There are a number of reasons why you might be selling your business property, whether it is accommodating your company’s expansion or just a change of scenery for your business, the process can exciting, but it can also be stressful if you are unsure on what needs to be done.
Your Step-by-Step guide to commercial conveyancing
The concept to selling a commercial property is in many ways similar to how you would sell a residential property.The process, however, is more complicated and requires a bit more attention.
1. Prepare the contract for sale
To start the process, you and your buyer will both need solicitors to help transfer your commercial property.
When a buyer shows interest in your commercial property, its legal title will first have to undergo investigation by the buyer’s solicitor. This will include any lease if your property is on a leasehold. Once it’s title has been validated, your solicitor will be able to prepare the contract for sale.
2. Completing relevant forms
Along with the contract of sale, there are other things that needs to be prepared and submitted to the buyer’s solicitor. You will have to complete the required Commercial Property Standard Enquiries (CPSE) forms. These are a comprehensive set of enquiries sent on behalf of buyers that help them to understand the property they are acquiring.
It is highly recommended that you provide a detailed set of replies to the CPSE form in order to reduce the risk of delays and therefore help to ensure a speedy sale.
3. Providing your property’s details
Along with your contract and form, you will be required to provide details like: fixtures and fittings in your premises; and other information like an energy performance certificate.
The buyer’s solicitor may have some questions regarding the property even after you have provided all the relevant documents. This is to ensure that they know the thorough details to the property.
4. Exchanging of contracts
Now that all the details have been discussed, you can proceed with exchanging contracts. The buyer then pays a deposit and the transaction will become legally binding. After your solicitor has approved the Transfer Deed provided by the buyer’s solicitor and made arrangements to discharge any mortgage to the premises, you can arrange for completion.
5. Final transfer!
This is the final step before your commercial property is official marked as sold. Decide on a day with the buyer and their solicitor on which day they should make the final payment, before this day arrives, you should ensure that the property is emptied. The buyer is entitled to vacant possession of the premises once payment is made.
Considerations when selling your commercial property
Although solicitors are involved in the process, there are certain things you may want to be aware of to protect you and your company from any losses. This can include being aware of timescales and potential failures when completing the transaction.
Transaction Timescales
Transactions can take up to six to eight weeks to complete, however in some cases it can take even longer. Be aware that there are certain factors that impact upon the timescales, including how promptly solicitors respond to queries and how quickly buyers can secure finance.
If this is the case make sure you are well prepared with all the necessary documents to avoid any delays to the transaction on your part.
Exchanging contracts
Whether you are buying or selling, it is important to keep in mind that either party can walk away from the deal without penalty until the exchange of contracts.
This means you shouldn’t make firm plans that depend on a specific completion date until you’ve reached this point.
Now you know how the whole process works your commercial property is ready for you to sell. However if you are worried about making mistakes in the transfer of titles, you can enlist property solicitors who are specialists in this field of work at The Law House (see more at: www.thelawhouse.com) and ensure the process runs smoothly.
Final transfer
In addition, you must ensure all the immigration papers have been completed by teh new buyer (in case they are from a different country). To know what more paperwork needs to be completed in this scenario, seek help from professionals like bradford bernstein (lawyer for immigration).
Photograph by Michael Gaida