How Long Will My Property Sale And Purchase Take?
Posted on 2nd April 2020
MG Legal, Property Law Solicitors in Lancashire were surprised to find that the national average timescale for conveyancing is between 9-10 weeks. Conveyancing for a simple purchase can usually take just four to six weeks but more complicated transactions do take longer.
Call us on 01524 581 306 (Lancaster), 01995 602 129 (Garstang) or 01772 783 314 (Longridge)
Here’s a rough estimate of conveyancing timescales to help you estimate your future transaction: -
Freehold Purchase 6-8 weeks
Freehold Sale 8-10 weeks
Leasehold Purchase 10-12 weeks
Leasehold Sale 10-12 weeks
It is important to remember that no conveyancer can accurately give you a timescale for a property transaction. Each individual case is different and there can be so many factors to consider that could delay the process.
What can delay the conveyancing process?
Delays in getting a mortgage offer:
Anyone buying with a mortgage will need an official offer to proceed with the purchase, a full mortgage application can only be completed once the buyers have found a property to buy. So, if someone in the chain has only just joined and they are buying a mortgage this could delay the whole chain.
Survey Delays:
Usually a full Survey needs to be carried out on the property. In the midst of this COVID-19 pandemic no surveys are being carried out, so you can guarantee that there will be an influx of surveys as soon as the Country is up and running again, this will inevitably lead to delays. Even before COVID-19 delays with Surveys occurred as the Seller needs to be available at a time that the Surveyor can visit on occasion this availability can take weeks if the Seller needs to request time off work to be at home for the Surveyor.
Survey reveals issues:
The survey may reveal issues that could affect the property value meaning the purchase is renegotiated or further investigation is required by builders or building inspectors. This could not only cause a delay but lead to someone within the chain withdrawing.
Delay in Search Results:
Often Searches are addressed to the Local Authority. Each Local Authority has different time scales that they work to. If the Local Authority is slow in responding your Searches could be delayed for weeks.
Seller has to find another home:
You the Buyer are ready to exchange contracts and hand over the money but your Seller hasn’t even started looking for their alternative accommodation never mind started the legal process.
Waiting on a Chain:
Sounds like a bad song title! A chain is when a buyer has found their property that they wish to buy but they need to sell their current property first to get the money needed to buy the property they want to buy. This creates a chain of sales, each sale requiring another sale to complete before the chain can proceed.
General other-side delays:
Even if you have a good property Solicitor or conveyancer and you have completed all the forms. That does mean that your buyer or seller has completed all of their forms nor does it mean that their Solicitor will be quick at acting on important enquiries or replies to enquiries.
How can I speed up my sale or purchase?
If we’re honest there is not a lot that can be done to avoid delays; MG Legal’s property solicitors are extremely pro-active. That said , there are one or two things that can be done to make the transaction smoother:
1. If you are thinking of selling, check that the property you intend to sell is registered with the land registry. If it isn’t continue getting the property registered before you market the property then when you come to sell the process should be a bit quicker.
2. Fill all the forms out correctly ensuring that there is nothing that could be misunderstood or misconstrued.
3. Don’t set unrealistic dates, it is unlikely that you will complete within two weeks, if you set a two week deadline, you will likely be disappointed if not a lot has happened in the space of time.
4. Try to email rather than call for an update – that way the response can be forwarded on to the Estate Agents so everyone in the chain can be updated.
5. If a document is sent to you for you to sign post it back rather than emailing. Your property Solicitor probably requires your wet ink signature.
Of course it helps if you have a decent conveyancer handling your case. A good, local (our solicitors are based in Preston, Garstang and Lancaster, and thoroughly dislike huge conveyor-belt property ‘lawyers’ online) property law Solicitor will do all they can to make sure the transaction completes quickly without delays. Contact MG Legal now via enquiries@mglegal.co.uk or call 01995 602 129!
MG Legal – Your Local Solicitors
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