The EPC is beneficial for a number of reasons. Primarily it indicates how efficient the energy performance of a home is and this dictates the energy bills for that home. The most efficient homes, that fall in band A, will typically have low fuel bills because they retain and use heat properly and efficiently. In contrast, the poorer performing homes that fall into lower bands will have high fuel costs on an annual basis. As well as showing potential fuel bill costs and whether any work may be required to improve the energy efficiency of a home, the EPC also gives an indication of how little or much damage a home is doing to the environment.

Energy efficiency has been hitting the headlines for several years now because of the damage to the environment that, among other influencing factors, has been spurred by inefficient homes. Homes with an EPC in bracket A can be considered to be highly energy efficient and therefore doing minimal damage to the environment whereas those in band G are contributing more to environmental damage and climate change.

E-conveyancing has become an ultra competitive market and combined with the slump in housing prices this has led to improved prices for consumers. Increased competition typically leads to reduced prices and improved services, and this certainly appears to be the case when it comes to conveyancing and e-conveyancing in particular. Even without extensive comparison, it’s possible to find a good e-conveyancer that offers their services at a rate that is vastly lower than a conveyancing solicitor offers.

Service levels are always an important consideration when choosing a service provider. In the past, conveyancing services have been offered solely by high street or family solicitors and many consumers have been subjected to less than ideal service levels. It can still prove very difficult to get hold of your solicitor and to firmly tie them down to a specific date or time period for the completion of your project. E-conveyancers have helped to improve this situation because they rely on conveyancing work alone to ensure the success of their business.

During the early stages of the process, the buyer’s conveyancer will collect various legal and title documents from the seller’s own solicitor. They will also arrange for local searches with the land registry and local council while dealing with mortgage conditions on behalf of the buyer. If any problems are unearthed during searches they will also deal with these and answer any questions received from the seller’s solicitor.

Having collected the deposit for the sale of the property, the buyer’s conveyancer will forward this deposit in order to begin the exchange of contracts. Transfer deeds and a mortgage deed are prepared awaiting signature from the buyer and are forwarded to the seller’s solicitor once they are completed and signed.

The final role of the buyer’s conveyancer is to arrange the payment of stamp duty, register the new ownership of the property with the Land Registry, and finally forward deeds to the mortgage lender where necessary. The process is largely an administrative one, but is is absolutely critical that everything goes exactly as expected and is completed on time and accurately.

Initially, the two conveyancer’s will ask and answer questions of one another. Specifically, the seller’s conveyancer will request title deeds and then have the seller fill in a property information form. They will also draw up a contract for the sale of the property and send a copy to the buyer’s solicitor for their intervention. They will also request a mortgage settlement figure and answer questions posed by the buyer’s conveyancer.

On the exchange of contracts, the seller’s conveyancer will arrange a completion date, take the deposit, collect any outstanding settlement funds, and having approved the transfer deed will get the seller to sign it. On completion of the transaction, the conveyancer will then pay off the outstanding mortgage, update the land registry regarding the sale, and exchange the deeds and forward any remaining funds to the seller.

Throughout this process, the seller’s conveyancer is responsible for ensuring a timely completion of their work so that the sale can be conducted as quickly as possible and also ensuring that the necessary parties are informed of where they are at within the conveyancing process so that everybody knows what is going on.

Once produced, an HCR is a legally binding document, that outlines the physical condition of the property for sale. If a problem is found following completion of the sale that was not outlined in the HCR then the seller is liable for any costs incurred in the correction of that problem or damages that ensue because of it. On the other hand, if you are selling a property and an issue is highlighted in the HCR then the buyer legally has no ground to take issue with you over that matter once the sale has completed.

The HCR is not a legal requirement in either the purchase or the sale of a property and it is not a necessary part of the HIP. Costing between approximately £250 or more many sellers consider it to be an expense that they can do without but it does genuinely help to ensure complete transparency in the sale of the property and it will encourage buyers to consider the purchase of your property.

Conveyancing is a semi legal process and aside from one or two legal aspects a lot of the work is administrative. It is this factor that has led a lot of people to believe that they can complete the process themselves. With a lot of research and meticulous administrative work it is indeed feasible to do so but the administrative work can take considerable time and effort if you have no previous experience in dealing with local governments and vendors.

A lot of the charge associated with using a conveyancer is swallowed up by legal costs and local government costs. These are non negotiable fees that you will be required to pay whether you conduct the conveyancing yourself or use a professional service to do this for you. Considering it is likely to take at least thirty to forty hours to complete, the savings that may total around £100 to £150 are rarely worth it. You also have no legal comeback should you make a mistake or delay the process that leads to the sale falling through.

The best of the conveyancing market companies add increased benefits to those that are provided by the conveyancing firm themselves. For example, some marketing companies will truly act as an intermediary relaying details of your conveyancing through an online account management portal; a very handy feature indeed when you want to be kept abreast of the current situation without constantly having to ring your conveyancer to find out.

Check the marketing company’s website as fully as you would that of a conveyancer, if not more so. Bear in mind that the marketing company is only as good as the companies they represent, although the best will very carefully hand pick the most suitable of conveyancers to promote. In these cases you can get the best prices available without sacrificing any level of quality in service.

Ensure that the online conveyancing marketing firm does take a cut from the conveyancer and doesn’t instead attempt to add hidden charges to your quote. You will typically make payment through the marketing company so it is conceivable that they could do this; in practice, however, you should receive a completely transparent quote with a breakdown of costs.

• A conveyancing factory, despite the less than romantic title, is a viable option that most commonly operates on the Internet. They deal with high volumes of accounts so while this may mean that you don’t get your own dedicated point of contact, it also means a no-move no-fee service with a fixed price guarantee.
• A specialist conveyancing firm also operates in larger volume and deals very specifically with conveyancing and related contracts. Cheaper than a high street solicitor, choosing the right conveyancing firm means shopping around to find one that offers a transparent quote and has a good reputation for providing better than average customer service levels.
• The high street solicitor is the service most widely associated with conveyancing because traditionally they were the only ones that could offer a conveyancing service. Often they are the most expensive option and service levels vary greatly from firm to firm; a situation that has improved recently but is still evident.

When you begin the buying process it is likely that your estate agent and even your mortgage company will provide details of preferred firms. It is not necessary to choose these firms and they are often working on a commission basis so there is no real recommendation. Shop around and get your own deal from the best services you can find.

When done properly, the conveyancing process will be completely transparent. All parties will be made aware of the process and the introduction of the conveyancer and while a conveyancer is required throughout the process you will hopefully have very little contact with them. This means that shopping around for an effective and responsive service can lead to a great cash saving.

The emergence of the Internet has seen the face of conveyancing industry change dramatically and competition has increased to the extent where prices have plummeted. At the same time as this reduction in prices there has also been the introduction of a greater number of conveyancers and specialist conveyancing firms; the end result being a general improvement in services.

Shopping online for a conveyancing firm allows the buyer access to cheaper conveyancing options as well as a greater range of choice and the availability of improved services. By ensuring that you select a conveyancer with an open pricing model and comparing quotes on a like for like basis you can enjoy the best possible prices from one of the best possible services.

The HIP is required to contain various searches, documents, and legal documents. It is designed to help ensure that the seller is entitled to sell their property and that the buyer knows precisely what they are purchasing. It takes a lot of the gamble out of the process for the buyer, while the transparency of the document also helps ensure that the seller is confident that they have provided all the necessary information and that the buyer has no cause to go back on their proposed purchase.

Preparing an HIP should be conducted as early as possible in the selling process. No sale can be legally completed without the inclusion of a recent pack that contains all of the necessary documents and it isn’t just a desirable pack to have but a legal requirement. A conveyancer or conveyancing service can usually prepare an HIP on your behalf and the process should take anywhere from one to two weeks from commencing the preparation to the production of the pack.