Conveyancing is the legal work involved in transferring ownership of a property. It starts when an offer is accepted and ends at completion, when the money changes hands and the keys are released. How long it takes depends far more on the particular property and the people involved than on the type of sale.
The short answer
For a typical sale with a mortgage buyer, it often takes a few months from accepting an offer to completion — sometimes less, often more. Chains, leasehold properties, probate and missing paperwork can all add weeks. A sale with no chain and a cash buyer is often quicker, because several of the slower steps fall away.
The stages
1. Instructing solicitors
Both sides instruct a solicitor or licensed conveyancer. Yours will check your identity, ask for proof of ownership and send you property information forms to fill in, along with the fittings and contents form. If it’s leasehold, there’s an extra leasehold information form.
2. The contract pack
Your solicitor obtains the title from HM Land Registry, prepares a draft contract, and sends it to the buyer’s solicitor with your completed forms and any supporting documents — guarantees, planning and building control paperwork, and certificates for work such as windows or electrics.
3. Searches and enquiries
The buyer’s solicitor orders searches — including a local authority search, which checks for things like planning history and road schemes. Council turnaround times vary widely. They then raise questions (“enquiries”) about anything in the paperwork that needs clarifying. This back-and-forth is often where time is lost.
4. Mortgage and survey
If the buyer needs a mortgage, their lender will value the property and issue a mortgage offer. Many buyers also commission their own survey. Problems found at this stage can lead to renegotiation.
5. Exchange of contracts
When everything is agreed, the solicitors exchange signed contracts and the buyer pays a deposit. From this point the sale is legally binding, and a completion date is fixed. That date might be the same day, or a week or two later — it’s agreed between the parties.
6. Completion
On completion day the buyer’s money is sent to your solicitor, your mortgage is paid off, and the keys are released. Afterwards the buyer’s solicitor registers the change of ownership.
What commonly causes delays
- A chain, where every sale depends on the one below it.
- Slow searches from some local authorities.
- Leasehold information from the freeholder or managing agent.
- Missing documents — building regulations sign-off, planning consents, guarantees.
- Title problems, such as unregistered land, boundary issues or old restrictions.
- Waiting for a grant of probate on an inherited property.
- Mortgages that need extra checks, or a down-valuation.
- Existing tenancies where the buyer needs full documentation.
How to keep things moving
- Instruct your solicitor as soon as you decide to sell, not once you have a buyer.
- Fill in the property forms promptly and fully, and gather documents early.
- Reply quickly to questions from your solicitor.
- If it’s leasehold, ask for the management information early — it can take a while and may cost a fee.
- Keep your agent or buyer informed about any dates that matter to you.
You can see how each stage works with us in how it works, including what can delay a sale. If your property is inherited, our guide to selling during probate explains how probate fits into the timetable.