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Buying and selling

Sale and purchase

Selling your current home and buying the next one, with both deals timed so you exchange and complete on the same day.

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Every cost on its own line: the law firm's legal fee, VAT, the searches and other third-party costs, and any property tax. Your quote opens as soon as you send the form.

Every move in a chain depends on the others, so nobody can exchange until everyone is ready. Telling your conveyancer about any fixed dates at the start helps them plan the timetable around you.

When you sell one home and buy another, the two deals depend on each other. You usually need the money from your sale to pay for your purchase, and you do not want to be left with two homes or none. Using one conveyancer for both sides makes it easier to keep the dates, the money and the paperwork in step.

This service suits anyone moving from one owned home to another, often as part of a chain: the line of linked sales and purchases in which each move depends on another. Your conveyancer acts for you on both transactions and coordinates them with the other conveyancers in the chain.

The instant online quote shows the sale and the purchase side by side, each with its own legal fee, admin fees and third-party costs, plus an estimate of the tax on the purchase. If you go ahead, Keyfolio introduces you to a regulated law firm that handles both transactions for you.

What is involved

Your conveyancer runs the sale and the purchase in parallel, then brings them together:

  • Opening both files: identity checks, terms of engagement and a clear picture of your current mortgage, any new borrowing and the deposit you need.
  • The sale: preparing your contract pack, answering your buyer's enquiries and obtaining a redemption statement for your mortgage.
  • The purchase: reviewing the seller's contract pack, ordering searches, raising enquiries and checking your new mortgage offer.
  • Lining up the money: working out how much of your sale proceeds goes towards the purchase, and whether your buyer's deposit can be passed on as the deposit for your purchase.
  • Agreeing dates across the chain: confirming every party can exchange and complete on the same days, and that nobody is still waiting for a mortgage offer or a search.
  • Simultaneous exchange: exchanging on your sale and purchase at the same time, so you are never committed to one without the other.
  • Completion day: receiving your buyer's money, repaying your old mortgage, drawing down your new loan and sending the purchase price to your seller, all on the same day.
  • After completion: filing the tax return for the purchase and registering you as owner of your new home.

What the legal fee covers

  • Acting for you on both the sale and the purchase
  • Preparing your sale contract pack and answering your buyer's enquiries
  • Reviewing the title, searches and contract for your new home
  • Coordinating dates with the other conveyancers in the chain
  • Exchanging contracts on both transactions at the same time
  • Managing the money on completion day, including repaying your old mortgage
  • A completion statement covering both transactions
  • Filing the property tax return and registering your new home

Costs you may see on top

  • Searches and HM Land Registry fees on the purchase
  • Official copies of your title for the sale
  • Fees for each mortgage involved, both the loan being repaid and the new loan
  • Identity checks for each person and bank transfer charges on both sides
  • Stamp Duty Land Tax, or the Welsh equivalent, on the purchase
  • Bridging finance costs if you have to complete the purchase before the sale money arrives
  • VAT on the legal fees and on some third-party costs

What to have ready

  • Photo identification and proof of address for everyone selling and buying
  • Details of your current mortgage and your new mortgage offer
  • The memorandums of sale for both transactions, with the estate agents' details
  • Certificates, guarantees and planning paperwork for the home you are selling
  • Evidence of any savings or gifts you are adding to the sale proceeds
  • The latest date you can complete, for example because of a school start or a new job

How long it takes

Because both transactions must be ready at the same time, a sale and purchase of freehold homes commonly takes 10 to 16 weeks, and often longer if either home is leasehold. The pace is set by the slowest link in the chain, so one buyer's mortgage delay or one seller's missing certificate can hold everyone up. You can help by returning forms quickly, getting your mortgage offer early and telling your conveyancer about any fixed dates. If the chain stalls, options include renting for a short period or bridging finance, and your conveyancer can explain the legal side of each.

Things to watch for

  • Never exchange on your purchase before your sale unless you have a firm plan to pay for it. Your conveyancer will normally exchange both at the same moment to avoid this.
  • If you buy your new home before your old one is sold, the higher rates of Stamp Duty Land Tax can apply. You may be able to claim the extra back if you sell your previous main home within 3 years.
  • Check whether your buyer's deposit can be used towards the deposit on your purchase. If it cannot, you may need to find that deposit from savings.
  • On completion day you usually need to be out of your old home by an agreed time, while the keys to your new home are released only once the money arrives. Plan removals and storage with that gap in mind.
  • Ask your lender early whether your mortgage can move with you, and whether the new property meets its requirements.

Questions people ask

Do I need the same conveyancer for both?

You do not have to, but it usually helps. A single firm sees both sides of your move, can check the sale money covers the purchase and can exchange both contracts at the same moment. With two firms, each one relies on the other for updates, which can slow down exchange and make completion day harder to coordinate.

What is a simultaneous exchange?

It means exchanging contracts on your sale and your purchase at the same time, usually in a sequence of phone calls between all the conveyancers in the chain. Once it is done, every deal in the chain is legally binding with the same completion date. It protects you from being committed to buy without a committed buyer for your current home.

What if I have to buy before I have sold?

You would need another way to pay, such as savings or bridging finance, a short-term loan secured on property, until your sale completes. You may also pay the higher rates of Stamp Duty Land Tax because you own two homes for a time. A refund of the extra tax may be available if you sell your previous main home within 3 years and claim within the deadline. Your conveyancer can explain the legal steps and the timing.

Why does my quote show two sets of fees?

A sale and a purchase involve different legal work, so each has its own legal fee and third-party costs. The purchase includes searches, HM Land Registry registration and property tax; the sale includes copies of your title and repaying your mortgage. Showing both lets you see exactly what each side costs. Our guide on reading a conveyancing quote explains each line.

Who does the work

Your matter is handled by a law firm regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, the Council for Licensed Conveyancers or CILEx Regulation, or in Northern Ireland by a solicitor regulated by the Law Society of Northern Ireland. At the moment the law firms on our panel act for property in England and Wales, so for property in Northern Ireland we tell you whether a firm can act for you before we pass your details to anyone. The firm confirms who will work on your file, their experience and its terms before you instruct it. How we choose our firms.

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