For your Solicitor to prepare for your sale, he/she needs your authority to collect your Title Deeds if they are held by a financial institution. This should be done as early as possible in the transaction to avoid any delay in issuing Contracts at a later stage.
On receipt of your written Authority your Solicitor will take up your Title Deeds from your Bank/Building Society. This takes approximately two weeks and at this stage your Solicitor will pay a scheduling fee to your Bank/Building Society on your behalf.
The Estate Agent will issue the details of sale once the price and conditions have been agreed by you, and, the booking deposit paid by the prospective purchaser. It contains the price, conditions of sale contents, purchaser's name and address, purchaser's Solicitors and estimated closing date.
On receipt of the Sale Details your Solicitor will issue the Contracts together with a copy of your Title Deeds to the Purchaser's Solicitors.
When the Purchaser's Solicitor has read the Contracts their clients (if proceeding) will sign the Contracts when ready and able to proceed and return same with a contract deposit to your Solicitor.
This is the stage at which you become legally bound to the sale. You sign the Contracts (in duplicate) in your Solicitor's Office.
When you have signed your Contracts, your Solicitor returns one copy to the Vendor's Solicitor, thus completing the full exchange of Contracts and creating a binding agreement between both parties subject to terms and conditions set out in the Contract.
The Purchaser's Solicitor raises requisitions (general questions on the Title) and drafts the Purchase Deed. Both these documents are sent to your Solicitor.
Your Solicitor replies to the questions raised at number 8 above and returns any documentation required together with written replies and approves the draft Purchase Deed.
Your Solicitor obtains redemption figures being the amount required to redeem your existing loan calculated to the scheduled closing date (if any).
The Transfer/Conveyance in the formal document which transfers your legal interest in your house to the Purchasers. It is signed by you together with other documentation in your Solicitor's office. It is held on file until the closing date. You should also provide your Solicitor with a set of house keys and alarm code which will be handed over on completion of the sale
Your Solicitor agrees a closing date, on your instructions, with the Purchaser's Solicitors.
You should be ready to have your house fully emptied and left in a tidy fashion the day before or early on the completion date. You should also inform the Utility Companies (ESB, Bord Gais, Cablelink etc) of your scheduled move.
The sale is completed by the Purchaser’s Solicitor attending at your Solicitor's office and handing over the balance of the purchase monies in exchange for the Title Deeds
Your Mortgage is paid off from the sale proceeds by your Solicitor
Your Solicitor will account to you from the sale proceeds, if any, immediately following completion of sale and usually deducts the costs of sale from the balance.