Sometimes it may be necessary to change the legal ownership of a property without selling it. There are many scenarios where this will be needed, for example, a new relationship and a desire to own a home together or providing children a stake in the property. This process is known as a transfer of equity.
Equity refers to how much of property a person owns. It can be described as the value of a home after you have deducted the outstanding mortgage. A transfer can add or remove a person from a legal stake in the property. If a couple divorce, for example, a name can be removed from the title deeds of the property to reflect the new situation of ownership of a home.
When a person is removed, the remaining party essentially must buy out the other party and this is often done with a remortgage. If there are multiple people named on the deeds, it can become a little more complicated and this is a good time to seek Independent legal advice. Find out more about Independent legal advice from Sam Conveyancing.
There are still legal processes to go through, even if the transfer is simple. This is why it is a great idea to get a trusted conveyancer to help you.
The main document involved is the TR1 form which involves the Land Registry. Other important documents include the property’s title deeds and any contractual details for mortgages. For properties with no outstanding mortgage, the process is straightforward and only requires the completion of the TR1 form.
