A Handy Guide to Conveyancing in Greater Manchester

As one of the largest population centres in the country, Manchester and the surrounding towns in the Greater Manchester region offer a huge variety of residential properties. Anybody looking to buy or sell should obtain a Conveyancing Quote in the Greater Manchester area for a Conveyancing Solicitor who can offer a service based on precise local knowledge and experience with Local Conveyancing.

When obtaining quotes for Conveyancing from other solicitors for Conveyancing in Manchester and the Greater Manchester area, you must check that the basis on which the quotation is given. Some firms will advertise a very low figure for the work, but often they will add additional charges which the buyer only discovers on completion.

Details of these charges may be buried in small print in their ‘Terms of Engagement’ but they will not be mentioned to clients when instructions are confirmed.

A quote from Fridaysmove will cover all Conveyancing work normally anticipated in a house-purchase or sale in Greater Manchester, including legal costs in connection with any mortgage. There are no hidden fees, and you will be told all the fees which the Conveyancing Solicitor has to pay out for you, such as search fees, stamp duty and land registry fees.

The ten local councils covering the area have now set up the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, which was established on 1 April 2011. The individual councils will continue to provide services in their respective areas, but the GMCA will co-ordinate key economic development, regeneration and transport functions throughout the Greater Manchester region.

Apart from the cities of Salford and Manchester, the region covered by the GMCA includes many other towns and districts such as Wigan, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale and Bolton, as well as Stockport and Trafford.

1. Getting started – instructing a Conveyancing Solicitor

Once you have received a quote you are happy matches your budget, you will need to confirm your instructions to your chosen Conveyancing Solicitor. You will have to provide some form of ID, such as a passport or driving licence, and also evidence of your current address, such as a utility bill, unless the firm has acted for you in another recent transaction. You might question why your solicitor needs to have this ID. Solicitors are now required to comply with the government’s money laundering regulations when carrying out any work involving handling money for clients.

The land registry has also brought in tighter regulations over the last few years in an attempt to reduce the number of property frauds. Cases have come to light where fraudsters have pretended to be the registered owner of a house, having discovered that the real owner is absent, perhaps living abroad. They have then arranged to sell the house to an unsuspecting buyer. The land registry will not be aware of the fraud, and when it is subsequently discovered the registry has to pay compensation to the real owner. Conveyancing Solicitors now have to certify that they have checked clients ID, which it is hoped will prevent such frauds.

2. Preparing the contract

Most solicitors firms carrying out Conveyancing now use computerised case-management systems which allow common-form documents and letters to be prepared quickly, and enable fee-earners and support staff to have an overview of progress on every case.

When a sale has been agreed the seller’s agents will take the buyer’s details and send particulars of the terms agreed to both parties Conveyancing Solicitors. The vendors’ solicitor then obtains details of the property title – usually this can be obtained instantaneously from the land registry, but sometimes copy documents are not stored electronically and copies have to be sent by post. Once the copy title is available the contract is prepared and sent to the purchasers’ Solicitors, together with a copy of the registered title and the completed information forms.

3. Checking the Title and Searches

Following the abolition of the Home Information Pack scheme (HIPs) last year, it is up to the buyer’s Conveyancing Solicitor to carry out various property searches. These usually include a search and enquiries with the local authority, a drainage and water search, and an environmental search.

In Greater Manchester, the local search is requested either direct from the district council for the property, or through a search provider. Several companies carry out what are known as personal local searches, which means that they send someone to the council office to check the information in the council’s records and report. It is often quicker to get the result of personal searches, and the costs are comparable with those charged by councils, but some mortgage lenders will not accept them.
Drainage and water searches will usually be requested from the local drainage authority, and confirm if a house is connected to mains water and drainage. The searches include various information about drainage and water supply in the area, and include property plans showing the position of pipes and sewers in the vicinity of the house.

All these searches can now be ordered online, and in many cases the responses are returned electronically, so delays are kept to a minimum. However it has to be said that some local authorities are not as quick as others in returning replies, and if a Conveyancing Solicitor is aware that a particular council will be slow it is likely that a personal search will be ordered.

When the contract and other documents are received, the vendors' Conveyancing Solicitor will check that the contract and title relate to the correct property, and that the person named as the vendor in the contract is the same person as the registered proprietor at the land registry. Of course there can be a good reason if there is any discrepancy, such as a house being sold by the executor of a deceased owner, or where someone is selling under a power of attorney. Another common reason is that the house is being sold by a mortgage lender where the owner has defaulted on their mortgage payments.

The buyers’ Conveyancing Solicitor will also check other matters affecting the legal title. For instance, the title may show that the owner can gain access to the rear garden over a path crossing a neighbour’s land, or that a neighbouring owner has a similar right of way over the property being sold. The title may refer to some restrictions affecting the property, stating that they are set out in another document which the sellers’ solicitor has not provided.

4. Further enquiries

If there are any outstanding points the buyers’ Conveyancing Solicitor will send further enquiries to the other solicitor, and ask for copies of any further documents. These enquiries may cover a variety of matters, not only of a legal nature, but such as whether the seller has guarantees for alterations or improvements which can be passed on to the buyer. Many questions will require the sellers’ response, rather than that of their solicitor, so a copy of the enquiries will be sent to them.

Sellers may ask how truthful they need to be in their replies to such enquiries. No-one wants a buyer to withdraw because he doesn’t like some information supplied by the seller. Sellers are not expected to give answers to things they don’t know about, nor are they expected to carry out any survey themselves. For instance in reply to a question asking if the house has suffered from woodworm, the seller need not inspect to see if there any signs of woodworm, and can reply ‘don’t know’ unless, for instance, he knows that a survey carried out when he bought the property indicated that there was evidence that of infestation.  However, giving inaccurate replies can lead to a buyer taking legal action after completion, so this should be avoided.

5. Report on Title

Once satisfactory replies to all queries have been obtained, homebuyers’ Conveyancing Solicitors will put together a report on title to the client. This should confirm the legal title being acquired (ie freehold or leasehold) and give details of any matters affecting the title. It will also provide copies of relevant documents, and summarise information obtained from the searches and enquiries.

Purchasers should note that it is not the job of their Conveyancing Solicitor to advise on anything to do with the structure of the property. Mortgage valuation surveys are only carried out for the benefit of lenders, so buyers should always have their own building survey carried out, as well as proper checks of electric wiring, plumbing, heating and gas systems.

If you don't want to get caught out, call our Greater Manchester Conveyancing team today on 0330 660 0286, for advice and to instruct a highly-rated Qualified Solicitor. Get your home move underway TODAY!