Selling A Commercial Property

If you are selling a commercial property, having the right solicitor on your side can make the process smoother, faster and far less stressful.

There are a number of steps involved in the process of selling a commercial property which your solicitor can guide you through:

• Preparing your commercial property to go on the market – To avoid delays later, you should get all of your paperwork together when you decide to sell a commercial property. This includes title documents, leases and rent details if the property is let, planning permissions, energy performance certificates, asbestos, fire safety and environmental reports, insurance policies, guarantees and service contracts.
• Agree heads of terms – Once you’ve found a buyer, your solicitor will help you review and agree heads of terms. While not legally binding, the heads of terms set out the main details for all parties, such as, the price, deposit amount, whether the property is freehold or leasehold and any special conditions.
• Buyer’s due diligence – Your buyer will usually carry out investigations, searches and surveys, often asking additional questions, which your commercial property solicitor should promptly respond to in order to keep the sale process moving without delay.
• Exchange of contracts – Once both sides are happy with the legal and financial details, the solicitors will agree the final version of the contract and exchange contracts. At this stage, your buyer will pay a non-refundable deposit, the deal becomes legally binding and a completion date is agreed.
• Completion day – On completion, the buyer’s solicitor transfers the balance of the purchase price to your solicitor, the signed transfer deed is sent to the buyer and the keys released, officially passing ownership of the property to the buyer.

The whole commercial property selling process typically takes three to six months depending on the complexity of the transaction.