Selling or buying – Be prepared!

When anyone decides they want to move or buy their first house, the exciting bit is searching through the online listings or estate agents details trying to find their ideal property, going round to have a look at it and deciding which bits of the decor or layout of the property they would never have chosen and would need to be changed immediately when they move in!

But there are some more boring and mundane tasks which everyone should also think about and which will help ease the process of selling and buying.

Obviously first of all make sure you can afford the house you want to buy including all the other payments that are involved in the process of moving.In particular think about the amount of stamp duty which will need to be paid especially since the rates payable have increased dramatically over recent years.

If you are selling a property it is also time to start trawling through all of those pieces of paper which you put away thinking you might need them one day.In particular, from a lawyer’s point of view, it is always helpful if someone has kept copies of any planning permission or building regulations consent for work they have carried out or an extension they have built.These days there are also certificates produced for any new windows or doors that are installed in a property, or electrical and gas installation work that is carried out and any guarantees from the companies who carried out the work.

All of this paperwork, even in our electronic age, will almost certainly be asked for by the solicitor who is acting for the purchaser of a property and time and money are saved if it is readily available.

For advice on this and other Residential Property issues, please contact Karen Fletcher.

Please note the contents of this blog are given for information only and must not be relied upon. Legal advice should always be sought in relation to specific circumstances.