding agreement by the freeholder or 'landlord' allowing someone else to occupy property for a defined period, provided they pay rent. Usually contains many other conditions with which the 'leaseholder' or 'tenant' has to comply or the lease can be terminated by the landlord.
The tenant's rights under the lease can usually be sold on to a buyer, who then himself becomes the tenant for the remainder of the 'term'. If the Lease allows this, a tenant can create a lease himself in favour of a sub-tenant who will himself be the tenant's tenant. This is fairly common with business property and in larger cities.
Property such as a flat held under a lease where ground rent and service charge is payable. If you own a leasehold property the lease gives you rights of ownership for a stated number of years.
A company appointed by landlord to collect ground rent, service charge and in some cases insure, repair and maintain, usually in relation to a leasehold property.
A document issued by the estate agent containing all the basic details of the purchase/sale i.e. the buyers & sellers names and addresses and their respective solicitors details.
This is a search where the solicitors ask the Coal Authority about deep seam and opencast mining works in the locality of the property and any compensation claims made in relation to defects resulting from them. Also shows the location of any nearby old mineshafts, which are quite common in some areas.
A loan that is secured against your property. The property cannot be sold unless the loan is repaid in full. Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.
This fee is charged if you are buying the property with a mortgage as we will have to advise you on the details of the mortgage, obtain search results to satisfy your new lender, contact the lender for release of monies in order to complete the transaction and also register relevant documentation at the land registry.
Document issued by your mortgage lender highlighting the amount of borrowing, interest payable, monthly repayments and mortgage terms and conditions. Any special conditions will be contained in your mortgage offer. You need to read these when you receive them as you will be bound by them.
This fee will be charged if there is a mortgage on the property you are selling as we will need to contact your lender to obtain a redemption figure as well as signed and sealed documentation which will need to be registered with the land registry.
Issued to all individuals over the age of 17 years who do not appear on the mortgage offer and who will continue to live at the mortgaged property. The occupier(s) is/are required to sign the form to acknowledge that they waive any right of occupation or ownership claims in the event of property repossession by the lender.
These documents are copies of the title deeds provided to us via direct computer link with HM land registry. These can only be obtained for properties that have been registered with this government agency.
Document issued by your current mortgage provider indicating the amount owing on your present mortgage. Any queries on the amounts disclosed should be taken up with your mortgage lender.
In certain cases (mainly leasehold transactions) we will be expected to serve notice of your transfer and if applicable your mortgage on the landlord. We have to notify them of the changes of ownership on the property and who the lending organisation is.
This is a list of questions completed by the seller regarding the property on such things as disputes with neighbours, boundaries etc. This information is passed on to the buyer via the solicitors. The replies will be relied on and therefore must be true.
In relation to Leasehold property, this is the annual payment paid by the tenant to the landlord or managing agent in respect of work carried out by the landlord under the lease and for which the tenant is responsible.
A property which has been or is about to be partially bought from the housing association or Local authority i.e. you are buying 70% of the house but the Housing Association/Local Authority retain 30%.
A payment required from you for the difference between the amount you are borrowing on a proposed mortgage and the amount needed to complete the purchase/remortgage.
A tax imposed by the government on property purchases. Currently the bands are:
0-£125,000 0%
£125,001-£250,0001%
£250,001-£500,0003%
£500,001+ 4%
It is possible in some cases that your area may be exempt from Stamp Duty.
Where a property is held by more than one person. In this case tenants will have to decide on the share each of the owners is to have. When one party dies the property is dealt with as determined in the will of the deceased and does not automatically vest in the survivor.
These documents show the history of a property and ownership details. When purchasing a property these details are investigated to ensure that a property's title is in order and there are no areas of concern.
This is the process of transferring ownership of a property from sole ownership to joint or vice versa. It is possible to have more than 2 owners of a property. This process incurs additional fees due to the extra work involved.
If the HM Land Registry holds official records of your property it is considered to be registered and we may obtain office copy entries. If it is unregistered we shall have to obtain your original title deeds before we can draft your sale contract.
