The conveyancing process is the legal transfer of property ownership from a seller to a buyer, and it runs from the first title search through the recording of the deed after closing. A typical residential transaction takes about 30 to 45 days from accepted offer to closing, though financing snags, inspection findings, or title defects can push that timeline out. Every step is built around a single question: does the seller actually own what they’re selling, and can the buyer receive clear ownership in return?
Title Search and Title Insurance
The title examination starts the process and catches the most problems. A professional examiner works through public records — deeds, mortgages, court judgments, tax records — hunting for anything that could cloud the seller’s ownership. Outstanding liens, unpaid property taxes, competing claims from heirs, easements limiting use of the land, and even clerical errors in old deeds can all turn up. When the examiner finds a defect (sometimes called a “dirty title”), it has to be resolved before the sale can close.
Title insurance exists because no search is perfect. A forged deed buried in old records or a previously unknown heir can still surface years later. Two policies are available, and the difference matters. A lender’s policy is usually required whenever you finance the purchase; it protects the mortgage lender, not you. An owner’s policy is optional and protects you against covered defects for as long as you or your heirs own the property. Skipping the owner’s policy to save a few hundred dollars at closing looks smart until it isn’t.
The Purchase Contract and Earnest Money
The purchase contract sets the terms both sides agree to follow: price, payment method, closing date, and the contingencies that give you a way out if something goes wrong.
A financing contingency lets you walk away if your mortgage falls through. An inspection contingency allows renegotiation or cancellation based on what inspectors find. An appraisal contingency protects you if the property appraises below the agreed price. When a contingency isn’t satisfied, you can typically renegotiate or terminate the contract and recover your deposit. Waiving contingencies to make an offer more competitive is a calculated gamble — you’re giving up the safety net that exists specifically for situations you can’t predict.
Earnest money, usually 1 to 3 percent of the purchase price, tells the seller you’re serious. It sits with a neutral third party, typically a title company’s escrow account or an attorney’s trust account, until closing. If the sale goes through, the deposit is credited toward your down payment and closing costs. If the deal collapses for a reason covered by your contingencies, you get it back. Back out for a reason that isn’t covered, and the seller may keep it.
Due Diligence and Inspections
The inspection period is your window to find problems before they belong to you. A home inspector evaluates structural components, electrical systems, plumbing, roofing, and potential hazards. The findings often drive renegotiation: the buyer may ask the seller to make repairs, cut the price, or provide a credit at closing. Skipping the inspection to speed things along is a shortcut experienced buyers almost never take.
Due diligence goes beyond the physical inspection. Verify that the property’s zoning classification matches your intended use. Running a business from a residentially zoned home, or adding a rental unit to a single-family lot, can be blocked outright by local rules. Confirming that past renovations were properly permitted matters too, because unpermitted work can create liability and complicate a future sale.
Lead-Based Paint Disclosure
Homes built before 1978 come with specific federal disclosure obligations. Before the contract is signed, the seller must disclose any known lead-based paint hazards, provide available records and reports related to lead paint in the home, and give the buyer a copy of the EPA pamphlet on lead safety. Buyers also get a 10-day window to conduct their own lead inspection or risk assessment.
The rule doesn’t require sellers to test for or remove lead paint, only to share what they already know. Ignoring the requirement is costly: a buyer can sue for triple damages, and the seller may face additional civil and criminal penalties.
Loan Disclosures for Financed Buyers
Two federal laws shape the paperwork you’ll receive if you’re borrowing to buy. The Truth in Lending Act requires lenders to disclose the cost of credit clearly, including the annual percentage rate, finance charges, and repayment terms, so borrowers can compare loan offers on the same footing.
The Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act focuses on the settlement process itself: making sure buyers and sellers receive timely information about settlement costs, eliminating kickbacks that inflate those costs, and limiting excessive escrow requirements. RESPA’s anti-kickback provision bars anyone involved in the transaction — agents, lenders, title companies, attorneys — from paying or accepting referral fees for steering business to a particular settlement service provider.
Closing and the Closing Disclosure
Settlement, or closing, is where it all comes together. You sign the final documents, funds transfer, and ownership changes hands. The central document is the Closing Disclosure, which itemizes every financial detail of the transaction: loan terms, monthly payment projections, closing costs, taxes, and the cash you need to bring.
You must receive the Closing Disclosure at least three business days before closing. Use those three days. Compare it line by line against your original Loan Estimate. Fees that jumped significantly, charges that appeared out of nowhere, or loan terms that shifted from what you were quoted are all problems that are dramatically easier to resolve before you sign than after.
Recording the Deed
After closing, the executed deed has to be recorded with the local land records office. Recording creates a public record of the ownership change and is what actually protects your claim against the rest of the world. The process involves submitting the deed, paying a recording fee, and meeting local formatting requirements, which vary by jurisdiction and can be surprisingly particular about margins, font size, and notarization.
Delay creates real risk. Under the recording statutes that govern property priority in most states, a later buyer who records first and had no knowledge of your earlier purchase may end up with a stronger legal claim than you have. Transfer taxes or similar fees also apply in many jurisdictions, calculated as a percentage of the sale price, with rates and exemptions that vary widely by location.
Wire Fraud During Closing
Wire fraud targeting real estate closings has become one of the most common and damaging scams in the industry. In 2024, the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center logged over 9,300 real estate fraud complaints totaling more than $173 million in losses. Business email compromise schemes, where criminals impersonate a title company, agent, or attorney and send fake wiring instructions, accounted for billions more across all industries.
The pattern is consistent. Criminals monitor email traffic about an upcoming closing, then send a convincing message with “updated” wire instructions right before the transfer. Once the money goes to the wrong account, recovering it is extremely difficult and often impossible.
The protection is a single habit: always verify wiring instructions by calling a phone number you already have on file for your title company or attorney. Never use a phone number from the email containing the wire instructions.
Taxes After the Sale
Selling a home triggers reporting requirements even when no tax is owed. For transactions of $600 or more, the settlement agent generally files Form 1099-S with the IRS reporting the proceeds from the sale.
Most sellers of a primary residence won’t owe capital gains tax, thanks to a generous exclusion. If you owned and lived in the home for at least two of the five years before the sale, you can exclude up to $250,000 in gain from your income, or up to $500,000 if you’re married filing jointly and both spouses meet the use requirement. The exclusion can only be claimed once every two years. A surviving spouse who sells within two years of their partner’s death may still qualify for the higher $500,000 amount.
Gain above the threshold is taxable as a capital gain. Even if you expect to fall within the exclusion, keeping records of your purchase price and any capital improvements (a new roof, a kitchen renovation) reduces your reportable gain and gives you documentation if the IRS ever asks.
Types of Deeds
The deed is the document that actually transfers ownership, and not all deeds carry the same protection. The type you receive tells you how much risk you’re absorbing.
- A general warranty deed offers the strongest protection. The seller guarantees clear title and promises to defend against any claims, including those arising from before the seller owned the property. This is the standard in most residential sales.
- A special warranty deed only guarantees against title problems that arose during the seller’s own period of ownership. Anything earlier is your problem. These are more common in commercial transactions and foreclosure sales.
- A quitclaim deed transfers whatever interest the seller has, if any, with no guarantees about the title’s quality. Quitclaim deeds are typically used between family members or to clear up title defects, not in arm’s-length sales.
If a seller offers a quitclaim deed in what should be a standard purchase, treat it as a red flag worth investigating before you proceed.
Who Does What
Real estate attorneys handle the legal work: reviewing and drafting documents, negotiating contract terms, conducting or supervising title searches, and representing your interests at closing. Some states require attorney involvement in real estate closings; others don’t. Even where it’s optional, having an attorney review the contract and closing documents is worth the cost for most buyers, particularly first-time purchasers or anyone dealing with unusual property issues.
Title companies and escrow officers coordinate the administrative side: ordering the title search, issuing title insurance, holding earnest money in escrow, preparing closing documents, and recording the deed after settlement. In practice, the title company is often the hub that keeps the transaction moving. Surveyors, home inspectors, and appraisers handle specialized assessments that feed the buyer’s decision and the lender’s underwriting.