Conveyancing Explained: The Legal Process of Moving Home

Here is the conveyancing process explained from offer to keys, without the jargon. Conveyancing is the legal work that moves ownership of a property from one person to another: checking what you are actually buying, asking the questions that reveal problems, agreeing a binding contract, moving the money, and registering you as the new owner. It runs quietly in the background for three or four months, which is why most of the frustration in a house move comes from not knowing which stage you are at. This guide fixes that.

How long it really takes

Industry averages put a freehold house at roughly 12 to 16 weeks from accepted offer to completion, and a leasehold flat at 16 to 20 weeks because the freeholder or managing agent has to supply a management pack. A chain-free cash purchase can be done in six to eight weeks. A long chain with a leasehold at one end can run past 20 weeks with nobody at fault.

Timings have got worse, not better. The single biggest variable is the local authority search: some councils return one in a fortnight, while others in the slowest boroughs have been quoting turnarounds measured in months. Nobody in the chain can do anything about it, which is why a good conveyancer orders searches as early as possible rather than waiting for the survey.

Stage one: instructing a conveyancer

Once your offer is accepted, both sides instruct a solicitor or a licensed conveyancer. A licensed conveyancer is a property specialist regulated by the Council for Licensed Conveyancers; a solicitor is regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority and can also handle the wider legal issues that sometimes sit behind a sale, such as probate or a divorce settlement. Either is fine for a straightforward purchase.

Two practical checks before you commit. If you are borrowing, make sure the firm is on your lender's approved panel, because using one that is not means your lender instructs a second firm and you pay twice. And ask who will actually handle your file day to day, and how they prefer to be contacted. A firm that answers the phone is worth more in week ten than one that was 80 pounds cheaper in week one.

Stage two: the paperwork begins

The seller's conveyancer sends out a draft contract along with the title documents from HM Land Registry and two forms the seller fills in: the Property Information Form, covering boundaries, disputes, alterations and guarantees, and the Fittings and Contents Form, which lists exactly what is staying and what is going. Read both properly. Disagreements about which white goods were included have derailed more completion days than any legal technicality.

At the same time both firms carry out identity and source of funds checks. If your deposit includes gifted money from family, say so early: proving where it came from takes longer than people expect and is a common cause of a quiet two-week stall.

Stage three: searches

Searches are enquiries about the property and the land around it. The three standard ones are:

• Local authority search: planning permissions and refusals, building regulations records, whether the road is adopted, tree preservation orders, and any road or rail schemes nearby.
• Drainage and water search: whether the property connects to a public sewer and mains water, and where the public drains run relative to the building.
• Environmental search: flood risk, contaminated land, ground stability, radon and historic landfill.

In Sussex two extra searches come up often enough to expect them. A flood search matters along the Ouse, the Adur and the Cuckmere and across the coastal strip from Shoreham to Pevensey. Anywhere on or near the chalk of the South Downs, a mining or ground-stability check for old chalk pits and deneholes is worth having. Your conveyancer will advise based on the postcode.

Stage four: enquiries

This is where time goes. Your conveyancer reads the contract, the title, the searches and the survey, then raises written enquiries with the seller's side about anything unclear: a boundary that does not match the plan, a loft conversion without building regulations sign-off, a right of way across the garden, a missing guarantee for damp work. Each round of questions and answers takes days, and there are usually two or three rounds.

You can speed this up as a seller by digging out paperwork before you are asked: FENSA certificates for windows, gas safety and boiler documents, building regulations completion certificates, and any guarantee for a new roof or damp-proof course. As a buyer, read the answers rather than skimming them. An honest "we do not know" on a Property Information Form is a prompt to ask a better question, not a formality.

Stage five: exchange of contracts

When enquiries are settled, the mortgage offer is in hand and everyone in the chain agrees a completion date, contracts are exchanged. The deposit, usually 10 per cent, is transferred, and the sale becomes legally binding: from that moment neither side can walk away without serious financial penalty. Your buildings insurance must be in place from exchange, not from completion, because the risk passes to you at that point.

Stage six: completion and afterwards

Completion is usually set one to two weeks after exchange, though same-day exchange and completion happens. On the day, the money moves up the chain, ownership transfers and the keys are released. Our guide to what actually happens on completion day covers the hour-by-hour reality.

Two jobs remain, and your conveyancer does both. The stamp duty land tax return must be filed and the tax paid within 14 days of completion. The general residential threshold is 125,000 pounds, and first-time buyers pay nothing up to 300,000 pounds provided the property is worth 500,000 pounds or less. After that, your conveyancer registers you as the new owner with HM Land Registry. Registration can take months in the background; it does not affect your right to live in the house, but keep the completion statement and the title documents safe.

Where Sussex moves stall, and what helps

In practice the delays cluster in three places: waiting for a local authority search, waiting for a leasehold management pack, and waiting for one person somewhere in the chain to return a form. None of them are your conveyancer's fault, and none are fixed by ringing every day. What does help is instructing early, sending your ID and funds evidence the week you are asked, chasing your own paperwork before anyone requests it, and keeping the estate agent informed so they can see where the chain is stuck.

For the money side of the same move, see our breakdown of the cost of moving house in Sussex, and when you are ready to book the practical end, our guide to choosing a removal company in Sussex. More local moving guides are on the Move Sussex home page.

Frequently asked questions

What is conveyancing, in plain English?

Conveyancing is the legal work that transfers ownership of a property from the seller to the buyer. It covers checking the title, raising and answering enquiries, ordering searches, agreeing the contract, exchanging contracts, completing the sale, paying stamp duty and registering the new owner at HM Land Registry.

How long does the conveyancing process take?

Twelve to sixteen weeks from offer to completion is a realistic expectation on a freehold house, and sixteen to twenty weeks on a leasehold flat. A chain-free cash purchase can be done in six to eight weeks. A long chain with a leasehold at one end can run well past twenty weeks.

Do I need a solicitor or a licensed conveyancer?

Either can do the job. A licensed conveyancer is a property specialist regulated by the Council for Licensed Conveyancers; a solicitor is regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority and can also advise on wider legal issues that touch the sale. If you are borrowing, check the firm is on your lender's approved panel before you instruct.

What are conveyancing searches and do I have to have them?

Searches are enquiries about the property and the land around it: the local authority search, the drainage and water search, and an environmental search covering flooding and contaminated land. If you are buying with a mortgage your lender will insist on them. Cash buyers can technically skip them, but that means buying blind to planning decisions, road schemes and flood risk.

What is the difference between exchange and completion?

Exchange of contracts is when the deal becomes legally binding and the deposit is paid; from then on neither side can withdraw without penalty. Completion is the later date, usually one to two weeks afterwards, when the balance of the money is transferred, ownership passes and the keys are released.

When do I pay stamp duty?

Your conveyancer files the stamp duty land tax return and pays HMRC on your behalf, and it must be done within 14 days of completion. You supply the money before completion day as part of your final balance. The general residential threshold is 125,000 pounds, and first-time buyers pay nothing up to 300,000 pounds on a property worth 500,000 pounds or less.