In a freehold sale, the law starts from a stark position: the buyer beware. Unlike buying goods, there are no implied promises that the property is sound or fit for purpose, so the buyer must investigate before committing. For a conveyancer, this rule shapes everything you do before exchange — and the exceptions to it decide who actually pays when a problem surfaces afterwards. Knowing where the risk sits, and how to shift it, is the heart of competent practice.
This lesson walks you through the whole picture:
- The Principle of Caveat Emptor — what the rule means and the key exceptions that cut across it.
- Physical Defects and Disclosure — patent versus latent defects, and how far a seller's silence is protected.
- The Buyer's Investigation Duties — the inspections, enquiries and searches you run, and your professional duties on false answers.
- Misrepresentation: Establishing a Claim — the elements of an actionable false statement, including half-truths.
- Reliance and Types of Misrepresentation — proving inducement and distinguishing fraudulent, negligent and innocent.
- Remedies for Misrepresentation — rescission, damages, the equitable bars, and exclusion clauses.
- Incumbrances and the Duty to Disclose Title — when the seller must reveal hidden title burdens.
- Deducing Title — how a seller proves ownership and how the buyer raises requisitions.