Property Law and Practice
The purpose of this module is RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY (real estate used for living purposes).
The case study for this module will be based on the conveyancing process for Mr. Iqbal Ahmed:
- Buying a house
- Selling a house
Introduction to Conveyancing:
Conveyancing is the process by which legal title to property is transferred. Over time, it has become the
description for the document making such a transfer.
Conveyancing has built upon three foundations of:
- Land Law
- Contract Law
- Equity and Trust
Conveyancing = stages of transactions.
Types of Property:
Joint-Tenancy -
- Both partners jointly own the whole property
- Right of Survivorship is enabled (if one partner dies, the property will automatically pass to the
surviving partner(s) or owner(s).
Tenants in Common -
- Property is owned in unequal shares by the existing owner(s) or partner(s).
- If one partner dies, the property will do either under that former partner’s will or under his
intestacy rules.
Rule of OVERREACHING–
- States that a person who has been given authority to act on behalf of another cannot exceed
the scope of that authority.
- It is a term most defined as the process of transferring equitable interests (an interest held by
virtue of an equitable title (beneficial interest in property which gives the holder the right to
acquire formal legal title) or claimed on equitable grounds (interest held by trust beneficiary))
under a trust from a specific piece of land to the capital money received from the purchaser of a
legal estate in that land.
- It is a mechanism designed to protect purchasers of the land. Provided the purchaser pays the
purchase money to two or more trustees (original seller and seller’s solicitor), he will obtain a
transfer of the legal title free of any equitable interests arising under an express, resulting or
constructive trust.
,Questions asked when interviewing a client:
Selling Process:
- Evidence of Identity, contact details and Address (I.D and recent utility bills)
- Other sides’ details (solicitor of the other party and the party itself)
- Land Registry – confirm that the property belongs to them
- Existing client of the firm or not?
- Redemption figure of the mortgage (interest rate)
- Whether survey (professional check) has been done on the house
- Any alterations made to the property(either by current residents or former residents)
- Who owns the house (sole ownership or joint tenancy or tenants in common)
- Type of property (freehold or leasehold) - check Land Registry or Title Deed
- Enquiries about the neighbourhood
- Selling price that the seller wants (the margin between minimum and maximum)
- Any chattels (other items) being sold alongside (or independently to third parties) the house?
- Schedule of the Seller (timescale on when they want the property to be sold)
- How many people are interested in their property (if the party itself has conducted this
research)
- Other necessary information (liabilities?)
- Search fees – the process of finding a suitable candidate
- Solicitor’s fees (what we will be charging)
Buying Process:
- Evidence of Identity (I.D) and contact details
- Other sides’ details (solicitor of the other party and the party itself)
- Existing client of the firm or not?
- First Time Buyers? (No for Mr. Iqbal Ahmed)
- Type of property they’re looking at (location)
- Whether any alterations made to the property by former residents
- Any surveys conducted on the property?
- Mortgage and Interest rates (lender’s details and contacts)
- Ownership of the new property (sole ownership or joint tenancy or tenants in common)
- Whether the property is freehold or leasehold
- Any chattels being brought alongside with the property
- Usage of the property in the future
- Local Authority
- Deposit (savings) - how much they have (not enough – who will lend it – lender's details and
contacts)
- Schedule of the Buyer (timescale on when they want to buy the property)
- Buying price that the buyer is offering (the margin between minimum and maximum)
- Search fees – process of looking for suitable property
- Other necessary information (liabilities?)
- Solicitor’s fees (what we will be charging)
- Is there a chain?
, Can a solicitor act for both sides?
There is an exception:
- If clients have common interests
- If dealt with by different teams, different locations and necessary documentation are secured by
password and security to prevent disclosure of information.
S.R.A | Code of Conduct for Solicitors:
Following principles are:
- Conflict of Interests
- Confidentiality and Disclosure
- Independence
- Honesty
- Integrity
- Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
*Negotiations (how can a solicitor negotiate a deal with other parties' legal solicitor, when that is
himself)
Ideally no (reasonable perspective), but if you are in that position and if in doubt, then you should cease
to act (stop acting) - DO NOT DISCLOSE WHY? - CONFIDENTIALITY!!!.
Procedural Stage and Documents:
BUYING (PURCHASE) PROCESS:
*Deposit will be 10% under Standard Condition Sales 2.2.1(1)
Pre-Contract Stage–
The pre-contract stage is the period of time before a contract is signed, when the parties are negotiating
the terms of the agreement. During this stage, the parties may exchange offers and counter-offs,
conduct due diligence, and negotiate the terms of the contract. Once the parties have agreed on the
terms, they will sign a contract to formalise the agreement.
Homebuyer’s Valuation (Cheaper)
- A basic inspection of a property that will determine its value.
Survey Report (Cheaper)
- Inspection of a property, focused specifically on examining its condition.
Law Society Property Information Form (PIF)
- Purpose of this form is that it consists of standardised list of questions intended to provide a
prospective purchaser with information about the property.
Local Authority Search (Enquiries)
The purpose of this module is RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY (real estate used for living purposes).
The case study for this module will be based on the conveyancing process for Mr. Iqbal Ahmed:
- Buying a house
- Selling a house
Introduction to Conveyancing:
Conveyancing is the process by which legal title to property is transferred. Over time, it has become the
description for the document making such a transfer.
Conveyancing has built upon three foundations of:
- Land Law
- Contract Law
- Equity and Trust
Conveyancing = stages of transactions.
Types of Property:
Joint-Tenancy -
- Both partners jointly own the whole property
- Right of Survivorship is enabled (if one partner dies, the property will automatically pass to the
surviving partner(s) or owner(s).
Tenants in Common -
- Property is owned in unequal shares by the existing owner(s) or partner(s).
- If one partner dies, the property will do either under that former partner’s will or under his
intestacy rules.
Rule of OVERREACHING–
- States that a person who has been given authority to act on behalf of another cannot exceed
the scope of that authority.
- It is a term most defined as the process of transferring equitable interests (an interest held by
virtue of an equitable title (beneficial interest in property which gives the holder the right to
acquire formal legal title) or claimed on equitable grounds (interest held by trust beneficiary))
under a trust from a specific piece of land to the capital money received from the purchaser of a
legal estate in that land.
- It is a mechanism designed to protect purchasers of the land. Provided the purchaser pays the
purchase money to two or more trustees (original seller and seller’s solicitor), he will obtain a
transfer of the legal title free of any equitable interests arising under an express, resulting or
constructive trust.
,Questions asked when interviewing a client:
Selling Process:
- Evidence of Identity, contact details and Address (I.D and recent utility bills)
- Other sides’ details (solicitor of the other party and the party itself)
- Land Registry – confirm that the property belongs to them
- Existing client of the firm or not?
- Redemption figure of the mortgage (interest rate)
- Whether survey (professional check) has been done on the house
- Any alterations made to the property(either by current residents or former residents)
- Who owns the house (sole ownership or joint tenancy or tenants in common)
- Type of property (freehold or leasehold) - check Land Registry or Title Deed
- Enquiries about the neighbourhood
- Selling price that the seller wants (the margin between minimum and maximum)
- Any chattels (other items) being sold alongside (or independently to third parties) the house?
- Schedule of the Seller (timescale on when they want the property to be sold)
- How many people are interested in their property (if the party itself has conducted this
research)
- Other necessary information (liabilities?)
- Search fees – the process of finding a suitable candidate
- Solicitor’s fees (what we will be charging)
Buying Process:
- Evidence of Identity (I.D) and contact details
- Other sides’ details (solicitor of the other party and the party itself)
- Existing client of the firm or not?
- First Time Buyers? (No for Mr. Iqbal Ahmed)
- Type of property they’re looking at (location)
- Whether any alterations made to the property by former residents
- Any surveys conducted on the property?
- Mortgage and Interest rates (lender’s details and contacts)
- Ownership of the new property (sole ownership or joint tenancy or tenants in common)
- Whether the property is freehold or leasehold
- Any chattels being brought alongside with the property
- Usage of the property in the future
- Local Authority
- Deposit (savings) - how much they have (not enough – who will lend it – lender's details and
contacts)
- Schedule of the Buyer (timescale on when they want to buy the property)
- Buying price that the buyer is offering (the margin between minimum and maximum)
- Search fees – process of looking for suitable property
- Other necessary information (liabilities?)
- Solicitor’s fees (what we will be charging)
- Is there a chain?
, Can a solicitor act for both sides?
There is an exception:
- If clients have common interests
- If dealt with by different teams, different locations and necessary documentation are secured by
password and security to prevent disclosure of information.
S.R.A | Code of Conduct for Solicitors:
Following principles are:
- Conflict of Interests
- Confidentiality and Disclosure
- Independence
- Honesty
- Integrity
- Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
*Negotiations (how can a solicitor negotiate a deal with other parties' legal solicitor, when that is
himself)
Ideally no (reasonable perspective), but if you are in that position and if in doubt, then you should cease
to act (stop acting) - DO NOT DISCLOSE WHY? - CONFIDENTIALITY!!!.
Procedural Stage and Documents:
BUYING (PURCHASE) PROCESS:
*Deposit will be 10% under Standard Condition Sales 2.2.1(1)
Pre-Contract Stage–
The pre-contract stage is the period of time before a contract is signed, when the parties are negotiating
the terms of the agreement. During this stage, the parties may exchange offers and counter-offs,
conduct due diligence, and negotiate the terms of the contract. Once the parties have agreed on the
terms, they will sign a contract to formalise the agreement.
Homebuyer’s Valuation (Cheaper)
- A basic inspection of a property that will determine its value.
Survey Report (Cheaper)
- Inspection of a property, focused specifically on examining its condition.
Law Society Property Information Form (PIF)
- Purpose of this form is that it consists of standardised list of questions intended to provide a
prospective purchaser with information about the property.
Local Authority Search (Enquiries)
