Legal Jargon

The formal exchange of the two identical copies of the contract when the seller and buyer in a property transaction become legally bound to complete the transaction on an agreed date for an agreed price, and the deposit is paid.

Documents that establish ownership and confirm the owner’s title to the property.

A legally binding agreement that allows you to defer or delay paying some of the costs of your care until a later date. Usually in the form of a legal charge against your property.

An initial payment made by a person or entity entering into contract to purchase as asset or property. The deposit is usually required to secure the contract to supply / sell. In the context of a residential property sale, the deposit, usually 10% of the purchase price, is the amount to be paid by the buyer to the seller on exchange of contracts as security to ensure the transaction goes ahead. If the buyer subsequently withdraws from the contract, the deposit may be forfeit. It is possible to negotiate the payment of a lower sum, but the 10% will become due should the transaction not complete.

Any expenditure or costs that your solicitor incurs on your behalf and are payable to a third party (for example the Court, Tribunal, Land Registry or independent expert).

A right attached to the title of a property such as a right of access over private lanes or paths, or rights to connect into services such as water pipes and cables. Easements may be benefits to a property and its owners, and they may also be considered to be burdens, example a right to situate a septic tank on a neighbour’s land and access it.

Legal promises or obligations set out in the title deeds. Covenants may restrict how a property is used, for example, blocking its use for any purposes other than a residential dwelling, or obliging a title holder to undertake certain actions or expenditure on, for example, maintenance, or to make additional payments if planning consent is granted at some point in the future.

A declaration of trust is a legally binding agreement between joint owners of a property and/or anyone else who has a beneficial or financial interest in the property.

A document or deed that either creates new covenants or confirms that the new owner of a property will take on existing covenants to ensure they continue to exist with each transfer of the land.

This is the term for a document or deed that was used to transfer ownership of property from one person to another without any payment being made. Deeds of gift are now obsolete and will not be accepted by the Land Registry. If you wish transfer property for no financial return you would need to use a Transfer for Nil Value.