Once an offer is accepted, buying a home quickly brings requests for identification, mortgage documents and search money. A conveyancer investigates the legal title, checks the contract, raises questions with the seller’s representative, deals with your lender and transfers the purchase funds.
This timeline mainly describes England and Wales, where an accepted offer is not normally legally binding until contracts are exchanged. Scotland uses an offer and “missives” system, while Northern Ireland has its own procedures. Ask a local solicitor which rules apply.
How Long Does Conveyancing Take?
A straightforward purchase commonly takes eight to twelve weeks from instruction to completion, but this is only an estimate. The wider home-buying process averages about five months in England and Wales. Chains, leasehold paperwork, survey problems and slow searches can extend it.
Your conveyancer may be waiting for the seller, managing agent, local authority, lender or another solicitor in the chain. Choosing a responsive firm early and returning documents promptly can prevent avoidable delays.
Stage One: Instruct a Conveyancer
Compare firms before offering and instruct one once the offer is accepted. The estate agent will request their details so a memorandum of sale can be issued.
Compare the total quote, not merely the headline fee. Ask whether it includes VAT, searches, Land Registry charges, bank-transfer fees, lender work and supplements for leasehold, shared ownership, new-build or gifted-deposit cases. Consumer guidance indicates that conveyancing solicitor fees can range from about £800 to more than £2,000, depending on complexity.
See our guide to choosing a conveyancing solicitor.
Stage Two: Complete Identity and Funding Checks
The firm must verify your identity and understand where the purchase money came from. Expect to provide photo identification, proof of address and evidence covering your deposit and costs. Depending on the circumstances, this could include savings statements, a gifted-deposit letter, probate documents or evidence from a previous sale.
Send readable records and explain unusual transfers early. Unresolved funding questions can delay the transaction.
Stage Three: Review the Contract and Title
The seller’s solicitor sends a draft contract pack containing title information, a plan, property forms and details of fixtures and fittings. A leasehold pack should also include the lease and management information.
Your conveyancer checks ownership, boundaries, rights of way, restrictive covenants, mortgages, lease terms and other matters affecting use or value. They also confirm that the contract reflects the price and agreed contents.
Stage Four: Arrange Searches, Mortgage and Survey
The property searches UK buyers commonly encounter include local authority, drainage and water, and environmental searches. Extra reports may be recommended for mining, flooding or other local risks. Buyers normally pay upfront, and typical local-search costs are often around £250 to £300.
Searches do not replace a survey. A lender’s valuation is primarily for the lender, so arrange an appropriate survey for independent information about the building’s condition.
Your conveyancer also reviews the formal mortgage offer and checks the lender’s requirements. A guide to understanding homebuyer surveys would be a natural next read.
Stage Five: Enquiries and Problem Solving
After reviewing the papers and searches, the buyer’s conveyancer raises enquiries. These may concern planning consent, building regulations, access, guarantees, alterations, boundaries, occupiers, leasehold charges or inconsistencies in the title.
This stage often expands the timetable. Suppose a search reveals an extension but the contract pack contains no approval documents. Your conveyancer may request evidence, consider an indemnity policy, consult the lender or advise further investigation. The right response depends on the facts; speed should not replace proper legal assessment.
Stage Six: Read the Report and Sign
When searches, enquiries and mortgage requirements are satisfactory, your conveyancer sends a report explaining the title, contract and important risks. Read it and ask questions before signing. You will normally sign the contract and transfer the required deposit and other cleared funds.
Before exchange, confirm that your mortgage remains valid, insurance is arranged when required and the remaining money is available. Verify bank details through a trusted method because property transactions are targeted by payment-diversion fraud.
Stage Seven: Exchange Contracts
In England and Wales, exchange occurs when the parties’ solicitors formally exchange signed contracts. The purchase becomes legally binding and the completion date is fixed. Pulling out afterwards can cause serious financial consequences, including losing the deposit and paying compensation.
Exchange and completion can happen on the same day, although a gap allows time for removals and final arrangements. Two to four weeks is common, but the parties may agree another period.
Stage Eight: Complete the Purchase
Before completion, your solicitor requests mortgage funds and performs final checks. On the agreed day, they send the purchase balance to the seller’s solicitor. Once receipt is confirmed, ownership transfers and the estate agent can release the keys.
Timing depends on the banking process and, in a chain, money moving through several linked transactions. Do not assume the keys will be available early in the morning.
What Happens After Completion?
Your conveyancer handles the relevant property tax return and registration. In England and Northern Ireland, any Stamp Duty Land Tax return and payment is generally due within fourteen days of the effective date, usually completion. Wales uses Land Transaction Tax, and Scotland uses Land and Buildings Transaction Tax.
The conveyancer then registers you as owner and records the lender’s charge. This may finish after you move in, but your solicitor should confirm completion.
A related resource could explain costs to budget for when buying a home.
How to Keep the Timeline Moving
Return onboarding forms quickly, arrange the mortgage and survey early, pay search money promptly and disclose deadlines or unusual circumstances at the start. Keep deposit evidence organised and answer questions fully.
Ask for useful updates: what remains outstanding, who holds the next action and whether anything from you would help. Do not pressure the firm to exchange until the legal work, mortgage and finances are ready.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a solicitor or licensed conveyancer?
You need an appropriately qualified professional to handle the transfer. In England and Wales, buyers commonly use a solicitor or licensed conveyancer. Confirm that the firm can act for your mortgage lender and handle the property type.
When should I instruct a conveyancer?
Research firms before offering and instruct one as soon as your offer is accepted. Early instruction allows identity checks and initial paperwork to begin while the seller’s contract pack is prepared.
Are exchange and completion the same?
No. Exchange makes the contract binding and fixes the completion date. Completion is when money is transferred, ownership changes and keys are released. They can occur on the same day, but often do not.
Can I buy without property searches?
A cash buyer may sometimes proceed with fewer searches, but this creates risk. Mortgage lenders normally require specified searches, and your conveyancer should explain the consequences before you decide.
Choose Carefully and Stay Ready
The conveyancing process UK buyers face becomes clearer as a sequence: instruction, checks, contract review, searches, enquiries, reporting, exchange and completion. Choose a transparent professional, provide documents promptly and allow genuine legal issues to be resolved. The goal is not simply to reach moving day quickly, but to understand what you are buying before the commitment becomes binding.
