Abstract of Title
A schedule listing the documents which set out the history of ownership of a property.

Adopted Highway
A road maintained by a Local Authority.  In the Leeds, Bradford and Wakefield areas these web links may be useful.

Advance
The original amount of a mortgage loan on a property.

Assent
A formal document required to transfer ownership of property to a person entitled to the property following the death of the owner.

Bankruptcy Search
As it is an offence for a bankrupt to obtain credit, if a mortgage is involved, such search is done against the names of the Buyer by the Buyer's solicitors.

Brine Search
A search to establish if a property might be affected as a result of disused workings near the property.

Building Regulation Consent
Approval by the local authority on the design and materials used in building work on properties.

Buyer
Someone who buys a property.

Chain
Where a property seller is also buying another property this is a chain of transactions and some chains can have many links.

CHAPS Transfer
On the day of completion the balance of the purchase price is paid by transfer of funds between solicitors’ clients accounts by electronic transfer. CHAPS means Clearing Houses Automated Payment System

Charge Certificate
An official certificate issued by the land registry where a property is registered detailing the ownership mortgages and interests in the property.

Commons Registration Search
A search at the local authority to check the property is not registered as common land or part of a village green resulting in third party rights over the property (e.g. grazing) resulting in the enjoyment of the property being limited.

Completion
The moment when the buyer becomes the new owner of the seller's house and the day the seller must have left the property.

Completion Date
This is the day that ownership of the property passes from the seller to the buyer.

The seller and buyer should discuss dates between themselves and then notify their respective solicitors - who will try to fit in with the suggested date. If there are unforeseen delays, such as, if the buyer does not receive a search or mortgage offer in time, or the "cash buyer" turns out to have a related sale then the completion date may have to be revised. For this reason you should not make any firm arrangements such as giving notice on a job, arranging removals etc without first contacting the referral solicitor.

Only when contracts are exchanged and a completion date is fixed can you be virtually guaranteed that the completion date will be met. It is not essential for you to be present on the completion date but if you are going to be away, then you should let the solicitor know so that, maybe, one of your relatives (or friends) can act for you through a Power of Attorney.

Completion Statement
A written calculation of all the receipts and payments due in respect of the transaction.

Contaminated Land
Land affected by contamination which could arise from a past use of a property (e.g. oil refinery) or by things stored on the property in the past (e.g. petrol station).

Contract
The form of legal agreement prepared in duplicate for signature by the seller and buyer setting out all the legal rights and obligations agreed between them.

Conveyance
A document transferring ownership of an unregistered property from one person to another.

Conveyancing
The legal work needed to buy and sell properties

Covenants
Legal obligations.

Deed of Covenant
A document confirming an agreement to pay or do something.

Deed of Gift
A document transferring the ownership of property from one person to another without any payment being made for it.

Deed of Guarantee
A document used where one person agrees to be responsible for someone else's debt or mortgage obligations if that person fails to carry out their own obligations.

Deed of Postponement or Priority
Where a mortgagee agrees to their mortgage ranking after another lender's mortgage.

Deeds
The official documents confirming who owns a property which are in the possession of the owner or mortgagee if the property is mortgaged.

Deposit
This can cause confusion. When most people talk about the deposit they mean the part of the purchase price that the buyer is putting down i.e. usually the difference between the amount of the mortgage and the purchase price. When Solicitors talk about the deposit they are talking about the money that is handed over to the seller's Solicitors upon exchange of contracts. This might be the same amount, but it might not.

On exchange of contracts the seller can insist on receiving from the buyer a 10% deposit of the purchase price. However as many people are not contributing as much as this to the purchase reduced deposits are often acceptable. You should be aware, however, that if you are a buyer and you pay a reduced deposit and then fail to complete the purchase through no fault of the seller, you will, under the terms of the contract, be required to make the deposit up to the full 10%. You may also have to pay compensation to the seller if the seller loses out through your failure to complete.

Disbursements
Payments made on your behalf e.g. search fees.  The amounts vary in Leeds, Bradford and Wakefield.

Environmental Search
A search against a property to check whether there is any record kept to suggest that the property may be affected by contamination.

Equity
Usually means the difference between the value of a property and the amount owed to the mortgagee.

Exchange of Contracts
The formal exchanging of the two parts of the contract when the seller and buyer become legally bound to complete on an agreed date and in the case of the seller, to move out of the property.

Expedition Fee
An additional fee which can be paid to the land registry to speed up registration.

Fixtures Fittings & Contents Form
A standard form where the seller sets out all those items in the property which they have agreed to leave as part of the sale price and which is attached to the contract.

Flying Freehold
This arises when part of one property is built on top of part of another property and so the upper property owner does not own the building or land underneath the "flying" part.

Freehold
Absolute title on a property.

Freeholder
See Lessor.

Full Title Guarantee
The seller of a property must state the guarantee they are prepared to give. This is the usual guarantee given by a property owner.

Ground Rent
This is paid by a lessee to a lessor where a property is leasehold and is usually expressed as a yearly sum.

High Loan to Value Fee
This is sometimes charged by a mortgagee where a borrower borrows more than a certain percentage of the value of a property to insure the mortgagee only against loss arising if the property is sold by them due to the borrower's failure to pay the mortgage.

Identification
From 1st March 2004 to comply with the Money Laundering Regulations and anti-terrorist legislation, unless you are an existing client prior to this date, then in any transaction involving large sums of money, such as conveyancing, we will be obliged to ask for identification. Usually your passport and a recent utility bill will have to be produced to us when returning quotation letters.

Index Map Search
A search at the land registry to see if a property is registered or unregistered.

Indemnity Contribution
Indemnity insurance is taken out by all Solicitors to cover losses to clients arising from errors or fraud in dealing with their matters.

The Supervising Solicitor are required by the Law Society to pay for this insurance in respect of every transaction. Some solicitors recover the premium from their clients.
Land Certificate
An official certificate issued by the land registry where a property is registered detailing the ownership and interests in the property where there is no legal charge.

Land Charges Search
A search at the land charges registry to see if a person has any bankruptcy proceedings pending or if the property is unregistered to see if there are any mortgages or interests registered against the property.

Land Registry
A Central body that retains records of who owns the land, and under what conditions.

This was set up in 1925, to simplify the conveyancing process. Not all land in England and Wales is registered today. This is partly due to the fact that land can only be registered following certain "triggering events". The Land Registry has their own website which provides useful information.

Land Registry Fee
The fee payable to the Land Registry to register any change affecting the property including a change of ownership.

Land Registry Search
A search at the land registry to check that no undisclosed charges or interests are registered against the property.

Landlord
See Lessor.

Lease
Where a property is leasehold this is the document giving the lessee the rights to possession of the property for the lease term and setting out all the rights and obligations.

Leasehold
Where the ownership of property is for a limited period only. For example 99 years or sometimes 2000 years. Possession of the property will be subject to the payment of an annual ground rent.

Leaseholder
See Lessee.

Legal Charge
See Mortgage.

Legal Transfer
This is the document which actually transfers the legal title to the property from one person to another and is signed shortly before completion

Lendor
See Mortgagee.

Lessee
Where a property is leasehold the lessee means the current owner of the leasehold property as opposed to the freeholder or landlord who's interest is subject to the lessees right of occupation until the lease term has come to an end.

Lessor
This means the landlord or freeholder who owns the freehold title and is entitled to the ground rent under the lease and possession of the property at the end of the lease term

Limited Title Guarantee
This is the title guarantee given by a seller where because of their limited knowledge of the property the full title guarantee cannot be given (e.g. a personal representative of a deceased owner or a mortgagee in possession).

Local Authority Search
This represents a list of questions about the property which are sent to the local authority. It covers items such as, whether the road serving the property should be maintained by the council, whether there have been any planning applications on the property, and a number of other things.

The search is against the property only and does not cover the surrounding area. A word of warning - the search will not necessarily show any Planning Permissions or matters affecting land or buildings outside the boundaries of the property. It is important that you let us know at the start of the transaction if you require information on any particular point or if you wish us to ask any particular questions of the local authority. We would not advise a buyer to exchange contracts without a satisfactory local authority search. 

Mining Search
A search to check whether the property may be affected by coal mining activity which may result in subsidence.

Mortgage
A loan to buy a house or flat where the mortgagee lends the mortgagor money in return for a legal charge being registered against the property to ensure that the loan must be repaid before the property can be sold.

Mortgage Deed
The document signed by the mortgagor to create a legal charge which the mortgagee can register at the land registry.

Mortgage Offer
The details of the terms upon which the mortgagee is prepared to make the mortgage loan.

Mortgage Term
The length of time agreed for the repayment of the loan.

Mortgaged
Where a property has been charged by the owner or mortgagor to the mortgagee.

Mortgagee
Somebody who gives someone a mortgage (e.g. a bank or building society).

Mortgagor
Somebody who takes out a mortgage (a borrower).

Occupier's Consent
Any person who lives at the property but will not be signing the mortgage deed will be asked to consent to the mortgage being taken out and agree to move out if the mortgagee takes possession due to the default of the mortgagor.

Office Copies
These are official copies of the Land Registers sent to the Buyer's solicitors to prove the Seller's title to the property

Party Wall
A wall owned jointly with a neighbour and repairable at shared expense.

Planning Permission
Approval by the local authority to the building or change of use of a property or extension to an existing property.

Power of Attorney
The document to be signed by somebody to appoint somebody else to act as their attorney.

Private Road
A road maintained by property owners rather than by the local authority. The property owners need to have rights over it as it is not necessarily a public access.

Property Information Form
This is a questionnaire about the property completed by the sellers. It covers such items as guarantees, neighbour disputes and boundaries.

If you are buying then time can be saved if you tell the solicitor, at an early stage, if there are any particular points about the property that concern you. The appropriate questions can then be asked.

If you are selling and the buyer's solicitor asks a question to which you do not wish to give an answer, for whatever reason, it is essential that you discuss it with your solicitor. Failure to disclose information could give the buyer grounds for taking action against you.

Purchase
The buying of a property.

Purchaser
See buyer.

Redemption
The repayment of an existing mortgage.

Redemption Penalty
A penalty charged by a mortgagee when you redeem a mortgage within a fixed rate, discounted rate or cashback period.

Registered Land
Property which has already been registered at the Land Registry.

Rentcharge
Some freehold properties are subject to a rentcharge payable to the rentcharge owner. This may be to ensure income for the original land owner without the existence of a lease or it can be to ensure that estate covenants can be enforced more easily.

Reservation Fee
An administration fee charged by some mortgagees to cover the cost of reserving a mortgagor's entitlement to a loan on certain terms or possibly a fee paid to a builder to reserve a particular new property.

Sale
The sale of a property.

Seller
Someone who sells a property.

Service Charge
A payment required by a lessor or managing agent to cover the costs of maintaining and running a development (e.g. gardening and decorating and also insuring a block of flats).

Smoke Control Order
An order made by the local authority designating an area to be one in which only smokeless fuels may be burnt (i.e. not coal or wood).

Stamp Duty
A tax paid to the government on the purchase of a property over a certain value.

Subsidence
Where a property moves due to inadequate foundations or severe change to the underlying ground resulting in an instability in the structure of a building often evidenced by cracks in walls.

Survey
This is a report carried out by the Building Society surveyor on the physical state of the property.

If you are buying a property you should be aware that the property is "sold as seen". It is for you, as the buyer, to discover any physical defects by means of inspections and surveys.

Most houses are bought with the assistance of a mortgage and the bank or building society, will require a mortgage valuation. However, this is not a survey - it merely ensures that the property is of sufficient value to protect the lender's interest. Our advice is that you should at least have an RICS Homebuyer's Report prepared by a qualified surveyor. This will cost more than a mortgage valuation but it is advisable. It is possible to go one step further and have a full structural survey.

Tenant
See Lessee.

Term Assurance
Life insurance which only lasts the term of the mortgage.

Tin Search
A search to establish whether the property may be affected by tin mining activity which may result in subsidence.

Title
The owner's right to a property.

Title Deeds
These documents firstly act as evidence that the person selling the property actually owns it, and secondly set out any rights or obligations that affect the property.

If you are selling, then valuable time can be saved if your title deeds can be obtained at an early stage. If you have a mortgage then your bank or building society will be holding your title deeds. Your solicitor will need to know your mortgage account number and the name and address of the lender. Some lenders charge a fee to send out your deeds but this will normally be added to your mortgage account.

Transaction
A dealing with property (e.g. sale or purchase).

Transfer
A document which transfers ownership of a property from one person to another.

Transfer of Equity
A document transferring ownership of a share or interest in a property from one person to another.

Tree Preservation Order
An order made by the local authority designating a tree or group of trees as protected and requiring the local authority's permission to lop or fell them.

Unregistered Title
Where the title to a property has not previously been registered at the Land Registry and ownership is proved by the production of a complete chain of documents showing successive ownership.

Vacant Possession
Possession of a property free of the presence of any people, possessions or rubbish.

Valuation
A very simple form of survey designed to establish the market value of the property.

Vendor
See Seller.

Wayleave Agreement
A formal agreement entered into with a property owner to give a service provider (e.g. Electricity or Telephone company) a right for their pipe or cable to pass through or over their property.