| Client care letter | We send this out at the beginning of the transaction. It gives details of the work which will be carried out, who will be doing it, and at what cost. |
| Completion statement | The statement we prepare which shows all income and expenditure involved with your sale or purchase, and what funds are due from you or due back to you. |
| Conditions of sale | The terms of the contract for sale and purchase including rights and duties of the Buyer and Seller which may be national, statutory or laid down by the Law Society. |
| Consent to contract form | This is a form signed by an occupier of a property by which the occupier consents to the sale of the property by the Seller and confirms that he or she will move out of the property on completion day. Sometimes this is a separate form and sometimes the consent is incorporated in the contract. |
| Contract | A binding agreement (once signed and exchanged) containing all essential details of the transaction and committing the Buyer and Seller to complete the transaction. |
| Deed of Transfer | The Deed of Transfer is a legal deed which is signed by the Seller (and often by the Buyer) and which operates to transfer legal title to the Buyer. The Seller’s conveyancer sends this document, together with the Deeds, to the Buyer’s conveyancer on completion day. |
| Deeds/title deeds | The legal documents that confirm ownership of the property and contain details of rights, benefits and obligations affecting the property. |
| Energy Performance Certificate | Prepared by a Domestic Energy Assessor (DEA), reporting on the energy efficienc of the property. More commonly known by its abbreviation (EPC). |
| Fittings and contents form | A list of items in the property which are included in the sale (completed by the Seller). |
| Office copy entries | A copy of the Land Registry entries relating to the property. |
| Pre-contract enquiries | These are a set of questions about the contract pack sent by the Buyer’s conveyancer to the Seller’s to deal with. There may be questions raised which the Seller can answer and some which the Seller’s conveyancer can answer. |
| Property information forms | These are usually completed by the Seller and their conveyancer and contain general information known to the Seller regarding the property, e.g. guarantees relating to the property, building works carried out at the property, ownership of boundaries, utility supply details etc. The Seller must complete these forms to the best of his/her knowledge as they may be relied on by the Buyer in any subsequent legal dispute. |
| Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) form | A minimum 6 page long form, which comes with an even lengthier set of guidance notes. Must be completed for every transaction where the price exceeds £40,000. |
| Title information document | The official Land Registry document containing important details about the property, such as the owner, mortgage lender, easements, and restrictions. |
| Valuation or survey | A valuation is a very basic report on a property prepared by a Surveyor, and this is usually prepared for the benefit of the mortgage lender. A survey (sometimes called a structural survey) is a more thorough report regarding the property prepared by a Surveyor, giving details of its condition and any structural problems. This is normally prepared for the benefit of the Buyer. |
