• Sale fees
• Purchase fees
• Sale and purchase fees
• Remortgage fees
• Transfer of equity fees

Buying and selling

The chances are that if you have not been involved in the buying or selling of a property in the past the term conveyancing will not mean a lot to you. At NBM Solicitors we go out of our way to de-mystify the subject and extensive guidance is provided on our website and throughout the process by our staff. Whilst we realise it is rather a complicated concept for the uninitiated or inexperienced we do our very best to present the necessary information in language that is easily understood. If you choose to use our services you will see all the information in black and white with the prices for each service clearly explained and itemised. Please take your time to browse our website and what we do carefully to see what you are paying for, when requested we will generally be able to assist with additional legal work which falls outside the parameters of the process that needs doing and of course this could result in extra costs but we will always obtain your agreement in advance to any fees. There are two stages to your conveyancing, the first stage before a contract is exchanged and up to the exchange of contracts. Before the contracts are exchanged the option to renegotiate the price is still open for the buyer or the seller, the option is also still open to sell to someone else, buy a different property or abandon the whole process. The second stage starts after the exchange of contracts; this part of the process is called completion. After the contracts have been exchanged the buyer and the seller are legally obliged to go through with the sale or purchase, the price is fixed and the completion date (moving) is finalised. If the buyer or the seller tries to change the terms of the transaction after this time they will have breached the contract and will be subject to substantial penalties for the loss caused by the breach of contract. These two steps are important as it gives the buyer in particular the opportunity to pull out before the first stage, common reasons for halting the process at the first stage include structural damage, (picked up during the course of the survey) excessive damp and even woodworm. Other factors that can influence the buyer's final decision include Local Authority plans (ie. A road is planned to go through the property in 3 years) and also difficulties arising with access to the property. For many people in these uncertain economic times unnecessary expense is something to be avoided at all costs, conveyancing certainly does not fall into this bracket. Protect yourself and your potential property; call the specialists at NBM Solicitors.

Cover all your bases

The conveyancing work performed by your solicitor does not involve any investigation as to the structural state of the property; it is ultimately the buyer's responsibility to ensure that the property is sound and does not have any defects that are likely to cost thousands of pounds to rectify. The only way a buyer can ensure the property is structurally sound and free from major defects is to have a full structural survey. This may cost a few hundred pounds but will seem like money well spent should any problems with the house be identified during the course of a survey. We strongly urge you not to rely on your lenders survey; this is not a survey in the strictest sense of the word but merely a valuation in order to ascertain that the property is enough security for the amount you want to borrow. Do not rely on anything the owner says regarding the property, there may be faults that he is unaware of and certain things which he does not mention in order to secure the sale. The only tried and tested method to ensure you are getting a property in reasonably good condition is to engage the services of your own surveyor. The results of the survey may be a little alarming but the surveyor's job is to point out defects to enable you to see if the property price is reasonable. For example if a property required £15,000 worth of work to correct any structural defects you would be in a position to reduce the asking price accordingly. If the result of the survey is very bad you may not be able to obtain a mortgage for the property, pitfalls such as this illustrate why the conveyancing fees and the survey costs are ultimately good value for money. The first step for anyone considering purchasing a property or commercial premises is of course a mortgage. We recommend that you engage the services of an independent financial adviser with no affiliation to any one company. A written mortgage offer is needed before any progress can be made in the buying process, your lender will need to have their surveyor check the property, obtain written confirmation of any assets and income and also check your credit rating. The mortgage offer must be read in detail as various amounts are often deducted from the loan, these deductions are typically for the first years household insurance, the first months interest and some additional fees. Many lenders insist on using their own solicitors (at your expense) and as a result slows down the conveyancing process due to the fact that we have to deal with two sets of solicitors rather than one. As previously mentioned we will try our very best to make you aware of any additional fees that you may be liable for aside from the cost of the services we provide, if you have any additional questions which are not covered in the detailed descriptions on our website please do not hesitate to contact us.

Conveyancing

Another crucial factor that must be mentioned is the need for a HIP (Home Information Pack) before any seller can put their property on the market. Failure to adhere to this relatively new legal requirement can result in government imposed fines of up to £200 per day for every day your property is on the market without a HIP. Even if you are selling your property independently with a 'For Sale' sign in the window you are still legally obliged to obtain a HIP, the only exception at the time of writing to this rule is if you were selling to a relative where there is no need for any external advertising. Due to this new legal requirement many companies have sprung up purely to cater for this new market and although they may be reasonably competent in producing the necessary documentation they are unlikely to have as much experience or the extensive knowledge that Solicitors have. A common marketing ploy that these providers are increasingly using is 'Free HIPS', although this is true in principle the small print often states that it is only free if you continue to use their services, when using NBM's conveyancing services the HIP is yours and you are free to use it as long as your property is on the market and use any selling agent you choose. The main advantage of NBM Solicitors HIP is that you can 'shop around' and use the selling agent that provides the best service instead of being tied to any one agent. Preparing your HIP could not be easier; we simply need the deeds to your property, your current lenders name and address and also your account number. One area which often causes some disruption in this process are the fixtures and fittings within a property. Anything that is fixed to the property can be considered as part of the property and the buyer can assume it will stay that way, if a fitting is removed prior to the exchanging of contracts, or without the buyers permission, the seller may be liable to penalties arising from the breach of the contract. If the property for sale is a flat or maisonette the chances are it will be leasehold and we will need an up to date copy of the buildings insurance policy, service charge details and also information regarding ground rent payments. Along with the HIP these details are necessary before we can begin any conveyancing work. If you need any assistance obtaining the required documents please contact your freeholder or Managing Agent in the first instance, this may take a little time but is none the less an essential part of the process. If you, your freeholder or your agent require any further information please do not hesitate to contact us, your successful sale or purchase is our job satisfaction.

Making the right choice

Whether you are buying or selling, one area where you cannot afford to cut corners is your legal obligations and conveyancing services. There are many well documented cases of buyers who do not take the required steps from a legal view point and lose substantial sums of money in an effort to save a minimal amount, it's never worth it. For most people the most substantial investment they will ever make in their lifetime is the purchase of a property and for this reason it makes common sense to do things properly. Seeking the right legal advice and services are an integral part of this process and here at NBM Solicitors we have the experience and necessary professional acumen to guide you every step of the way. Although we do specialise in all areas connected to the buying and selling of property, we provide invaluable advice as to the best course of action to take. The money you pay in legal fees to ensure the process goes smoothly is small change compared to the consequences that can arise from not engaging the services of a professional. We are rightly proud of the services we offer and our website provides a comprehensive source of information to buyers and sellers alike. We would strongly urge you to read all the relevant parts of our website extremely carefully; the advice given is by no means solely designed to increase our revenues but to safeguard your interests as well. If you have any questions whatsoever regarding our conveyancing services or indeed any of the services we provide please do not hesitate to contact us. Our phone lines are open during normal office hours and you can of course e-mail us or check file progress on the internet case tracker at anytime. If you do not receive a response within a reasonable timeframe please contact us again as there maybe a technical issue that needs rectifying. We believe the service we offer and the obligation free advice detailed on our website is amongst the most comprehensive you will find anywhere and in conjunction with the absence of industry specific jargon makes us the only real choice for your property based legal requirements. If you do not see a specific service on our website that you think we should highlight in more detail please contact us, our future success as a business is based on customer feedback and suggestions, this enables us to maintain and improve our all round service for future customers. You have all the information, you've bookmarked our site, what are you waiting for? One phone call to us is all it will take for you to realise you are dealing with a firm that takes a real pride in the service they provide, we are sure that you will also find our customer service a significant cut above the rest. Call today for an unrivalled service and make us your first port of call for all your conveyancing requirements.