What documents do solicitors need when buying a house?

The house-buying process can be long and complicated, but you can take steps to speed things up. Learning about the conveyancing process, the role of your conveyancer or solicitor and your responsibilities during this time can help. It puts you in a better position to do what you need and keep things on track. It'll also allow you to prepare some of the required documents.

It's best to work with a conveyancer or solicitor you can trust and communicate with. If you need to send documents to keep the process moving, your conveyancer or solicitor will tell you. Communication is critical - not just with the seller's solicitor, the estate agent and others involved in the process, but with you. An experienced and organised conveyancer or solicitor will let you know what to expect up front and then provide insights into the legal process on an ongoing basis. Having the conveyancing process explained clearly can remove a lot of unnecessary stress. It means you'll always know what stage your property purchase has reached, the following steps, and how to keep the transaction moving forward.

If that includes submitting documents, your conveyancer or solicitor will tell you well in advance so you have time to prepare. This helps you avoid unnecessary delays. Gathering paperwork about your financial position before the conveyancing process starts will help progress matters. Here, the expert conveyancers and solicitors offer an outline of the legal documents that play a role in the house-buying process, how they will be used, and how you can make sure your solicitor has everything they need to support you through to your completion date.

Documents needed in the conveyancing process 

One of the things your conveyancer or solicitor does during this process is manage the necessary documents. From a conveyancer or solicitor's perspective, that will include paper documents like title deeds and certain forms of identification and digital documents like reports. The conveyancer or solicitor must review every piece of documentation to complete a property sale or purchase.

You will provide some of these, although which ones you need depends on whether you're buying or selling a property. Others might be from the other party's solicitor, your mortgage lender or other parties involved. For example, a buyer's conveyancer or solicitor must review a mortgage offer and other documentation from the mortgage lender. They'll also review the searches of the land. In contrast, a seller's conveyancer or solicitor must review copies of the title deeds or registered title to draft a contract.

While property transactions are always different, you should generally expect the following documents to be involved:

• Identification: A passport, driving licence, or other legal ID is needed to comply with anti-money laundering regulations. Your conveyancer or solicitor will typically ask for a photo ID and a recent utility bill or bank statement to prove your identity and address. If a third party contributes a monetary gift to help you buy the property, we might also need to review their identity documents. 
• Financial documents: If you're buying the property with a mortgage, we need details of the chosen mortgage lender and borrowing amount. You will need to inform your lender of your appointed conveyancer or solicitor, and the lender will issue the acting conveyancer or solicitor a copy of the mortgage offer. If you're buying a house with cash, you must provide bank statements and documents to verify your financial situation. We also need to know more about where your wealth comes from to comply with anti-money laundering regulations. 
• Property title deeds: These documents prove the seller's property ownership. The original deeds will be required if the seller's land is unregistered, meaning it has never been presented for first registration at the Land Registry. If the land is registered, your conveyancer or solicitor will obtain up-to-date official copies of the registered title from the Land Registry.
• Property information form and Fittings and Contents Form: The seller completes these forms, which provide details about the property, including boundaries, rights, disputes, and any alterations or additions made to the property. The forms are needed for our property searches. For example, we need to make sure that the seller has appropriate consent for any extensions. The seller will complete the Fittings and Contents Form and give details of items included or excluded from the sale, together with details of any items the seller would like to offer for sale.
• Leasehold information: For leasehold properties, we may require additional documents such as copies of the lease, service charge accounts, ground rent demands, and copies of any correspondence, notices, or documents received from the management company.
• Searches and Reports: Your conveyancer or solicitor will produce several reports, including a report summarising the legal title and forms completed by the seller, a report on the results of searches, and a report on your mortgage offer (where applicable). Searches undertaken by a buyer's conveyancer or solicitor include a local authority search, environmental search, drainage search, and mining search, where the property is in a mining area. All of these are designed to ensure there are no potential issues with the property transaction.
• Contract: A draft contract prepared by the seller's solicitor and outlines the terms of the property sale, including the sale price. Your conveyancer or solicitor will help you understand the contract terms to ensure they represent the terms of the sale. 
• Transfer deed: This document completes the legal transfer of the property's ownership from the seller to the buyer. It is signed by the seller and the buyer and will be dated upon the completion of the sale.
• Stamp Duty Land Tax form: For properties with a purchase price above a certain threshold, buyers must pay Stamp Duty Land Tax. Your conveyancer or solicitor will complete a Stamp Duty return form for the buyer's approval. The return form will calculate the appropriate amount of tax payable based on the buyer's circumstances. The buyer will need to approve the return. Once approved, the buyer's conveyancer or solicitor will file the return with HMRC upon completion of the purchase and pay any necessary tax on the buyer's behalf.

Your conveyancer or solicitor may need additional documents depending on the specific circumstances of the property or the transaction. In some circumstances, we may need copies of planning permissions or details of any ongoing insurance claims related to the property. These documents are essential for your conveyancer or solicitor to carry out due diligence, maintain legal compliance, and ensure the correct advice is given.

Finding the right solicitor

As you can see from the list above, the buyer's conveyancer or solicitor plays a significant role in the conveyancing process. As your conveyancer or solicitor will lead the process, you need to work with someone you trust to represent your interests.

We start every property transaction by discussing our client's needs in detail. By investing in you and working to understand what you need, we can tailor our services to you. We prioritise communication and will involve you in the process as much as possible so you can see that progress is being made. While giving you a specific conveyancing process timeline is impossible, we'll update you at each stage as we move closer to your completion date. You'll always know what stage the process has reached and the next steps.

To start the conveyancing process with Switalskis or learn more about how we can help, contact our expert residential conveyancing team today. Call us on 0800 138 0458 or get in touch through our website .