Step 4 – Arrange a survey
Your mortgage lender will perform a desk-based survey to establish the property’s valuation, however you may also want to get an additional home buyer’s survey to check the overall condition of the property, highlight any structural concerns and find out about any essential or recommended repairs and work to be carried out.
Home buyer’s surveys are always advised when buying a house. Although they come at an additional cost, they provide an insight into the overall condition of the property and will let you know if there are any potential issues such as damp or structural damage. Finding out any issues with a survey before you have exchanged contracts can give you the chance to renegotiate the property price or pull out of the purchase before it is legally binding.
How long do surveys take?
Surveys can typically be arranged and completed within 1-2 weeks, depending on availability and the complexity of the survey required.
Book your survey
Book your survey today with our trusted partner The Moving Portal.
Step 5 – Perform conveyancing searches
Your conveyancer will arrange property searches to give you more information about the house before you move on with your purchase. The main ones are Land Registry, environmental and drainage searches. They’re an important part of the process as they can flag potential issues, such as planning restrictions, flood risk, ground stability and local development plans.
If you’re taking out a mortgage to purchase your property, your lender will likely insist that searches are necessary – as they’ll need to make sure that their money won’t be invested in a property that has a higher chance of being worth less in the future.
How long do conveyancing searches take?
Property searches can take 2-4 weeks, depending on the local authority's turnaround times. Read our article for more information on local authority lead times and which councils are taking more than 25 working days to return searches.
Step 6 – Finalise your mortgage
Once the survey is done and the conveyancing searches have come back, you can inform your lender you’re ready to proceed with your purchase.
If your mortgage application is successful, you’ll receive an offer from your mortgage provider. You can then spend some time reviewing your mortgage product and your contract terms to check the deal is right for you, since you’ll be making a big commitment. If you’re happy to proceed with your mortgage offer, you’ll then move on to the final steps of the home-buying process.
How long does it take to finalise a mortgage?
It can take, on average, 2-6 weeks to finalise a mortgage offer. The time taken for this process can vary depending on your mortgage provider, the underwriters' assessment, the complexity of your financial situation and the response times for both you and the lender.
Find out more about getting a mortgage.
Step 7 – Pay the deposit
To avoid any delays, you’ll need to transfer the deposit into your conveyancer’s account around now, so it’s cleared in time for the exchange. Depending on how long there will be between exchange and completion you might also need to cover conveyancing fees, as well as Stamp Duty Land Tax. To find out how much tax you will be required to pay, you can use our stamp duty calculator.
Step 8: Agree moving dates
You’ll now be able to discuss provisional moving dates with the seller and the rest of the chain, so it’s a good time to start getting house removal quotes. This will help you to budget, as it can often cost a lot more than you were expecting. To make sure your move runs like clockwork, check out our handy moving house checklist.
Step 9: Exchange contracts
Your conveyancer will guide you through one of the final steps of the transaction; exchanging contracts. Once the contracts are signed, you’re now in a legally binding contract to buy the house.
How long does it take to exchange contracts?
This process usually takes around 4-8 weeks from the time your offer is accepted, depending on how smoothly the legal and financial checks go. At this stage, both you and the seller are legally committed to the transaction.
Step 10: Complete your purchase
The final stage of the process of buying a house is known as completion. This is when the remaining funds are transferred to the seller’s solicitor, and ownership of the property officially passes to you. You’ll receive the keys and can finally move into your new home!
Following completion of your new house purchase, your conveyancer will let the Land Registry know you’re the new owner and arrange the funds transfer if you had stamp duty to pay. Once the registration is complete, your conveyancer will send you and your mortgage provider copies of the title deeds.
All that’s left to do is enjoy your new home!
How long does it take to complete the purchase of a house?
Completion usually occurs 1-2 weeks after the exchange of contracts, although this can be flexible depending on the agreement between you and the seller. Whilst there's no legal time limit for completion, it's recommended you should complete within 7–28 days of exchanging contracts.
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