What’s it all about?
We pulled together this list of terms that are commonplace in our industry to help you understand what they mean.
- Chain: When the sale of your property is reliant on the sale of the individual’s property who is buying your property
- Closing Date: A closing date is the date and time that is agreed between the home owner and their estate agent, when all offers on the property being sold must be received
- Completion Date: The date when the sale of your property will be completed
- Completion Statement: Your conveyancing lawyer will provide a statement outlining all costs pertaining to the sale of your property
- Conditions of Sale: This relates to any conditions you or the purchaser wish to put in place in relation to the sale of your property
- Contract: A legal agreement detailing the conditions of the sale of your property between your and the person(s) purchasing your property
- Conveyancer: The name for a lawyer who specialises in the buying and selling of property.
- Fixtures and Fittings: This is negotiated with the person(s) purchasing your property and essentially lists the fixtures and fittings that are included in the sale
- Home Report: This document is a legal requirement for selling a property (provided by the seller to potential buyers) and consists of a survey of the property. an energy report and a property questionnaire
- Title Indemnity: This is an insurance policy that a purchaser’s lawyer may ask to be put in place to cover their client against any building work that has been carried out that they may not have the relevant building warrants for. This in short safeguards their client against any future costs/losses they might incur in relation to this building work
- Land & Buildings Transaction Tax (formerly called Stamp Duty): The Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) is a tax applied to residential and non-residential land and buildings transactions (including commercial leases)
- Loan Papers: These are a very important part of the missives and without them the sale cannot be concluded. They are in effect a formal notice that the purchaser’s lender will release their clients funds in order to complete the purchase of the property
- Missives: Missives are contractual letters exchanged between lawyers acting on behalf of the buyer and seller
- Mortgage Offer: This is official confirmation from your mortgage provider that they are willing to lend an agreed amount to you in order to purchase a property
- Mortgage in Principle: A mortgage in principle is an indication as to what a mortgage provider is happy to lend you in order to buy a house
- Note of Interest: This is a way that those person(s) who are interested in your property can note their interest in it. This is done by their lawyer contacting your estate agent