Step 1: Instruct Your Solicitor and Apply for Your Mortgage
Within a day or two of your offer being accepted, you need to formally instruct a conveyancing solicitor (or licensed conveyancer) and submit your full mortgage application. Your solicitor will send you an engagement letter, carry out identity checks, and request your proof of funds. The estate agent will send a memorandum of sale to both solicitors confirming the agreed price and the chain details.
Your mortgage lender will process your full application, which involves verifying your income, running a credit check, and instructing a valuation of the property. The valuation is for the lender's benefit — it confirms the property is worth enough to secure the loan — and is not a substitute for your own survey. Mortgage offers typically take 2 to 4 weeks to arrive, though some lenders are faster.
Step 2: Survey and Searches
Your solicitor will order searches from the local authority, environmental data providers, and the water company. Local authority searches reveal planning history, building control records, road schemes, and contaminated land. Environmental searches check flood risk, ground stability, and radon. Water searches confirm drainage and water supply connections.
Separately, you should commission your own survey. A Level 2 (HomeBuyer) survey is suitable for most conventional properties built after 1930 in reasonable condition. A Level 3 (Building Survey) is advisable for older properties, listed buildings, properties with obvious defects, or anything you plan to renovate significantly. The survey is your opportunity to understand the property's condition before you are legally committed.
Searches and the survey can and should run in parallel — there is no dependency between them. Waiting for one before starting the other is a common source of unnecessary delay.
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Try free — 3 credits, no cardStep 3: Enquiries and the Draft Contract
The seller's solicitor sends a draft contract and a bundle of documents: the title register, title plan, property information form (TA6), fittings and contents form (TA10), and any relevant certificates or guarantees. Your solicitor reviews these and raises enquiries — formal questions about anything that is unclear, missing, or concerning.
Enquiries can cover boundary responsibilities, rights of way, planning permissions for extensions or conversions, damp-proofing or underpinning guarantees, building regulations sign-off for any works, and the lease terms if the property is leasehold. This stage is often the longest and most frustrating, because it depends on the seller's solicitor obtaining answers — sometimes from third parties like freeholders or warranty providers.
Your job during this phase is to respond promptly to anything your solicitor sends you and to chase if things go quiet. Ask for a progress update weekly.
Step 4: Exchange of Contracts
Once all enquiries are resolved, searches are clear, your mortgage offer is in place, and both sides are satisfied, you move to exchange. At exchange, your solicitor transfers your deposit (usually 10% of the purchase price) to the seller's solicitor, and both parties sign identical contracts. From this moment, the transaction is legally binding — pulling out means forfeiting your deposit.
A completion date is agreed at exchange, typically 1 to 4 weeks later, though same-day exchange and completion is possible (common in chain-free transactions). Between exchange and completion, your solicitor prepares the transfer deed, arranges the mortgage drawdown, and runs final Land Registry checks.
Step 5: Completion and Beyond
On completion day, your mortgage lender releases the loan funds to your solicitor, who adds your deposit and transfers the full amount to the seller's solicitor. Once the seller's solicitor confirms receipt, the keys are released — usually via the estate agent. You can collect them and move in.
After completion, your solicitor pays stamp duty on your behalf (within 14 days), registers the transfer with the Land Registry, and sends you the final completion statement showing the breakdown of all costs. Land Registry registration can take several weeks to process, but this happens in the background and doesn't affect your ownership.
Key Takeaways
- ✓Instruct your solicitor and submit your mortgage application immediately after offer acceptance
- ✓Commission your own survey — the lender's valuation only protects the lender, not you
- ✓Run searches and your survey in parallel to avoid unnecessary delays
- ✓You are not legally committed until exchange of contracts — speed reduces gazumping risk
- ✓On completion day, funds transfer in the morning and keys are released once confirmed
- ✓Your solicitor handles stamp duty and Land Registry registration after completion