How long do searches take

There are councils who reply very quickly to searches and others which take much longer, in the same way, there are government departments who reply quickly to searches and in the same way, there are Government bodies who take much longer to reply. All of these factors are difficult to measure as they differ based on your own circumstances, as mentioned above and they all affect how long searches take when buying a house.

You should also remember that the searches may all receive replies to the initial inquiry from your conveyancer but any further inquiries will no doubt increase the amount of time the searches may take when buying a house.

If you are in a chain when buying then you can expect the searches being carried out to take almost twice as long. The best way to help reduce the time searches take is to keep in constant touch with your solicitor to ensure that your solicitor chases up any bodies which they have requested information from who appear to be taking longer to respond. They work for whoever is paying them and this could mean that they have numerous searches taking place for numerous clients who are buying houses.

You should, therefore, do your best to ensure you chase them up. You should also ask your conveyancer how long the searches in the local area will usually take. This is one of the advantages of using conveyancers who have local experience. They ensure you know exactly what you are about to buy and this gives you the confidence to then make a buying decision by providing you with all the vital details about a property which are essential.

Are there plans to build a road nearby? Will your garden be reclaimed as a result? When carrying out a search, each data provider will likely have its fees which it charges in order for you to receive the information. Your conveyancer will usually not charge you above this point but will, of course, charge you for carrying out their work. Conveyancing searches are searches which are carried out on your behalf by your solicitor in order to find out key details about a property which may affect your buying decision.

Your conveyancer will look to ensure that nothing they find will be a cause for concern for you in the future. This means carrying out various searches on public records to uncover past, present and future plans of the surrounding area a well as any legal covenants which may restrict you. The conveyance process itself is pretty daunting and hence it is advisable to use a conveyancer for this rather than doing it yourself.

If you are buying through an area which is remotely close to the planned High-speed rail HS2 then rightfully so a search will be carried out by your conveyancer to ensure there is no risk to your property.

A Brine Search is usually required in some parts of Cheshire and Greater Manchester where salt is extracted from the ground and pumped up as brine.

Brine can lead to subsidence and hence this search is very important. A Flood risk report will look to see if the property you want to by is at risk of flood based on the past flood risk in the area and any future predictions.

Your conveyancer will request completion certificates to verify this. A planning search will also let you know of any planned development within metres of your property.

A Clay and Tin Mining Search is usually done for properties in the Cornwall region as these are areas where Clay and tin mining were previously carried out.

Drainage and Water Searches are done from the local water authority provider who provides water to the property. This search will let you know how the water supply is connected if it is connected to any sewage and what entity is responsible for its maintenance and repair. The Local Search is very important as it will confirm whether the appropriate permissions were granted for the construction of the property and any subsequent alterations or extensions.

It will also highlight any issues affecting the property. Such as compulsory purchase orders, planning enforcement action, road and rail schemes in the immediate vicinity of the property, and any contaminated land entries. These will uncover any entries on the local search which could affect your enjoyment, proposed use of the property and ultimately any Lenders valuation of the property. There are two ways of obtaining the information from the Council.

You can request an Official search or a Regulated Personal search. The Official Search is carried out directly by the council staff and stamped by the council officer. At present the Derby City Council results are coming back quicker than regulated searches, workings days, however this is subject to change on a daily basis.

Regulated Personal searches are carried out by a local search provider. Regulated searches are often cheaper and are covered by insurance.

The search provider must be regulated by the Property Codes Compliance Board. Very often search companies provide a bundle of searches. Currently in the Derby City area obtaining an appointment is taking approximately 17 days. This is different for each area that we routinely search in. In East Staffordshire Burton the search appointments are taking approximately 20 Working days due to Covid South Derbyshire Swadlincote are also taking approximately 20 working days.

North West Leicestershire Ashby has 20 working days to return the search, however they are currently returning results in around 10 working days.

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