The conveyancing process when selling a home

You've accepted an offer on your home.

The estate agent changes the listing to Sold STC, everyone congratulates you, and it feels as though the difficult part is over.

Then conveyancing begins.

For many sellers, this is when the sale becomes frustratingly difficult to see. Your solicitor asks for forms and certificates. The buyer's solicitor starts raising enquiries. Searches are ordered. Your buyer waits for a mortgage offer. Then somebody somewhere in the chain isn't ready to exchange.

Understanding the conveyancing process helps you see what is happening, where delays occur and, importantly, what you can do before and during the sale to keep things moving.

Here is the process from preparing your property through to exchange and completion.

What is conveyancing when selling a house?

Conveyancing is the legal process of transferring ownership of your property to the buyer.

Your solicitor or licensed conveyancer will normally:

• confirm your identity
• check your ownership of the property
• obtain information about the title
• prepare the draft contract
• provide information about the property
• answer enquiries from the buyer's conveyancer
• deal with your mortgage lender
• arrange exchange of contracts
• complete the legal transfer
• repay your mortgage
• distribute the remaining sale proceeds

Government guidance describes conveyancing as the process through which ownership is transferred and recommends choosing a solicitor or conveyancer to handle the legal work.

Step 1: Get conveyancing-ready before you find a buyer

You do not have to wait until someone makes an offer before getting ready for conveyancing.

In fact, this is one of the best opportunities sellers have to make their eventual transaction faster.

Government guidance specifically recommends gathering property paperwork before putting the home on the market.

Start looking for:

• title information
• Energy Performance Certificate
• planning permissions
• building regulation approvals
• completion certificates
• FENSA or CERTASS certificates
• guarantees
• warranties
• electrical documentation
• boiler paperwork
• extension documents
• party wall agreements
• solar panel documentation
• leasehold information if applicable

If you know something is missing, you can start dealing with it while the property is being marketed rather than after your buyer is waiting.

Step 2: Instruct your solicitor or conveyancer

You can instruct your conveyancer before or shortly after putting the property on the market.

There is little advantage in waiting until you have accepted an offer.

Your conveyancer will normally ask for:

• proof of identity
• proof of address
• details of the property
• details of your mortgage
• details of the estate agent
• information about your onward purchase
• completed property forms

They may also carry out anti-money laundering and identity checks.

Getting these administrative steps completed early means your conveyancer can start preparing the legal paperwork as soon as a buyer appears.

Step 3: Your offer is accepted

Once you accept an offer, the estate agent normally sends a memorandum of sale to the buyer's and seller's conveyancers.

This usually contains information such as:

• property address
• agreed sale price
• buyer
• seller
• buyer's solicitor
• seller's solicitor

At this point, your home is usually described as sold subject to contract.

But it is important to understand what that means.

In England and Wales, accepting an offer does not normally make the transaction legally binding.

You can still withdraw.

The buyer can still withdraw.

The transaction generally becomes legally binding when contracts are exchanged.

Step 4: Complete the seller's property forms

Your conveyancer will ask you to complete information about the property.

For many residential transactions this involves Law Society forms such as the property information form and fittings and contents form, although the precise documentation can depend on the property and transaction.

These forms cover a lot of information.

You may be asked about:

• boundaries
• disputes
• notices
• extensions
• alterations
• planning permissions
• building regulations
• guarantees
• utilities
• drainage
• parking
• insurance
• environmental matters
• occupiers
• services

Complete these carefully.

Your answers become part of the legal information being provided to the buyer.

If you do not know an answer, speak to your conveyancer rather than guessing.

Step 5: Decide what you are leaving behind

You will also normally state what fixtures and fittings are included in the sale.

This can cover:

• carpets
• curtains
• blinds
• light fittings
• integrated appliances
• freestanding appliances
• fitted furniture
• sheds
• greenhouses
• garden items
• satellite equipment

Be clear.

A surprisingly unnecessary argument can arise because the buyer thought the garden shed was included and the seller thought it was obvious they were taking it.

Government selling guidance also recommends making clear what fixtures and fittings are included in the contract.

Step 6: Your conveyancer obtains the title

Your conveyancer will review the legal title to your property.

For a registered property, HM Land Registry information may show:

• registered owner
• property description
• rights benefiting the property
• rights affecting it
• restrictive covenants
• mortgages
• restrictions
• other legal entries

The title plan shows the general extent of the registered property.

Your conveyancer needs this information to prepare the contract and respond to questions from the buyer.

Step 7: Your conveyancer prepares the contract pack

Once the relevant information has been gathered, your solicitor prepares the paperwork for the buyer's conveyancer.

This is often called the draft contract pack.

It can contain:

• draft sale contract
• official title information
• title plan
• property information forms
• fittings and contents information
• lease if applicable
• supporting certificates and documents

Government guidance confirms that the seller is responsible for drawing up the legal contract and that the seller's conveyancer will normally prepare the initial contract and answer the buyer's questions.

This is an important milestone.

Until the buyer's solicitor receives the contract pack, much of their detailed legal investigation cannot begin.

Step 8: The buyer's solicitor reviews everything

Once the buyer's conveyancer receives the contract pack, they start investigating your property.

They may review:

• title
• boundaries
• rights
• covenants
• planning
• alterations
• property forms
• guarantees
• lease information

At the same time, the buyer will normally be progressing other parts of their purchase.

That could include:

• mortgage application
• valuation
• searches
• survey

Some of this work is completely outside your control.

Step 9: The buyer orders searches

The buyer's conveyancer normally arranges property searches.

These may include:

• local authority search
• drainage and water search
• environmental search
• flood search
• mining search where appropriate
• other location-specific searches

You do not normally arrange these searches as the seller.

However, the results may lead the buyer's solicitor to raise additional questions.

Step 10: The buyer may arrange a survey

Your buyer may also arrange a survey.

Again, this is separate from the legal conveyancing process, but the result can affect the transaction.

The survey might identify:

• damp
• roof problems
• structural movement
• defective windows
• drainage issues
• old electrics
• heating problems
• maintenance requirements

If the buyer discovers something significant, they may:

• ask for further investigation
• request documents
• renegotiate the price
• ask you to carry out work
• decide to continue anyway
• withdraw

This is another reason to understand the condition of your home before selling.

Step 11: The buyer's solicitor raises enquiries

This is often the stage sellers associate most strongly with conveyancing delays.

The buyer's conveyancer reviews the title, searches and paperwork and raises questions known as enquiries.

Government guidance confirms that buyers' conveyancers may raise enquiries relating to the title, searches, mortgage, property and transaction.

An enquiry might ask:

• Where is the completion certificate for the extension?
• Was consent obtained to remove an internal wall?
• Who maintains the shared driveway?
• Is there a guarantee for the replacement windows?
• Has there ever been a boundary dispute?
• What does a restriction on the title relate to?
• Is there documentation for the solar panels?
• Has the property ever flooded?
• Who owns the boundary fence?
• Why does the title plan appear different from the physical layout?

Enquiries are normal.

Receiving a long list does not necessarily mean something is wrong with your home.

Step 12: You answer the enquiries

Some questions can be dealt with entirely by your conveyancer.

Others require information from you.

Respond quickly, but also respond properly.

Suppose the buyer's solicitor asks:

Was building regulation approval obtained for the loft conversion?

Replying:

“Yes, definitely.”

may not resolve the enquiry.

Providing the completion certificate is much more useful.

The aim is not simply to send an answer.

It is to close the enquiry.

Step 13: Missing documents are dealt with

This is where early preparation pays off.

Suppose your extension was completed eight years ago but you cannot find the building regulation completion certificate.

Now your buyer is waiting while you or your solicitor tries to establish what happened.

Possible issues can involve:

• planning permissions
• building regulations
• window certificates
• guarantees
• rights of way
• covenants
• title discrepancies
• old mortgages
• leasehold consents

Some can be resolved very quickly.

Others may require a third party.

And third parties are often where transactions slow down.

Step 14: Leasehold sellers have extra work

Selling a leasehold property usually involves more information.

Your buyer may need details about:

• the lease
• ground rent
• service charges
• buildings insurance
• managing agent
• freeholder
• reserve fund
• planned major works
• management company
• permissions
• notices
• restrictions

A management or leasehold information pack may need to be requested from the managing agent or freeholder.

This can take time.

If you know you are selling a leasehold property, start gathering this information as early as possible.

Step 15: Your buyer gets their mortgage offer

If your buyer needs a mortgage, their formal mortgage offer is another important part of becoming ready to exchange.

An agreement in principle is not the same thing.

Until the lender has approved both the borrower and the property, there may still be something preventing the buyer from proceeding.

You cannot control the buyer's lender, but the estate agent can often help establish whether the formal offer has been issued.

Step 16: Your solicitor obtains a mortgage redemption figure

If you have a mortgage secured against your property, it will need to be repaid when the sale completes.

Your conveyancer obtains a redemption figure from your lender.

This tells them how much is required to repay the mortgage.

The amount may include:

• outstanding mortgage balance
• interest
• early repayment charge where applicable
• other lender charges

Government guidance notes that your conveyancer will normally obtain this figure and repay the mortgage from the sale proceeds on completion.

This is worth checking early if you think there could be an early repayment charge.

Step 17: Everyone works towards being “ready to exchange”

At some point, your own legal work may effectively be complete.

The buyer may have:

• satisfactory searches
• acceptable survey
• mortgage offer
• satisfactory replies to enquiries
• deposit ready

You may have:

• signed the contract
• resolved title questions
• agreed fixtures and fittings
• arranged your onward purchase

But if there is a chain, that still might not be enough.

Step 18: The property chain needs to be ready

Suppose your buyer is selling a flat.

You are buying another house.

The seller of that house is buying somewhere else.

You now have several connected transactions.

Everyone generally needs to be ready before the chain can exchange.

This is why asking:

“Is my conveyancing finished?”

does not always tell you when you will exchange.

A better question is:

“What is still preventing the chain from exchanging?”

The answer might have nothing to do with your property.

Government guidance says the selling process takes around five months on average and can take longer where a chain is involved.

Step 19: Agree a completion date

Before exchange, the parties normally agree a completion date.

This is the day the property changes ownership and you move out.

If there is a chain, the date has to work for multiple households.

People may be coordinating:

• removal companies
• mortgages
• school
• work
• rental properties
• holidays
• onward purchases

Discuss possible dates before the transaction reaches the final stage.

Leaving the conversation until everybody is otherwise ready can introduce another unnecessary delay.

Step 20: Sign the contract

Your conveyancer will ask you to sign the sale contract.

You may also need to sign the legal transfer document.

Signing the contract does not necessarily mean contracts have been exchanged.

Your solicitor normally holds the signed document and exchanges it when everyone is ready and you have authorised them to proceed.

Step 21: Exchange contracts

This is the point where the sale fundamentally changes.

Your solicitor and the buyer's solicitor formally exchange contracts.

Once exchange takes place, the sale is legally binding.

Government guidance states that both sides are normally legally committed once contracts have been exchanged.

You now have:

• an agreed price
• a legally binding contract
• an agreed completion date

Pulling out after this stage can have serious financial and legal consequences.

Step 22: Get ready to move

Between exchange and completion, you can finally make firm moving arrangements.

You may need to:

• confirm removals
• pack
• redirect post
• contact utility providers
• transfer broadband
• notify insurers
• arrange childcare or pet care
• clear the garage
• empty the loft
• prepare keys

Government guidance recommends being packed and ready before completion day and continuing to pay your existing mortgage up until completion.

Do not leave everything until the morning of the move.

If you are part of a chain, one delayed house can delay everybody behind it.

Step 23: Completion day arrives

On completion day, the buyer's conveyancer sends the purchase funds to your conveyancer.

Once your solicitor receives the money, the transaction completes.

Ownership passes to the buyer and the keys can normally be released.

Government guidance describes completion as the point when the seller's conveyancer receives the buyer's funds and ownership is transferred.

You should have vacated the property in accordance with the contract.

Step 24: Your mortgage is repaid

If you have a mortgage, your conveyancer uses part of the sale proceeds to repay it.

For example:

Sale price: £500,000
Mortgage redemption: £180,000

That leaves £320,000 before other fees and deductions.

Your conveyancer may also deal with other secured debts where applicable.

Step 25: Estate agent and legal fees are paid

Depending on the arrangements, your conveyancer may also pay costs such as:

• estate agent fees
• conveyancing fees
• service charge balances
• other agreed deductions

Government guidance confirms that these types of amounts may be paid from the completion funds before the remaining balance is released to you.

Your completion statement should set all of this out.

Step 26: You receive the remaining money

Once the mortgage and relevant costs have been dealt with, the remaining proceeds are transferred to you.

If you are buying another property on the same day, much of that money may instead be used towards your onward purchase.

In a chain, funds effectively move from transaction to transaction until the final purchase completes.

What do I need to do on completion day?

Before leaving the property:

• remove everything you agreed to remove
• leave everything you agreed to include
• remove rubbish
• take meter readings
• secure doors and windows
• gather all keys
• leave the property in the agreed condition

Government guidance states that sellers must leave the property in the state agreed in the contract.

Take photographs of meter readings for your records.

How long does selling conveyancing take?

There is no single timescale.

A chain-free sale of a straightforward registered freehold property could progress considerably more quickly than a complicated leasehold sale involving several linked transactions.

Common causes of delay include:

• missing property forms
• missing certificates
• searches
• buyer mortgage delays
• surveys
• unanswered enquiries
• management packs
• freeholders
• title problems
• lease issues
• probate
• chain delays
• disagreements over completion dates

Instead of focusing only on how many weeks have passed, find out what is actually outstanding.

What slows down conveyancing when selling?

Some of the most frustrating delays are completely avoidable.

Waiting to instruct a solicitor

If you only appoint a conveyancer after accepting an offer, basic administration starts while your buyer is already waiting.

Taking days to complete forms

Return seller information as quickly as you reasonably can.

Missing documentation

An extension completed 15 years ago can still generate questions today.

Slow responses to enquiries

If your conveyancer asks you something, deal with it.

Leasehold management information

Third-party information can take time to obtain.

Problems further up or down the chain

Your own transaction can be ready while somebody else's is not.

How can I speed up conveyancing when selling?

The best approach starts before you accept an offer.

Before marketing

Gather:

• title information
• planning paperwork
• building regulations documents
• certificates
• guarantees
• warranties
• lease information
• details of alterations

Once marketed

Instruct your conveyancer and complete identity checks.

When an offer is accepted

Return property forms immediately and make sure the contract pack can be issued quickly.

During enquiries

Answer questions completely and supply supporting evidence.

Approaching exchange

Discuss completion dates and establish where the whole chain stands.

Government's own seller guidance recommends getting the property “sale ready” and gathering paperwork early specifically because this can reduce stress and delay later in the transaction.

How do I know what my solicitor is waiting for?

Don't just ask:

“Any update?”

Ask:

“What specifically is preventing us from exchanging?”

You want an answer such as:

1. Two buyer enquiries remain outstanding.
2. Waiting for replacement building regulation certificate.
3. Buyer's mortgage offer has not been issued.
4. Top of chain is waiting for searches.
5. Completion date has not been agreed.

Now you know what is actually happening.

If an item is yours to resolve, you can act.

If it belongs to somebody else, at least you know where the blockage is.

What if the buyer tries to renegotiate?

Because an accepted offer is generally not legally binding until exchange, a buyer can try to renegotiate before contracts are exchanged.

This may happen following:

• survey results
• mortgage valuation
• newly discovered legal information
• changing market conditions
• simple negotiation tactics

You do not have to agree.

You can:

• accept the reduction
• negotiate
• provide evidence addressing the problem
• arrange work
• reject the request
• return the property to market

Your estate agent and conveyancer can help depending on whether the issue is commercial, physical or legal.

What happens if my buyer pulls out?

Before exchange, this is unfortunately possible in England and Wales.

You may then have incurred costs without completing the sale.

If you have an onward purchase, your decision becomes more complicated because your purchase may depend on the proceeds of your sale.

This is another reason sellers value buyers who appear genuinely proceedable.

When considering offers, price is not the only factor.

You may also want to understand:

• Is the buyer chain-free?
• Do they have a property to sell?
• Is their property already under offer?
• Do they need a mortgage?
• Do they have an agreement in principle?
• Are they a cash buyer?
• How quickly can they proceed?

The highest offer is not always the strongest offer.

What happens if I am selling and buying at the same time?

This is extremely common.

Your conveyancer may handle both transactions.

The proceeds of your sale can then be used towards your purchase.

For example:

Sale price: £550,000
Mortgage redemption: £200,000
Net equity before fees: £350,000

You might use that £350,000 towards your next property.

This is also why completion dates across a chain normally need to align.

You may sell your existing house in the morning and complete your purchase later the same day.

Why sellers should care about conveyancing before the property is sold

Traditionally, homeowners think about selling in this order:

1. Value the house.
2. Choose an estate agent.
3. Take photographs.
4. List the property.
5. Find a buyer.
6. Start conveyancing.

The problem is Step 6.

By the time you begin investigating your own property, someone is already waiting for you.

You could instead do this:

1. Decide you may sell.
2. Check the property information.
3. Find the documents.
4. Identify potential legal gaps.
5. Instruct your conveyancer.
6. Market the property.
7. Find a buyer.
8. Issue a much more complete contract pack.

That changes conveyancing from a reactive process into a prepared one.

Your buyer shouldn't be the first person to find a problem with your home

Imagine the buyer's solicitor discovers that there appears to be no completion certificate for your extension.

Now everybody waits.

If you had discovered that three months earlier, you may have been able to sort it out before anyone even viewed the house.

The same applies to:

• missing planning records
• title anomalies
• absent guarantees
• old mortgages
• leasehold paperwork
• boundary questions
• missing certificates

This is one of the simplest principles behind a faster property sale:

Find the problem before the buyer does.

Get your home conveyancing-ready before you find your buyer

Tepilo helps you prepare the information that sits behind your property sale.

Bring together your property details, title information, planning history, certificates and other useful records earlier, so you can identify potential gaps before they turn into conveyancing delays.

Then, when you accept an offer, your solicitor is not starting with an empty file.

You are already several steps ahead.

Start getting your home sale-ready with Tepilo.