Conveyancing (the process of transferring ownership of a legal title of land from one person or party to another) is a complex endeavour. There’s so much more involved than just handing over the funds and picking up the key. There’s a lot of nitty gritty legal and administrative work involved when preparing and managing searches, documents, contracts, title deeds and mortgages.
If it sounds complicated and involved, that’s because it is. However, despite the level of complexity involved in conveyancing, people sometimes opt to undertake the process themselves. This may seem like a way to save money and to ensure full attention is given to your transaction – but DIY conveyancing can be fraught with pitfalls for the unwary.
In most cases, it’s far wiser to leave conveyancing to the professionals. A Conveyancing Solicitor is a vital part of a smooth property transaction. A licenced Conveyancing Solicitor comes with expert training, experience and skills to effectively manage the transaction, and can ensure that it’s straightforward and stress-free. In fact, using the services of a Conveyancing Solicitor prevents a whole host of problems from plaguing your property transaction, and in most cases is well worth doing.
Here’s what using the services of a Conveyancing Solicitor can prevent.
Wasted time
If you’re buying or selling property for the first time, there are no doubt many aspects of the process that will be unfamiliar. Learning about the process and carrying it out correctly takes time – more time than you probably think. And presumably, you have plenty of other tasks to fill your day, and don’t have unlimited time to spend on conveyancing.
Unless your time is worth very little to you, it’s a complete false economy to try and go it alone. You have no idea how much time you would need to spend on the phone, chasing people, doing paperwork etc. Using the services of a Conveyancing Solicitor will free up your time, allowing you to spend it more profitably and on things you are good at and enjoy.
Financial problems
The reason most people opt for DIY conveyancing is financial. When you’re already forking out a lot of money on your property transaction, it seems wise to save paying one more bill where you can. But is it?
Buying or selling a property can be an expensive business, and the thought of saving money by conducting a DIY conveyance is definitely enticing. However, while a DIY conveyance may appear to save you some cash initially, it can actually end up costing you more in the long run. You expose yourself to some serious risks if you choose a DIY conveyance, some of which may cost you more than you would have spent on using the services of a professional Conveyancing Solicitor. You can end up seriously out of pocket if a conveyance goes wrong, and in most cases the risk is just not worth it.
Breaches of contract, fines and legal problems
When your property sale is straightforward and uncomplicated, you might get away with carrying out a DIY conveyance. However, property sales can be fraught with tricky situations and unforeseen bombshells that make DIY conveyancing extremely risky. And before you get involved in the transaction, you have no way of knowing whether it will be simple or extremely messy and complicated. If the conveyance happens to go smoothly, you’ll feel justified in your decision to go it alone. If it doesn’t, you’ll be wishing you’d engaged the services of a licensed Conveyancing Solicitor right from the start.
Laws are prone to changing quickly, and small changes to laws might make a big difference to your property transaction. A Conveyancing Solicitor will be on top of all these changes and nuances, and will make sure your transaction falls in line with them all.
What’s more, if you make a mistake in the process, you will be held personally responsible. This can have devastating financial and legal consequences. The good thing about using a Conveyancing Solicitor is that they come with a professional insurance policy that covers you in the event of a mistake.
Stress
While DIY conveyancing is achievable if you have plenty of hours to spare to commit to it, can spend time deciphering legal jargon and enjoy filling out forms, the risks of the process generally aren’t worth the reward. DIY conveyancing is labour-intensive, risky and laden with technical jargon that makes the process extremely challenging. When you use the services of a licensed Conveyancing Solicitor, you can relax knowing that all the tedious and time-consuming work will be done for you, and that your assets will be protected in the process. Peace of mind is worth a lot, particularly when you’re dealing with the biggest transaction you’ll likely make in your lifetime.
If you’d like to talk to expert and quality Conveyancing Solicitors about your property transaction, get in touch with GM Law here.
