Searches UK & Homeward Legal Celebrates 10-Year Partnership
A decade of collaboration delivering expert property searches and seamless conveyancing services for thousands of UK homebuyers.
Homeward Legal is celebrating 10 years working alongside Searches UK as partners, a milestone that has seen the firms deliver comprehensive property searches for thousands of homebuyers since the end of 2015.
Award-winning team delivers comprehensive search services
Searches UK, located in Shoreham-by-Sea on the south coast of England, works with their partners by delivering the broadest selection of searches available on the market, while helping conveyancing firms like Homeward Legal to develop and grow their business.
The award-winning team have provided key searches for all of Homeward Legal’s clients throughout the partnership, including:
- Land Registry search – confirming the seller as the current legal owner of the property, any rights and restrictions with its use and if there are any current mortgages or charges against the property
- Local Authority search – confirming building and planning regulations, specifics on the roads to the property, any road and railway schemes and whether the building is listed or in a conservation area
- Water & Drainage search – confirming any connection to the mains water and public sewers, their location and whether the public sewer runs within the boundary of the property
- Environmental search – verifying any contamination from nearby landfill, former and current industrial usages of nearby land, existence of radon gas, ground stability and a flood risk assessment
Enhanced services beyond standard searches
The partnership has enabled Homeward Legal to offer enhanced services that go beyond the standard property search requirements. SearchPlus Protection gives homebuyers peace of mind by covering the cost of property searches should their initial purchase fall through, providing financial relief on future property searches.
When unusual issues arise in the standard searches, Searches UK provides more detailed search information, such as specialist flood-risk assessments, as bespoke additional items. The partnership also includes access to in-depth mining guidance, allowing Homeward Legal to pre-empt lender requirements when there is a risk with historical mining in the area, saving clients time.
Searches UK provides Homeward Legal and their clients with up-to-date ETAs, queries and expert advice on recommended searches. When circumstances require it, the partnership allows for expedition of searches, and offers “no search” indemnity insurance that gives financial protection for the buyer and their lenders against risks that would normally be identified in the searches.
Streamlined process delivers efficiency
Access to Searches UK’s Hazard Checker tool and wealth of data has enabled Homeward Legal to provide more accurate quotes to clients in a timely fashion. The partnership means that homebuyers benefit from a seamless, streamlined and efficient conveyancing searches process.
When buying a home, there is so much that needs to be sorted out. From filling in forms to finding the cash to support an intended purchase, it’s easy to understand why the transaction process can take so long – and how a small mistake somewhere along the line can be quite disruptive until that is sorted out. This is why Homeward Legal works with trusted suppliers of services to the conveyancing process.
The ten-year partnership has demonstrated the value of this collaborative approach, with nearly 40,000 successful property searches completed for homebuyers across the UK.