Scottish purchases - mortgages in Scotland

Most properties are sold by Estate Agents or Solicitors via Property Centres such as GSPC (Glasgow Solicitors Property Centre) or ESPC (Edinburgh Solicitors Property Centre).

Once you find the property your solicitor will “note interest“ to the sellers solicitor and then you can arrange a survey to suit your needs. These come in various forms and mortgageforce™ or the solicitor will help decide which is your best option.

There is no obligation at this stage but you will be kept informed of developments regarding the sale such as fixing a closing date for offers.

Ensure before committing to the purchase you can get a mortgage and consult mortgageforce™ early to ensure you can make an offer for a property. You do not want a commitment and no way of funding this!

Prices are usually stated in one of two ways: “Offers over”, where a starting level is indicated and a higher price is generally expected, or a “Fixed price”, where a predetermined price is expected.

In the case of a fixed price you have to be ready to move quickly as the first offer of the price usually secures the property. If it is “offers over“ then you need to be ready to offer when the seller will accept a price. This is usually a specific date set for offers to be received by and this is known as a closing date. Your solicitor will prepare an offer including details such as price, special conditions and entry date. This is the date you hope to get ownership of the house. You should ensure loan arrangements are as far forward as possible at this stage. Ideally an agreement in principle in place. Submitting an offer could have legally binding status even at an early stage.

If your offer is successful there are usually some negotiations as letters pass from solicitor to solicitor agreeing all the conditions such as date of entry, items included in the price, planning consents being in place etc. This can happen very quickly and you could be committed to the purchase sooner rather than later. When all these are agreed it is stated that “the missives are concluded” and a legally binding contract will exist for you to purchase on the agreed date.

If you were to pull out after this stage you would be liable for any losses and expenses to the seller. This could be very costly, so ensure you are happy about the final commitment.

Whilst all this is going on your solicitor will be working to check the titles and reporting to you on any matters which affect you or the use of the property. These are known as title burdens. A new deed (known as a disposition) will need to be prepared to allow ownership to pass to you from the seller. A Standard Security (similar to a Legal Charge in England & Wales) also needs to be prepared to grant any lender their rights.

Once all these matters are concluded the transaction will have been completed, the deeds signed, the price paid, and you will have the keys. The titles will be registered in your name and lodged in Edinburgh with The Registers of Scotland, known generally as “The Keeper” after the Chief Executive’s title.

mortgageforce™ has specialist advisers in Scotland to assist you with your purchase.