Conveyancing in Sunderland
Conveyancing is the process of preparing legal documents for a property sale, remortgage or lease extension, and transferring legal ownership if the property is being sold. If you need a solicitor for conveyancing in Sunderland, we can help you with fast & proactive conveyancing from a national panel of conveyancing specialists.
We have helped clients in Sunderland and throughout Tyne and Wear with buying, selling, buy-to-let, Help to Buy, Right to Buy, shared ownership, new build, leasehold, lease extensions, remortgage and transfer of equity.
Other areas covered: Gateshead, Newcastle Upon Tyne, Seaham, South Shields and Wallsend
Buying property in Sunderland
A city in Tyne and Wear, Sunderland is known for its sandy beaches, the National Glass Centre, and the Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens. It offers a range of shops, eateries, and the University of Sunderland.
With a railway station offering connections to Newcastle and York, and road links via the A19 and A1(M), Sunderland is a convenient location for commuting. The city has a population of approximately 275,000.
Council Tax in Sunderland (2023/24)
Band | Amount |
---|---|
A | £1,266.09 |
B | £1,477.10 |
C | £1,688.11 |
D | £1,899.13 |
E | £2,321.16 |
F | £2,743.19 |
G | £3,165.22 |
H | £3,798.26 |
What will my Sunderland solicitor do?
During the home purchase, the solicitor will handle all the legal elements of the transaction. They will raise questions for the seller's solicitor, order searches, review the contract of sale and take care of tasks after the sale, like registering the property ownership with the Land Registry and paying Stamp Duty Land Tax.
In addition to standard searches, Sunderland conveyancing solicitors may also undertake searches for historic mining and industrial activity and flood risk.
Purchasing a home with a mortgage?
When you buy a property with a mortgage, the lender will verify that the property meets their mortgage criteria.
If your property lawyer isn't accepted on your bank or building society's panel, it may take many weeks longer to complete the purchase.We work with conveyancers who can represent the vast majority of building societies, banks and lenders, from larger lenders like Metro Bank to Bradford and Bingley, helping to ensure your transaction completes faster.
Read more:
Conveyancing for buying a property
Find out if our panel solicitors can act for your mortgage lender
We can assist home buyers in Sunderland with the conveyancing for:
There are around 500,000 listed properties across the country, 390 of which are in Sunderland City Council. Sunderland listed buildings include: Listed buildings come with complex rules that the owner must adhere to. Our specialist panel of property solicitors will advise you on the obligations imposed by listed property ownership. Examples include consent for additions like solar panels, and an obligation to protect significant internal features like fireplaces. Read more:Listed buildings
The legal steps involved in for purchasing a shared ownership home will involve acquiring a share in a property from a housing association. Although this is a more affordable route to home ownership, buying and owning a shared ownership property is more involved. This is because contracts are more complicated, and housing associations work to tight deadlines. Whether you are buying a shared ownership property or staircasing, our panel of specialist solicitors will walk you through every step of the process.Shared Ownership
Leasehold flats
can be complicated. The numerous common problems lying in wait for an uninformed purchaser can include legally technical issues like incomplete management company accounts and excessive freehold premiums.
Your solicitor will look into all potential issues with the lease and report back to you.
Read more:
What you need to know about buying a leasehold property
Selling property in Sunderland
As part of the property selling process in Sunderland, your conveyancer will assemble all essential documents, including the title deeds and property information forms.
They will sort out potential snags and respond to inquiries from the buyer's solicitor. The solicitor will coordinate with all parties, including agents, lenders and landlords, ensuring that the move completes without delay.
Does a leasehold property take longer to sell?
Yes. The legal work for selling a leasehold house or flat typically takes longer.
The buyer's conveyancer must review this leasehold-related paperwork. These could include details of any breaches by other leaseholders and management company information. Typically, delays are due to the time needed by to get these documents together.
It can take weeks to collect these details if the managing agent is slow or difficult to contact, so the seller's solicitor ought to start this process as soon as possible.
Read more:
Selling a leasehold flat? What to do before going on the market
Conveyancing for selling a property
Remortgaging a property in Sunderland
The base interest rate is 5.25% (15 November, 2024)
You should check your preferred solicitor is on your lender's panel before you instruct your solicitor.
We work with remortgage solicitors who are on all major banks and building societies' panels, so whether you are changing to a 30-year mortgage with Yorkshire Building Society or moving to a 10-year tracker rate with Buckinghamshire Building Society, we can help your remortgage complete quickly.
Read more:
Find out if our panel solicitors can act for your mortgage lender
Get a remortgage conveyancing quote
Sunderland Transfer of equity
If you are intending to make changes to the ownership of your property, whether you are taking over the share of another owner, estate planning or transferring the ownership of your property to a child, a transfer of equity is required. Your legal representative will handle all the required documentation for a fixed fee.
Read more:
Transfer of equity Stamp Duty calculator
Get a transfer of equity conveyancing quote
How much are conveyancing fees in Sunderland?
On a conveyancing quote, the various costs or charges can be split into two types:
Conveyancing solicitors fees
Your solicitor's quote will set out the legal fees (inc. VAT) that you pay when the property transaction is complete. These legal fees are paid to your conveyancing solicitor for the tasks they complete during your property transaction.
Disbursements
Disbursements are third-party expenses incurred during the purchase, sale or other conveyancing transaction. Examples of disbursements include Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT), HM Land Registry fees and property searches.
Check the quote for hidden costs
Some firms may set out extra costs in the small print, resulting in a higher-than-expected final bill. If you are comparing quotes, beware of hidden charges not mentioned in the initial conveyancing quote.