A Complete Guide To The Selling Process

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? A COMPLETE GUIDE TO THE SELLING PROCESS

Congratulations!

You’ve accepted an offer on your property but what next?

In this guide we aim to take you through the whole selling process from start to finish. Covering everything from what documents you’ll be expected to complete to explaining all that complex solicitor jargon! How on earth are you supposed to know what a certificate of title is? We aim to give you all the answers in this useful guide so that the next step in this process of selling your house is far easier to understand.

FIRST THINGS FIRST! If you want your sale to progress as quickly as possible it’s vitally important to ensure you respond to anything your solicitor asks for immediately. At the beginning they will likely ask for some id and address verification, some form of acceptance of their quote and to fill in your property information form.

Please get this back to them as soon as possible as nothing will happen until you return these documents.

ID AND ADDRESS VERIFICATION Why do we ask for this? This is all to do with the anti-money laundering rules we have to abide by. It is important we know exactly who is on the current mortgage deed and we need ID and address verification for everyone named on this. This can be emailed and scanned to mail@keystonepmc.co.uk. One from each list is needed.

Forms of ID accepted - Passport, Driving Licence, HMRC tax coding notice, UK armed forces card.

Address verification accepted - driving licence (if something else is being used for ID), latest council tax bill, bank statement dated in last 3 months, Utility bill dated in last 3 months, car insurance certificate and schedule, most recent mortgage statement.

A COMPLETE GUIDE TO THE SELLING PROCESS

CHOOSING A GOOD SOLICITOR Do not just go online and pick the cheapest!

You need to make sure you go with a recommended solicitor that either someone you know has used or Keystone have recommended. Both of our recommended solicitors get the job done in a professional and timely manner.

In the early days of Keystone it took us years to settle on two we could trust.

Both are competitively priced and great value for money. You really don’t want to get this part wrong as it could jeopardise the whole process.

MEMORANDUM OF SALE This is the first document you should receive from Keystone and it informs all parties who the buyer is, who you are, the seller and solicitors who are representing them. It will also note the price agreed. Please check all of this and inform us if something is not right.

CHAINS A chain is basically when your buyer has a house to sell (down chain) and is dependent on that to buy yours. You may also be buying a house (up chain).

Here at Keystone we specialise in chains as we are experts in communication up and down a chain. It is vital to keep in touch with other agents and their solicitors and make sure everything is communicated to all parties. Don’t let being in a chain put you off, we deal with this on a daily basis – you’re in good hands.

MORTGAGE Your buyer at this stage will be arranging their mortgage. We will be checking on this and will have the details of their mortgage adviser to ensure everything is moving in a timely manner.

SURVEY Sometimes called a “valuation”. After they have applied for the mortgage a surveyor or valuer as they are sometimes referred to, will visit the property to conduct a survey. You will either receive a call from Keystone or the survey company their lender is using to arrange a convenient time.

There are three levels of survey - basic, homebuyers and building survey.

This will all depend on the age and condition of the property and what the buyer decides he/she needs.

What to do if an issue arises from the survey - this all depends on whether the issue is foreseen or unforeseen. When we as an estate agent values your house we are taking into consideration the general condition of the house and anything that is obvious such as the need to replace the windows for example. This is all allowed for in our initial valuation.

We are not qualified surveyors so are not expected to pick up on something like rotting roof timbers or a damp problem that would only be picked up using a damp meter. So our golden rule is if an issue arises that is unforeseen then some renegotiation of the price will be expected.

We would usually ask the buyer to provide Professional quotes in any renegotiation of the price.

SEARCHES Recently due to the delays in obtaining the local authority search we have been advising sellers to instruct their solicitor to buy these when the house

A COMPLETE GUIDE TO THE SELLING PROCESS

goes up for sale. These can then be sold on to your buyer. However it is usually the buyer’s solicitors that purchase the searches. If you haven’t already bought the searches then it will be up to them to obtain these as soon as possible as the above mention local authority search is sometimes taking up to 10 weeks to come back!

Searches are enquiries that the buyer’s solicitor makes about the property to various authorities that hold information about the land it sits on and the surrounding area. This is to make sure that nothing will affect the value of the property now or in the future. It is always a good idea to have searches and most mortgage lenders insist on searches being conducted.

The three main searches are •

Environmental Search – highlights flooding issues, landslide issues, Subsidence issues, contaminated land issues. A word of note – Radon Gas comes up on virtually every survey in the Flintshire area. This is an area where the soil and rock formation can generate radon gas in very rare cases but this is generally a precautionary measure and we have never known anyone to find high levels.

• Local Authority Search – Covers planning issues, Building control issues, Highways and Pollution issues.

•

Water and Drainage Search – who owns, maintains and the locations of the sewers, drains and piping. Whether water is rateable or on a meter.

Whether you would need permission from the water company to extend etc or if there is a manhole that would affect this.

• In the Flintshire area a mining search is also usually relevant as in the past it was a big area from mining. This is important as it gives the locations of all the old mines.

The buyers solicitor will also do title searches - Title register – this shows all the previous owners of the property and whether any debt has been left on the property and the Title plan which shows the boundaries of the property.

OTHER SEARCHES I will keep this brief as it’s unlikely that any of these searches will be needed in the Flintshire area.

Chancel Repair Liability search - This checks if a property is liable for the cost of repairs for the local parish church.

You may think this is a ridiculous scenario in the 21st Century, but plenty of people have been caught by this issue and it is estimated that around half a million properties in England and Wales could be affected, even if the liability is not mentioned in the title.

It doesn’t just apply to old properties as it actually applies to the land it sits on, so whether a property is in a town or newly built, you may still be liable.

Flood Risk Report – There would only be a few properties in the area at risk of flooding and if the property you’re buying is then the solicitor will have to order this kind of search. Its important to know as it can sometimes be impossible to get insurance on a property that is at risk of flooding.

THE ROLE OF INDEMNITY INSURANCE POLICIES It is possible to secure an indemnity insurance to cover either a general or a specific issue the searches have uncovered.

In some cases if something unexpected arises then you may need to cover the cost of these kinds of policies but this is dependent on the problem.

Don’t worry – we deal with this kind of thing all the time and can often determine what is fair and what isn’t.

Many potential issues may never become actual problems; indemnity insurance may give the buyer peace of mind needed to feel comfortable purchasing a property that does come with a little risk attached.

A COMPLETE GUIDE TO THE SELLING PROCESS

In many cases you can successfully argue for the seller of the property to bear the cost of buying the policy.

Many potential issues may never become actual problems; indemnity insurance may give you the peace of mind needed to feel comfortable purchasing a property that does come with a little risk attached.

What are they?

General indemnity insurance policies cover a specific risk associated with the property, such as: • Chancel repair – if it isn’t clear that you will owe money at some point for the upkeep of the local church • Contaminated land – this might never be an issue but, if it becomes one when you are living there, remedies may be contributed to or paid for • Certificate insurance – for example, for lost building control for a new boiler, planning permission or FENSA data • Debt issues – if a property has a debt on it and this is called in at a later stage • Leasehold issues – such as trying to find the freeholder • Party wall issues – if the current owners did work on the property and didn’t get approval from the neighbours, for example a loft extension which affects a terraced or semi-detached property • Rights of way issues – often involving a legal dispute which can be insured to pay for • Title deeds – these may not be easily traced, so any issues can be insured against How much do they cost?

Specific insurance can cost up to £100 while a more generic policy is likely to be £200 - £300, depending on the value of the property.

TITLE DEEDS Your solicitor will be obtaining certificate of ownership (Title deeds – documents that show the chain of ownership). You should also receive a Property Information Form which you need to fill in as soon as possible!

This is often something that is put to one side and holds up sales so please return asap. This will include a list of all fixtures, fittings and any contents that have been agreed upon to be left. It will also include things like, who is responsible for fencing of boundaries or when the boiler and the windows were fitted.

When all these things have been finalised the Certificate of title is generated which is a report on all of the above and is prepared by the buyer’s solicitor and passed on to the buyer’s mortgage lender. This confirms that the property is of good security and there are no problems with the property.

ENQUIRIES You’ll often hear this term being expressed by either our agents or your solicitor. Enquiries can mean anything that crops up as a result of all the searches, the property information form or obtaining the title deeds. All of these need to be satisfied prior to exchange of contracts.

EXCHANGE OF CONTRACTS Providing all of the above has been conducted and both solicitors have had all of their enquiries answered then at this stage your solicitor will prepare a draft contract. The contract will have an agreed completion date inserted where the matter must be finalised by. Please bear in mind Keystone will never get involved with dates – it is only the solicitors that can set dates.

A COMPLETE GUIDE TO THE SELLING PROCESS

It is frustrating regarding dates especially with you having to organise removals etc but due to all the complexities of selling a property it’s virtually impossible for a solicitor to give a date until generally 2-3 weeks prior to completion.

Completion is usually set for around 7-10 days after exchange of contacts but can happen on the same day.

Usually at least 5 working days before completion the buyer’s solicitor will be asking for the deposit, fees and calling for the money from the buyers mortgage lender – this can take up to five working days.

COMPLETION, THE BIG DAY! Your solicitors will, on the completion date, receive the agreed sale funds from the buyer’s solicitor. Your solicitor will not instruct us to release keys until they have the funds on account and transferred to you. If you are buying another property simultaneously and completing on a purchase the same day then the solicitor will distribute funds accordingly.

Please be aware, the time the keys are released is down to the two solicitors involved and can be at any time during that day. Please bear this in mind when organising removals etc.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM KEYSTONE? One of our main staff core values at Keystone is great communication.

You will receive regular updates throughout this process and we are always on hand to help. We will be speaking to both Solicitors throughout and making sure we keep all parties informed of progress.

We are currently working on a portal where all parties including the two solicitors will be able to log in and leave key stage updates. This is due to be released in May 2021.

AND FINALLY This is a general guide to a basic form of transaction, which we hope you have found to be helpful. Although the administrative and legal procedures in each transaction are similar, every property is different and it goes without saying that all sellers or buyers have their own particular expectations and requirements. Our main advice is try to remain calm and patient throughout, rest assured we will be doing our very best to progress things as fast as possible.

A COMPLETE GUIDE TO THE SELLING PROCESS

IF YOU WOULD LIKE FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE GET IN TOUCH TODAY 01244 836 636 mail@keystonepmc.co.uk keystonepmc.co.uk