Conveyancing Glossary
- Absentee Landlord
- This term is used in conveyancing by conveyancing solicitors to describe a landlord than cannot be identified during the conveyancing process. It can be common in conveyancing in Manchester Lancashire and the North West in conveyancing of leasehold houses often with leases granted some time ago usually for leasehold houses. Conveyancing solicitors when acting for a purchaser will ask the seller’s conveyancing solicitors for details of the landlord. If the seller’s conveyancing solicitors cannot identify the landlord the seller’s conveyancing solicitors can try and identify the landlord by carrying out an index map search at the Land Registry. This information could then be passed to the purchaser’s conveyancing solicitors. In the event that the landlord cannot be identified by the selling conveyancing client or seller’s conveyancing solicitors it may the there is an absentee landlord.
- Absentee Landlord Indemnity Policy
- In conveyancing transactions it is usually possible to purchase an indemnity (insurance) policy to protect against any losses that may be suffered as a result of an absent landlord in order to protect the purchasing conveyancing client and to allow the conveyancing transaction to proceed. Conveyancing solicitors acting on behalf of a purchasing conveyancing client may request such a policy to be placed on risk by the seller’s conveyancing solicitors on completion in order to give protection to the buyer. In conveyancing transactions where the identity of a landlord to a leasehold property can not be ascertained by the conveyancing solicitors or the selling conveyancing client it may be considered to be a defect in title to the property by the conveyancing solicitors acting for the purchasing conveyancing client. This is because under the terms of the lease ground rent must be paid and consents obtained for alterations which is obviously not an option when the landlord cannot be identified. It is also not possible to serve a Notice of Transfer on the landlord as conveyancing solicitors are obliged to as part of the post completion conveyancing process. Usually the indemnity policy would be placed on risk by the selling conveyancing client’s conveyancing solicitors and passed onto the purchasers conveyancing solicitors. A purchaser’s conveyancing solicitors may pass the policy to the purchasing conveyancing client or mortgage lender following completion of the conveyancing process.
- Absolute (Title)
- The Land Registry awards a class of title to each piece of registered land whether freehold or leasehold. It proves who owns the land and title absolute is the highest level of title awarded by the Land Registry. In a conveyancing transaction the class of title will be checked by the conveyancing solicitors acting on behalf of a purchasing conveyancing client during the process of a conveyancing purchase transaction and Absolute title should always be offered when selling conveyancing clients are also the owner/occupy of a property. This is the safest class of title and the most commonly seen in conveyancing transactions and provides certain securities to purchasing conveyancing clients.
- Abstract
- When used in conveyancing terms an abstract is usually a document containing a condensed version of a previous Deed and contains the rights restrictions and covenants which are relevant to the particular title and relevant to the conveyancing process. An Abstract can be applicable to freehold or leasehold land and be seen in both types of conveyancing transaction. When purchasing a property purchasing client conveyancing solicitors may supply copies of abstracts to purchasing conveyancing clients. Abstracts are used in conveyancing where the original Deeds applicable to the title could not be passed on by selling conveyancing solicitors such as in the case of leasehold land the Deeds proving legal title for the freehold property contained large areas of land but the lease granted during the conveyancing sale for a smaller plot. The seller’s conveyancing solicitors would deal with this by supplying a marked abstract to the purchaser’s conveyancing solicitors for placement with the lease.
- Administrative Area
- This term is seen in conveyancing on the Official copy register of title supplied during the conveyancing process by the seller’s conveyancing solicitors to the purchase conveyancers solicitors and in turn passed onto the purchasing conveyancing client and refers to the local authority (council) in which the land is located. In conveyancing the local search will be sent to this authority or carried out by a search agent who will search the records of the local authority. In conveyancing transactions this is now often supplied in the Home Information Pack. Other enquiries may also be made of the local authority during the conveyancing process.
- Adoption Agreement
- A legal document or contract seen in conveyancing sales and purchases. Most commonly seen by conveyancing solicitors acting in conveyancing transactions when dealing with the purchase conveyancing of a new build or relatively new property. Adoption agreements are usually Section 38 Agreements for the adoption of roads following new estates being built by a developer or house builder or Section 104 Agreements for the adoption of sewers. During the conveyancing process the seller’s conveyancing solicitors will be asked to provide copies of any adoption agreements in place for roads and sewers from the purchaser’s conveyancing solicitors to ensure the developer has entered into these agreements in order that in due course the roads and sewers will be formally adopted and become part of the public system. Adoption agreements will be checked the purchaser’s conveyancing solicitors as part of the conveyancing process. In the absence of adoption agreements it may be necessary for a purchaser’s conveyancing solicitors to refer the matter to the mortgage lender. In some circumstances the lender may instruct the conveyancing solicitors to agree a retention to be held by the seller’s conveyancing solicitors pending production of the agreements or until formal adoption of the roads and sewers is confirmed to the purchaser’s conveyancing solicitors. This is an important area when dealing with conveyancing for new build properties.
- Adverse Possesion
- Adverse Possession is a conveyancing term used when a person has taken possession of a property or land without the permission of the legal owner. In cases where the possession of a property or land has continued without any challenge by the legal land owner for 12 years or more it may be possible for the occupier (possessor) to claim a type of title to the land which will be called a Possessory title. The occupier (possessor) would have to prove continual and unchallenged possession of the property/land to the land registry in order to have a Possessory Title awarded. During the course of the conveyancing the class of title will be checked by the purchasing conveyancing solicitors from the documents provided by the seller’s conveyancing solicitors. A selling conveyancing client may be asked by the selling conveyancing solicitors on request from the purchasing conveyancing solicitors to provide indemnity insurance to protect their purchasing conveyancing client against risk of loss associated with this type of title.
- Agreement
- In conveyancing also referred to as the conveyancing contract the agreement is the one of the most important conveyancing documents which sets out all the terms of the sale of a property. At the start of the conveyancing process the seller’s conveyancing solicitors usually draft the contract and send it with other documents to the buyer’s conveyancing solicitors. The selling conveyancing client and purchasing conveyancing client must sign the Agreement (once advice has been given to the parties by their respective conveyancing solicitors) and the agreement must be formally exchanged in a telephone call between the seller’s conveyancing solicitors and the conveyancing solicitors acting on behalf of the purchasing conveyancing client. It is at this point the agreement becomes a legally binding agreement on all parties and an important stage in the conveyancing process has been reached.
- Apportionment
- Usually applicable in conveyancing transactions to sales and purchases of leasehold land but could also be seen in conveyancing transactions when selling or buying a let (rented) property. In conveyancing transactions where ground rent and/or service charges are payable there will usually be an apportionment of these charges as part of the conveyancing process. This may be because the current owner has paid charges in advance (but will complete the conveyancing sale before the date to which the charges are paid) or the charges are in arrears on completion of the conveyancing in which case the apportioned amount will be credited to the new purchaser during the conveyancing process. The seller’s conveyancing solicitors will usually provide the latest statement for ground rent/service charge and send a completion statement including the apportionments to the purchaser’s conveyancing solicitors prior to legal completion of the conveyancing.
- Assent
- A Deed used in conveyancing transactions as part of the conveyancing process to transfer ownership of a property from a deceased’s estate to the beneficiary entitled to the property. This type of conveyancing transaction can be carried out by the solicitors acting in the estate administration or by separate conveyancing solicitors. In conveyancing a standard form AS1 is used.
- Assignee
- Conveyancing term to describe the person to whom a remaining lease term right benefit or interest is being transferred during the conveyancing process.
- Assignment
- Conveyancing term describing the transfer of a right/benefit or an interest in property or land from one person to another. This term is most often used in conveyancing in the case of conveyancing transactions involving leasehold land and often an assignment is carried out to assign the remaining term of a lease from one person to another during the conveyancing process. Assignments can also be used in conveyancing transactions involving freehold land to transfer the benefit of rents (in the case of conveyancing transactions involving rented/let property) and the assignment of benefits under guarantees. Conveyancing solicitors when acting for conveyancing purchasing clients will check to see if any assignable guarantees may be available for a property during the conveyancing title investigations and ensure they are assigned as part of the conveyancing process.
- Assignor
- A conveyancing term to describe the person who is transferring the remainder of a lease term right benefit or interest in property/land during the conveyancing process.
- Auction Contracts
- Auction contracts are seen more often in conveyancing. Often purchasing conveyancing clients who purchase at auction have not instructed conveyancing solicitors to check over the legal pack supplied to the auction house by the seller’s conveyancing solicitors. Auction conveyancing contracts are exchanged on fall of the hammer usually without having been checked by a conveyancing solicitor and legally a successful bidder is bound to buy the property in accordance with the terms of the conveyancing contract agreed. Legal conveyancing advice should be sought on the contents of the legal pack provided to the auctioneer by the seller’s conveyancing solicitors prior to purchasing conveyancing clients bidding on any property at an auction from experienced conveyancing solicitors. Auction conveyancing contracts also provide that completion will be in a certain amount of days from exchange (the auction date) which can be whatever the timescales set out in the conveyancing contract are. It is important that conveyancing solicitors are instructed to act in the purchase as soon as possible if conveyancing instructions have not been given by a purchasing conveyancing client prior to the auction. If the property bought at auction has defects in title there will not be an opportunity for a conveyancing solicitor to investigate these issues prior to exchange of contracts if the “legal pack” is not checked and the purchasing conveyancing client will buy the property with the defects in place. Conveyancing solicitors may have to indemnify against defects in title if the property is being financed with a mortgage at the cost of the purchasing conveyancing client.
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