Selling Your Home - Common Questions and What to Expect.

A Blog by Victoria Kirby - Head of the Sale Transaction Team at MJP Conveyancing 

You have accepted an offer on your property and instructed your conveyancer. What happens next? Here is an overview: 
Once your identity checks have been completed, your solicitor will prepare a contract pack to issue to the buyer’s solicitor. This pack typically includes:

• The Title Deeds for the property

• A draft contract

• The Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)

• Your completed property forms and supporting documents, including:

• Property Information Form (TA6)

• Fittings and Contents Form (TA10)

• Leasehold Information Form (TA7), if the property is leasehold

The buyer’s solicitor will then review the contract pack and raise any enquiries relating to the property. They will also apply for the buyer’s searches. During this period, the buyer may arrange a property survey and obtain their mortgage offer.

It may take several weeks for the buyer’s solicitor to gather all necessary information and send their enquiries to your solicitor.

Once the enquiries have been received, your solicitor will review them and advise you on which enquiries require your response. Some enquiries will be dealt with directly by your solicitor, while others will need your input.

When the buyer’s solicitor confirms that they have no further enquiries, both parties can proceed to agree a completion date.

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Common Questions from Sellers  

1.  Can the buyer withdraw once the process has started? 

Yes. Both the seller and buyer are free to withdraw from the transition without consequence prior to exchange of contracts. Once exchange has taken place however, the sale becomes legally binding and neither party can withdraw without financial penalty. 

2. What is the difference between exchange and completion? 

Exchange - Exchange of contracts will make the transaction and the agreed completion date legally binding, so once exchange has taken place you are legally committed to complete the sale. A specific date is not usually set for exchange of contracts, instead we look to exchange as soon as possible following agreement of a completion date and once we are ready to proceed.

Completion - This is the date that needs to be agreed by all parties in the chain and is the day that legal ownership transfers. The full sale price will be paid on this date from the buyer’s solicitor to the seller’s solicitor and you will need to hand over the keys to the new owner.  

3. What if the buyer raises lots of enquiries?

Don’t worry—this is normal. It is not uncommon for there to be a lot of enquiries and for the enquiries process to take a few weeks. 

4. Do I need to arrange a boiler service? 

It is not a requirement that you arrange for the boiler at your property to be tested in order to sell. It is, however, a common enquiry that a buyer will raise throughout the course of a sale. 

5. I have a mortgage on my home – how is this repaid? 

Your solicitor will deal with this payment to your mortgage lender on completion. During the sale process, they will request a redemption statement from your lender which confirms the exact amount that needs to be re-paid to redeem your mortgage. They will ask you to check this statement to ensure it is in line with what you are expecting to re-pay. 

6. How long will it take to sell my home? 

There is no set time-scale as many different factors can impact this. The average time-scale is between 10 – 12 weeks. 

• Complete your property forms - TA6, TA10 and TA7 (if Leasehold) - as early as possible. 

• Return your signed documents as soon as possible. 

• Check that your Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) is in date. Unless you are selling a listed property, the EPC will be required in order to sell. This can be checked here - https://www.gov.uk/find-energy-certificate

• Provide your conveyancer with any supporting documentation you have for the property. This may be: boiler or electrical test reports, instillations certificates, FENSA certificates, planning permissions, guarantees (double glazing, damp proofing, roofing etc). 

• If you are selling a Leasehold property, or a Freehold property subject to service charges, you will need to request a management pack from your management company. It is recommended that this is requested early on in the sale process, as the management company may take a number of weeks to produce this. 

 
 Tips for a Smooth Sale 

• Complete your property forms - TA6, TA10 and TA7 (if Leasehold) - as early as possible. 
• Return your signed documents as soon as possible. 
• Check that your Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) is in date. Unless you are selling a listed property, the EPC will be required in order to sell. This can be checked here - https://www.gov.uk/find-energy-certificate
• Provide your conveyancer with any supporting documentation you have for the property. This may be: boiler or electrical test reports, instillations certificates, FENSA certificates, planning permissions, guarantees (double glazing, damp proofing, roofing etc). 
• If you are selling a Leasehold property, or a Freehold property subject to service charges, you will need to request a management pack from your management company. It is recommended that this is requested early on in the sale process, as the management company may take a number of weeks to produce this.