Buyers and Sellers Checklist
Buyers and Sellers Checklist
BUYERS
YOUR IMPORTANT CALLS YOUR FINANCE
Please call your solicitor and make sure they are fully instructed to act for you. This will mean filling out and returning the paperwork they have sent you alongside providing them with ID for their checks.
Please make sure they are in funds so they are able to order your searches.
Let them know what timescales have been agreed to aim towards at this stage.
Please call us when this has been done.
Please contact your bank or broker to submit your application for your mortgage if you require one. This will involve providing them with lots of paperwork if you haven’t already done so and paying for the mortgage valuation (survey).
If you wish to have a private homebuyers or building survey, please call the firm you have chosen, pay them for this and they will call us to arrange.
If you have to release any money from investments or ISA’s please find out the notice required and make sure you have applied for this in time for exchange.
Transparency is key at this stage, as we look for all surveys to be booked in within 7-10 days from offer acceptance. Please keep us regularly updated on progress and make your broker aware of these timescales.
Once your solicitor has all your paperwork, ID and money on file they are formally instructed. They will receive our memorandum of sale and request draft contracts from the Sellers solicitors. Once they have received this, they will apply for your searches on the property you are buying (Environmental, Local Authority, Water and Drainage and Chancel Repair Liability) provided you have paid for them in advance.
Your solicitor will also advise you on your stamp duty costs to pay. Please make sure you keep us updated.
Your mortgage valuation (survey) should have been booked in and gone ahead, the mortgage offer is normally issued within 3-5 working days from the survey.
If not please chase your broker and keep us and your solicitor updated.
Speak to your solicitor to get an update on progress. See if your mortgage offer, if applicable, is now with them.
Find out if they have received answers to any/ all enquiries raised to the sellers solicitor. Please update us when you have this update.
Mortgage valuation (survey) should be completed.
Mortgage offer received, if applicable. Any private survey report should be received by now too.
Your solicitor will receive draft contracts from the sellers solicitor.
Your solicitor should have received most of the searches back but the local authority search sometimes takes longer.
If all searches are back, enquiries will be raised to the sellers solicitors.
Talk to your solicitor to see if they have all they need from the sellers solicitors and start talking about likely exchange and completion dates.
Ensure you have your buildings insurance ready to go upon exchange.
Speak to removal firms and check availability around your likely completion dates.
Once you have agreed a completion date sign the contract and send back to your solicitor along with your deposit money.
If applicable, finalise your life insurance.
Replies to enquiries should be received and any further enquiries may be raised to the sellers solicitor.
All searches should be back by now.
Your solicitor will receive all outstanding replies to enquiries raised and if happy will approve the contract. If you have a mortgage, they should have the mortgage offer.
Your solicitor will send you the contract and paperwork to sign, witness and return.
Your solicitor will submit a transfer document, known as a TR1, to Land Registry ready to transfer ownership from the current owners to you.
Please update us when you receive these documents to sign and return to your solicitor.
Your solicitor will receive the contract and deposit money and then finalise the completion dates with the sellers solicitors.
Your solicitor will call you and the sellers solicitor to confirm that contracts have been exchanged and reconfirm the set completion date.
EA2 SELLERS
SELLING AGENT
We will write to all parties: buyer, sellers and both sets of solicitors with a full memorandum of sale which outlines the price being paid, the property the timescales agreed and any special conditions.
The solicitors will receive this and start liaising with each other to confirm each are instructed and then to request paperwork.
Solicitors and brokers prefer to update their clients (the buyer or seller) rather than us so we ask that you keep us regularly updated with progress throughout and of course, we are here to help throughout.
When buyers provide us with updates, we will in turn update the sellers, monitoring the timescales agreed to try and keep everyone on track.
When we receive updates from the buyers we will update the sellers.
We will ask our sellers to chase their solicitors to ensure any enquiries that have been received are being dealt with.
The buyer will update us so we can then update our sellers.
We may ask the seller to chase their solicitor at this point to answer any outstanding enquiries.
YOU/YOUR SOLICITOR
Contact your solicitor and formally instruct them to act for you on the sale of the property. They will send you some lengthy forms to fill out alongside asking for your ID and will request money to be put on file to formally start the work.
The forms need to be filled out as soon as possible and returned as they will form part of the draft contract that goes out to the buyers solicitor. Until these are returned by you, the buyers solicitor can not start their work.
If you have a leasehold property, you need to apply for your management pack which will involve a cost. These can often delay sales unless ordered early enough as your managing agent or freeholder may not be as proactive as you with returning paperwork.
Please keep us updated.
Your solicitor will have received the initial enquiries from buyers solicitors.
If your solicitor was sent additional enquiries from the buyers solicitor they should respond accordingly.
The buyer will update us on paperwork so we can then update our sellers and anticipate how far off exchange we are.
We may ask the sellers to chase their solicitors at this point to start lining up for exchange or answer any points holding up the contract being approved.
You and your solicitor will approve the contract and it will be sent to you to sign.
If you are buying another property then your buildings insurance will need to be sorted ready for the exchange of contracts.
Speak to removal firms and check availability around your likely completion dates.
The buyer will update us on the contract being signed and send back to their solicitor, alongside the deposit money being in place.
We will update the seller.
We will call the seller to confirm arrangements for keys on completion day and manage expectations on the time of day it is all likely to happen.
We will call the buyer to confirm what will happen our end on completion day and remind them to bring ID when collecting their keys.
When the sellers solicitor has contacted us to say the property has completed, we will contact the seller to find out when they will have vacated by
We will contact the buyer and confirm that the property purchase is complete and key collection can take place, reminding the buyer to bring in ID.
Your solicitor will receive the contract back from you.
Your onward purchase if applicable, should also be ready to exchange and you need to finalise a completion date. Your solicitor will then liaise with the buyers solicitor to confirm.
Your solicitor will call you and the buyers solicitor to confirm the exchange of contracts has taken place and reconfirm the set completion date.
Now would be a good time to insure your new home, arrange removals, contact utility companies and arrange a mail redirect if needed.
Your solicitor will call you to confirm all money is received and the house sale has completed.