The moving checklist: everything between offer accepted and completion

An accepted offer is a significant moment. It's also the starting gun for a sequence of legal, financial and practical steps that can take anywhere from eight weeks to six months to complete. Here's what needs to happen, roughly in order.

Immediately after offer accepted

Instruct a solicitor or conveyancer. Your conveyancer handles the legal transfer of ownership. If you haven't already chosen one, do this within a day or two. Delays at the start of conveyancing extend the whole chain.

Tell your mortgage lender. If you have a mortgage in principle, contact your lender or broker to move to a full mortgage application. You'll need the property details and agreed price.

Arrange your survey. A survey is not the same as a mortgage valuation. The lender's valuation checks the property is worth what you're paying; a survey assesses the condition of the building. These are separate. See surveyors on Home to find qualified surveyors in your area.

During conveyancing

Your solicitor will order local authority searches (checking planning, roads, drainage), a water search, and potentially others depending on the property and location. These take time to come back, typically a few weeks.

Review the results as they arrive. If searches reveal something significant (a planning application nearby, drainage issues, environmental risk), discuss it with your solicitor before proceeding.

Respond to enquiries promptly. Conveyancers exchange queries about the property with the seller's solicitor. Your prompt responses keep things moving. Delays in replying are one of the most common reasons transactions slow down.

The survey

Choose the level of survey appropriate to the property. A HomeBuyer Report covers most standard homes; a Building Survey (sometimes called a full structural survey) is advisable for older properties, unusual construction, or anything showing visible signs of wear. Not sure which one applies to you: see RICS Level 2 vs Level 3: which survey do you need? Read the report carefully and, if significant issues are flagged, consider getting specialist quotes before exchange.

A survey that reveals material defects gives you grounds to renegotiate the price or ask the seller to address issues before exchange.

Mortgage offer

Once the lender has carried out their valuation and underwriting, they'll issue a formal mortgage offer. Your solicitor will review this. Make sure you've read the offer terms and that the amount, rate and conditions match what you agreed.

Exchange of contracts

Exchange is the legal point of commitment. Once contracts are exchanged, both parties are bound. You'll pay your deposit (typically 10% of the purchase price, though this varies) at exchange. Withdrawing after exchange means losing your deposit.

Before exchange, agree a completion date with all parties in the chain. Arrange buildings insurance to take effect from the exchange date, because you are responsible for the property from exchange, not from completion.

Completion

On completion day, the remaining funds transfer and keys are released. Your solicitor will confirm when the transfer has gone through. From that moment, the property is yours.

On completion day: read the meters and collect the keys from the agent. Sort your utilities before you get there: see checking broadband at your new address before you move so you're not without a connection on day one.

Timelines vary significantly depending on chain length, search turnaround times and lender processing. The steps above are a guide, not legal advice.

Further reading: the ONS UK House Price Index.