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Every home
has what are called title deeds.
These are papers stating who is the
legal owner. When you buy a home
the title deeds are transferred into
your name. This is called conveyancing
and you’ll probably need to pay
a solicitor to take care of this.
Solicitors
also help with other things like
making sure the person you’re
buying from is the legal owner of the
home and finding out if there are any
developments close by. For example,
if there are plans for a big new road
or a rubbish dump, this could have
an impact on the home or affect its
price.
When to get a solicitor
Solicitors
start their work as soon as you’ve
put
in offer on a home so make
sure you’ve hired one by this
stage.
Where to find one
Can anyone
you know recommend a solicitor? If
not, your estate agent may be able
to put you in contact with one. You’ll
also find them listed in local directories
and on the Internet. The Law
Society’s
website is
a good place to start but make sure
you ask the solicitor if they specialise
in conveyancing before you hire them
because not all solicitors do.
How much it will cost
Most solicitors
charge a flat rate so it’s easy to compare prices.
On top of this fee, you’re likely
to be charged for the various searches
they carry out, for example land registry
and environmental searches. There’s
also a land registry fee and other
items such as the cost of electronic
bank transfers when moving money about.
If there’s Stamp
Duty Land Tax on the home you’re buying,
you’ll also need to pay this
to the solicitor.
It’s
sensible to get a solicitor to list
all the costs and explain them to
you before you hire them.
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