The Home Buying and Selling Group (HBSG) in conjunction with The Law Society have produced a uniform pledge for the property and conveyancing industry.
Paul Crowley & Co have joined the HBSG industry pledge, to improve the process of moving home for buyers and sellers.
These are unusual times for the residential property market, since the housing industry went in to Covid-19 lockdown, buyers and sellers were forced to place any potential house moves on hold.
As the lockdown restrictions were lifted, the property market was put under immense strain by an unprecedented demand of delayed home moves, with conveyancing solicitors experiencing a heavier workload as a result of:
- Receiving more residential conveyancing instructions than expected
- The completion of transactions that were stopped by regulation
- Unlocking of pent-up demand
- People re-assessing the kind of property they want if they continue to work remotely
The pressure placed on conveyancers was even greater, as people brought planned house moves forward, to take advantage of the governments concession on Stamp Duty Land Tax, due to end on 31 March 2021.
Jenna Gall, Head of Conveyancing at Paul Crowley & Co solicitors and member of the Conveyancing Association, says: ‘We in the Conveyancing industry welcome the pledge, at Paul Crowley & Co we want to work with our buyers and sellers to ensure that their house moves progress as quickly and smoothly as possible.’
The aims of the HBSG industry pledge
The HBSG pledge aims to progress home movers transactions quicker by highlighting some of the tasks that the buyers and sellers can carry out themselves at an early stage.
What the pledge means for solicitors
The following industry pledge relates to conveyancing solicitors:
Seller’s property lawyer
Where suitable, discuss the advantages and costs of preparing as much information as possible for the buyer at the earliest stage.
Where suitable, check title information and provide advice to the seller about any issues that could cause delays and suggest solutions.
Buyer’s property lawyer
Outline to the buyer the importance of obtaining a suitable level of condition based home survey.
Jenna: ‘To enable the housing market to continue to operate efficiently, the pledge will make clear to home movers what each profession needs to do, when they need to do it and what tasks a home mover can carry out themselves to ensure a more positive consumer experience.’
Paul Crowley & Co, Solicitors
Jenna Gall | Head of ConveyancingThe pledge does not place any new obligations on solicitors or other housing market professionals, it is not about introducing new steps into the process, but about gathering information earlier in the process in order to save time later and give the residential property market the opportunity to resolve any issues before they hold up the sale.
What the pledge means for buyers and sellers
Buyer
A buyer should secure a mortgage agreement in principle or, if paying with cash, make sure they have evidence of the funding available to them.
Seller
A seller should instruct a property solicitor on the day they market their property and fill in the property information forms provided to them as soon as possible.
A proven approach
The technique behind the pledge has proved successful in a pre-COVID-19 environment, having been tried and tested in Northern Ireland, it has had a positive effect on the time and ease with which people have been able to move.
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