Conveyancing Solicitors for Selling a House

Why do I need a proactive solicitor for selling my house?

As conveyancing handles the legal administration of the sales process, it's important that you use a trusted and qualified property lawyer that's ready to move the sale along. 

Having a proactive solicitor is especially crucial if you're in a chain. There may be a chain of buyers and sellers, where each purchase is linked to a sale. These chains may be composed of any number of buyers and sellers and having a number of people involved can often lead to delays.

At Homeward Legal, we know that when selling your house, you need a solicitor or conveyancer that will be proactive and willing to chase all the parties involved to drive the transaction forward. We know that this is the key to a fast selling process, and that's why we'll provide you with a solicitor that knows how to make the conveyancing process as smooth and stress-free for you as possible.

What is the conveyancing process when selling a house?

Once you've accepted the offer made to you on your house, the conveyancing process begins. But you might be wondering what exactly this conveyancing process is and asking yourself what do solicitors do when you're selling a house? 

To help you get an idea of the steps involved, we've created a guide to the conveyancing process and procedures that your solicitor will follow. As they're your solicitor for selling your house, it's worth noting that the actions they take will be different to those taken by the solicitor for the buyer: 

1. Property information forms are sent to the client for completion
   These are forms completed by you, the seller, explaining the condition and other information about the property including what items are to be included in the house sale. Your solicitor will need this information so that everything is clear to the buyer from the beginning. For instance, you might want to include some of the white goods and certain furnishings in the sale. 
2. The solicitor drafts an initial sale contract
   This is the initial paperwork and contracts issued to the buyer's solicitor to enable them to raise enquiries (questions) about the property being sold.
3. Solicitor replies to enquiries raised by the buyer's solicitor
   This is where the buyer will ask questions about the property. For instance, if the property is leasehold, the seller's solicitor will ask who the managing agent is. How long is the lease? Are you leaving the curtains (fixtures and fittings)? Is there any buildings insurance in place? 
   If you've been thorough when you completed the property information forms, this stage should be relatively straightforward. However, there may be some unexpected queries from the buyer. This is all to be expected with a house sale. The solicitor you've chosen for selling your house will know when to come back to you with follow-up questions and if you're able to answer them quickly, this shouldn't hold up the sales process.
4. Terms are agreed and a date is set for completion
   Once all the questions are answered, your solicitor will coordinate with the buyer's solicitor to confirm that everything is in place, including the funds and terms. They'll then negotiate on the completion date.
5. Contracts are exchanged
   The seller and purchaser become contractually bound by the terms of the contract. This means they must either complete on the sale or forfeit their deposit (this is typically 5-10% of the sale price).
6. Completion
   Completion is the day when the buyer takes ownership of the property. Here, your solicitor's office will receive the sale proceeds and your solicitor will pay off any outstanding mortgage. They'll then take their legal fees from what's left, and send the remainder to you, the seller. 

This part of the process is done electronically and within a matter of days. After this point, the conveyancing process - and the house sales process - is complete for you. 

Do I need a conveyancer to sell a house? 

As you can see from the process laid out above, there is a lot of work that goes into the legalities of selling a house. While it's not a requirement that you use a licensed conveyancer or conveyancing solicitor for selling your house, it is advisable that you do. 

A house sale can be a complex process and there are pitfalls that can occur that conveyancing experts are skilled in handling. Even if the sales process is relatively straightforward, there are forms and procedures that must be completed accurately. When selling your house, choosing a solicitor or conveyancer means that every stage of the sale takes place in the appropriate way. 

Of course there are costs associated with using a specialist conveyancing solicitor when selling, but it could cost you a lot more if the conveyancing quotes and process isn't done properly -  potentially leaving question marks around who the rightful owner of the property is.

So, if you're asking the question “can I do my own conveyancing when selling?” the answer is, technically, yes. But it can be a risk that's not worth taking. 

When do you pay the solicitors' fees when selling a house? 

When it comes to your house sale, your solicitor or conveyancer will either charge you a flat fee for their services or you'll be charged a percentage of the value of the property you're selling. 

The amount you pay will depend on how detailed or complicated the process is and how many administrative fees have been added to the sale. It will also depend on the type of property you're selling. If it's a leasehold, this will come with an extra conveyancing cost.

You'll usually be asked to pay for any admin costs, but these will be outlined upfront. Our instant online quote breaks down the costs in a simple format for your peace of mind.

However, the overall conveyancing fees are paid out of the proceeds of the house sale on completion day. Whether this is a flat fee or percentage of the sale price, it will have been agreed between you earlier in the selling process.

What searches do solicitors do when selling a house? 

Solicitors don't carry out any searches when you're selling a property. This means that the conveyancing fees tend to be lower than when you're buying a home. 

If you're buying a property at the same time as you're selling, it's worth getting conveyancing quotes from the same conveyancer and you can use them to carry out both the sale and the purchase. This could save you some money.