Conveyancing explained: from offer accepted to keys

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Conveyancing is the legal work of transferring a property from seller to buyer. In England it runs from the memorandum of sale, when an offer is accepted, through searches, enquiries, the survey and the mortgage offer, to exchange of contracts, when the deal becomes binding, and then completion, when the money moves and the keys are handed over. Until exchange, either side can walk away.

This guide is general information and not legal, tax or financial advice. Your solicitor or licensed conveyancer is the person to advise you on your transaction.

Who does what

1. The memorandum of sale

When the seller accepts an offer, the agent sends both solicitors a memorandum of sale: the price, the parties, their solicitors, any fixtures and fittings agreed, and the chain. Each solicitor then sends a client care letter and asks for ID and funds checks. Delays at this stage are avoidable: instruct a solicitor before you make or accept an offer.

2. The draft contract and the seller's forms

The seller's solicitor obtains the title from HM Land Registry and sends the buyer's solicitor a draft contract with the seller's property information forms. The Law Society's TA6 form covers boundaries, disputes, alterations, guarantees, services and much of the material information the listing should already have given. The TA10 lists what is included in the sale. For a flat, the lease and the management pack, usually on the LPE1 form, are needed too. The management pack is the most common cause of delay; our guide to buying a leasehold flat explains what it shows.

3. Searches

The buyer's solicitor orders searches, usually:

• Local authority search: planning, building control, roads, and notices affecting the property.
• Drainage and water search: whether the property connects to mains water and sewers, and where the pipes run.
• Environmental search: flood risk, contaminated land and ground stability.

Other searches depend on the location. Lenders normally require searches. A cash buyer can skip them, but then takes on the risk of whatever they would have revealed.

4. Enquiries

The buyer's solicitor reads everything and raises written enquiries: a missing building regulations certificate, an unexplained boundary, a service charge question. The seller answers through their solicitor. Slow or vague answers here are a common reason chains stall, so sellers should keep their paperwork to hand.

5. The survey and the mortgage valuation

The lender sends a valuer to confirm the property is adequate security for the loan. That valuation is for the lender. The buyer usually commissions their own RICS Home Survey: Level 1 is the most basic, Level 2 suits most conventional homes in reasonable condition, and Level 3 is the most detailed, for older, larger, altered or run-down buildings. If the survey finds something significant, the buyer may renegotiate, ask for repairs, or withdraw.

6. The mortgage offer

Once the valuation is satisfactory and underwriting is complete, the lender issues a formal mortgage offer. The buyer's solicitor checks its conditions and reports on the title to the lender. Offers have expiry dates, so a slow chain can mean a buyer needs an extension.

7. Exchange of contracts

When enquiries are answered, the mortgage offer is in place, the buyer has the deposit ready, and everyone in the chain is ready, the solicitors exchange signed contracts, usually by phone under agreed procedures, and fix the completion date. The buyer pays the deposit at this point. From exchange both sides are legally bound: a buyer who fails to complete risks losing the deposit, and a seller who fails to complete can be sued.

Always confirm your solicitor's bank details by phone on a number you already know before sending money. Fraudsters target conveyancing by email.

8. Completion

On completion day the buyer's solicitor sends the money to the seller's solicitor, the seller's mortgage is repaid, and the agent releases the keys once the seller's solicitor confirms receipt. The buyer's solicitor then files the stamp duty return and pays the tax: at the time of writing this must happen within 14 days of completion. Stamp duty explained covers the rates. Finally the buyer is registered as owner at HM Land Registry.

What slows a chain

• A buyer or seller who instructed a solicitor late.
• A slow management pack from a managing agent.
• Missing documents: planning, building regulations, guarantees.
• A down valuation, which leaves the buyer short of funds.
• A survey that finds something nobody knew about.
• One link further down the chain that has not found a buyer, or whose own buyer has not secured a mortgage.
• Holidays, illness, and a completion date one party cannot make.

What you can do to speed it up

• Instruct your solicitor before you make or accept an offer.
• Return ID checks, forms and signed documents the same day.
• Sellers: find guarantees, certificates and planning papers now, and order the management pack for a flat early.
• Buyers: book the survey as soon as the memorandum of sale is issued, and send the lender everything it asks for.
• Keep your agent informed of holidays and any change in your plans.

What sales progression does

An estate agent's work does not end at the offer. Sales progression means confirming each buyer's finance and chain at the start, issuing the memorandum of sale promptly, then checking in with every solicitor in the chain regularly: are searches back, has the survey been done, has the mortgage offer arrived, is the management pack ordered? The aim is to find the slowest link early and keep everyone working towards one exchange date.

Next steps

Sellers can read how to sell your home for the full sale from valuation to completion. First-time buyers should start with buying your first home in Bournemouth, and our buyers' hub collects every buying guide.