Completion Date
This is the point at which the ownership of the property passes from the seller to the buyer.

Both parties should discuss dates between themselves and then notify their respective solicitors who'll try to fit in with the suggested date. If there are unforeseen delays, for example, if the buyer does not receive a search or mortgage offer in time then the completion date may have to be revised. For this reason you should avoid making any firm commitments without speaking to your solicitor first.

When contracts are exchanged and a completion date is fixed can you be virtually guaranteed that the completion date will be met.

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Contract
This is the agreement between the buyer and the seller. It sets out the main terms of what has been agreed such as the property, the price and the names of the parties. It also deals with the process if something goes wrong. Rather than making the buyer and the seller meet to sign the same contract, the seller's solicitor draws up two copies of the same contract, sends it to their clients, and each party signs their own copy. When both parties are ready to legally commit, the two contracts are exchanged. This is done over the telephone.

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Deposit
When Solicitors talk about the deposit they are talking about the money that is handed over to the seller's Solicitors upon exchange of contracts.

On exchange of contracts the seller can insist on receiving from the buyer a 10% deposit of the purchase price. However as many people are not contributing as much as 10% to the purchase, reduced deposits are often agreed. You should be aware, however, that if you are a buyer and you pay a reduced deposit then fail to complete the purchase through no fault of the seller, you will, under the terms of the contract, be required to make the deposit up to the full 10%. You may also have to pay compensation to the seller.

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Exchange Contracts
This is a very important moment. From the minute contracts are exchanged, the matter becomes legally binding. From that moment on, the seller must sell, the buyer must buy, it must be done at the price stated in the contract. Until contracts are exchanged NOTHING is binding on either part.

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Freehold
Ownership of both the property and the land it stands on.

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Indemnity Contribution
Indemnity insurance is taken out by all Solicitors to cover losses to clients arising from errors or fraud in dealing with their conveyancing matters.

Your solicitor is required by the Law Society to pay for this insurance in respect of every transaction, and some solicitors will recover this premium from their clients.

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Land Registry
A Central body that retains records of who owns the land, and under what conditions.

This was set up in 1925, to simplify the conveyancing process. Not all land in England and Wales is registered today. This is partly due to the fact that land can only be registered following certain "triggering events".

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Leasehold
Temporary ownership of the property but not the land on which it stands. When the lease expires ownership of the property returns to the freeholder. Please contact us if you are interested in a property which has a short lease.

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Legal Fee
This is a fixed cost that covers the cost of the time our property lawyers spend on your conveyancing.

If the sale or purchase does not complete then your solicitor can charge you a proportion of any legal fees as well as the disbursements which have been incurred specifically to your purchase. ie. searches etc.

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Local Authority Search
This is a list of questions about the property which are sent to the local authority. It asks if the road serving the property should be maintained by the council, whether there have been any planning applications on the property and a number of other things.

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Mortgage
This is a loan used to purchase the property. The mortgage is 'attached' to your title deeds and means that you cannot sell the property without paying it off at the same time.

Contracts should not be exchanged until an acceptable written mortgage offer has been received. It is not enough that you have had verbal confirmation from you bank or building society that they will grant a mortgage.

If you are selling the conveyancer will contact your mortgage lender at an early stage to ask how much it will cost to pay off the mortgage. You may find that you will be charged a financial penalty, a Redemption fee, if you pay the mortgage off early.

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Mortgage Deed
The legal charge on the property to the mortgage lender.

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Mortgage Fees
These fees are normally charged for acting on behalf of your bank or building society.

Our Conveyancers do not charge an additional fee for acting on behalf of your bank or building society.

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Property Information Form
This is a questionnaire about the property completed by the sellers. It covers such items as guarantees, neighbour disputes and boundaries.

If you are buying then time can be saved if you tell us at an early stage if there are any particular points about the property that concern you. We can then ask the seller's solicitors the relevant questions.

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Redemption
The final payment of the mortgage loan.

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Redemption Fee
Penalty sometimes incurred if paying off a mortgage early.

Our Conveyancers do not charge an additional fee to redeem (pay off) your existing mortgage.

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Stamp Duty
This is simply a tax charged by the government and only affects you if you are buy property for more than £120,000. It's paid by the buyer.

If you buy for exactly £120,000 you pay nothing in stamp duty; if you pay from £120,000 to £250,000 stamp duty is charged at 1% on the whole of the purchase price. From £250,001 to £500,000 it is charged at 3%, and above £500,000 it is charged at 5%.

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Survey
This is a report carried out by a surveyor on the physical state of the property you are buying.

If you are buying a property you should be aware that the property is "sold as seen". It is for you, as the buyer, to discover any physical defects by means of inspections and surveys.

Most houses are bought with the assistance of a mortgage and the bank or building society will require a mortgage valuation. However, this is not a full survey. It merely ensures that the property is of sufficient value to protect the lender's interest.

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Title Deeds
These documents firstly act as evidence that the person selling the property actually owns it, and secondly set out any rights or obligations that affect the property.

If you are selling, then valuable time can be saved if your title deeds can be obtained by us at an early stage. If you have a mortgage then your bank or building society maybe holding your title deeds. Your conveyancer will need to know your mortgage account number and the name and address of the lender.

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Transfer Deed
This is the document that passes the ownership of the property from the seller to the buyer.

It is dated with the completion date, and will be sent to the Land Registry after completion. The Land Registry need this deed to change their records and show the buyer as the new owner of the property.

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