Two Situations Where You Shouldn't Carry Out the Conveyancing Process Yourself
Buying a property can leave a very large dent in your bank account. Because of this, you might be considering doing the conveyancing work yourself instead of hiring a solicitor to take care of this element of the property purchasing process, as this could potentially save you money. However, there are many situations in which this is not a good approach to take. Here are two such situations.
You are extremely busy
If you are an extremely busy person, you likely juggle a full-time job, a family, elderly relatives, or other responsibilities. If you're already busy, then it is not advisable to do the conveyancing work without the help of a solicitor. Conveyancing is a very demanding and time-consuming legal process. Thus, it is very likely that you will carry out a conveyancing task incorrectly or will forget to perform a specific task. This mistake could then prolong and complicate the property purchasing process.
For example, if you forget to inquire with the local authority as to whether or not the property features any easements, and only discover at the end of the conveyancing process that the land does feature an easement that you wish to have revoked, you may have to postpone the completion of this process and hire a solicitor to assist you with this legal issue. Conversely, if you were to hire a solicitor at the very outset, they could do the conveyancing work in a thorough manner and thus ensure that the easement issue was spotted and dealt with promptly.
You are divorcing your spouse
If you and your spouse have decided to get a divorce, and you are planning to buy a property before the divorce is finalised, it is definitely not a good idea to take the DIY approach to conveyancing. In these circumstances, the expert advice of a solicitor could be invaluable.
For example, a solicitor who is experienced in both family law and conveyancing law will be able to advise you as to whether or not your property purchase will be affected by the divorce process (for example, if the divorce isn't finalised by the time you purchase the new property, your spouse could potentially have a legal interest that property). They may recommend you alter the timeline of the property purchase in such a way that the divorce process is completed before the conveyancing work is finished, so as to ensure that your ex-spouse does not end up being entitled to the property. This could save you money and simplify the divorce proceedings.
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