Buying a home can be a stressful, time-consuming process, one that is often fraught with delays and other difficulties. There are things that you can do, however, to ensure that when buying or selling a home, things go as smoothly as possible.

In order to help you further understand the process and the problems that can be encountered throughout, we’ve put together this list of the top eighteen reasons for delays in the conveyancing process, along with advice on how to avoid them where possible.

Delays in the Conveyancing Process

The conveyancing process can be held up by many things, and it’s important to note that often these are out of the control of your conveyancer or estate agent. Typically, delays in the conveyancing process are caused further down the property chain, usually when waiting for information from other parties involved in the transaction.

1. Not instructing solicitor as soon as house is put on the market/an offer placed More...

Howells Solicitors is opening a specialist conveyancing centre of excellence in Bridgend, and taking another step towards our aim of becoming one of the top five conveyancing firms in the UK.

The new conveyancing hub will extend our branch network of six offices between Swansea and Newport, creating thirteen new jobs and safeguarding a further three.

Based at No. 1 Court Road in Bridgend town centre, the hub will serve all parts of the UK, with a strong focus on the English market.

Our investment, which was made in response to opportunities arising from the improvement in the property market post-recession, was backed by £100,000 from the Welsh Government's Economic Growth Fund. More...

When you are buying or selling a home, you need to choose a solicitor or conveyancer to take control of the legal process of transferring the title of a property from one party to another. Traditionally, homebuyers have used local solicitors for this purpose, but over the past decade online conveyancing has become increasingly commonplace, and this is having a significant effect on the industry.

Choosing between the two can be extremely difficult, particularly for those who aren’t aware of the difference in services offered by each. With that in mind, Howells Solicitors has put together this five minute guide, to highlight the pros and cons of both traditional and online conveyancing, so that you can make an informed decision.

Online Conveyancing

By putting their services online, conveyancing solicitors have cut their costs as they no longer have to pay significant overheads.

In order to maintain these low prices, web conveyancing services don’t offer the face-to-face meetings offered by traditional conveyancing solicitors. This means it is likely that you will never actually meet your online conveyancer, as most use standardised web tracking, call centres and SMS systems to keep their customers up-to-date with the conveyancing process. More...

In the latest post in our FAQ series, we answer a first-time buyer’s questions on stamp duty in the UK.

Q: I am a first-time buyer looking to purchase a house for £130,000 but with the new stamp duty reforms I am concerned that I can no longer afford a property in that price range as the stamp duty seems to have risen to 2%. Is that right?

A: Thank you for your query. Yes the stamp duty land tax has had a bit of a shake-up but it is generally to buyers’ benefit, especially for first time buyers where the purchase price is close to the threshold of a higher stamp duty rate. The new stamp duty thresholds are as follows:

0% up to £125,000
2% on £125,001 - £250,000
5% on £250,001 - £925,000
10% on £925,001 to £1.5 million
12% over £1.5 millionMore...

The next instalment in our FAQ series sees us advise a recently separated landlord who wishes to take residence in their property, which has a buy-to-let mortgage.
 
Q. My partner and I have separated and I need to move back into my old property, which is currently tenanted. The property has a buy-to-let mortgage and I plan on moving back in once the tenants vacate. What will happen to the mortgage?

A. You will need to review the terms of your buy-to-let mortgage carefully, as it is likely you will be in breach of your mortgage conditions if you occupy the property.

In the first instance, speak with your mortgage lender and try to come to an agreement that you may live in the property. The lender’s decision will be based on whether your income is sufficient to meet their lending criteria, as previously, the lender would have taken into consideration the monthly rental income when deciding how much to lend. The mortgage lender will now consider your annual income to see if you can continue to make your repayments.More...