Many think that buying a new home will be simple and that being newly built,it will be problem free. Why would you need a survey when its a brand new property?

Your new property will either be a new building plot carved out of an existing property , a conversion of an older building such as a warehouse or factory or it could be green field site.
In all cases You need to be sure that your new home will benefit from all the rights it needs for you to enjoy it properly; rights of way over paths and roads, shared drainage, shared gardens or bike and bin stores.

Are the roads drains pipes and other service connections constructed to the latest standards and will they be adopted by the local authority once the development is completed? What security is there for you (and your lender) if the builder fails to do the work to make it up to standard or if the builder goes out of business before it is all finished?

Are there covenants (legal promises) in place to stop your new neighbours acting noisily or doing things in their property that affect you detrimentally?

Is there a suitable building guarantee to ensure that if anything with the construction proves defective and needs correcting, it is covered ?

You will have the general idea by now, but its true to say that property transactions rarely follow the expected route. All manner of unexpected issues can arise.

You can’t be expected to know what to look for. You need your hand holding through the process. Having someone whom you can talk to about the process, about your mortgage offer or about your personal needs can be a big help.

Many firms offering a conveyancing service will do so on a need to know basis and will be unwilling to provide a hand holding service because they are heavily costs conscious. They will often be referred work by estate agents whose main interest is seeing the sale complete so that they are paid, and who may be paid to refer your work to lawyers on their panel.

Our practice is not one which operates by referrals.  We do not limit the contact you have with us because our aim is not to treat your purchase as a one off transaction, we aim to be your trusted advisor going forward through life. We always try our very best to keep our clients fully informed of progress or the lack of it and offer advice on what your options are.

Conveyancing is often sold as an afterthought through agents, but it is the key element of the process. You need a champion to see you through the often very complex process.

We work as a team. If someone is ill or on holiday, the rest of the team will still be there. We try to be as open and helpful as we can whilst still telling you of all the risks and problems you may be facing.

We may not be your cheapest option but do you really want to risk such an important purchase? We are not expensive, but we charge a reasonable fee for our work.
If unusual aspects or problems arise, we always endeavour to be fair.

Please see our other articles upon off plan purchasing and contract reassignment.