Just Had Your Offer Accepted? What Happens Next

The first thing to do, ideally the same day your offer is accepted, is instruct a conveyancing solicitor. Once you have chosen your solicitor, they will open your file, send you a written fee quote and start the legal work immediately.

You will be asked to complete a client care pack, provide identification and proof of address, and confirm the source of your deposit. Tell the estate agent who your solicitor is so they can send memorandum of sale to both sides. The sooner this happens, the sooner your solicitor can request the draft contract from the seller's solicitor and get the wheels turning.

If you already have a mortgage agreement in principle, now is the time to submit your full mortgage application. The lender's valuation is often the slowest step in the whole process.

Once the seller's solicitor sends over the contract pack, things start to move quickly. Your conveyancer will review the title deeds, the Property Information Form (TA6) and the Fittings and Contents Form (TA10) completed by the seller.

At the same time, property searches are ordered. These typically include:

• Local authority search covering planning, building regulations and road schemes
• Water and drainage search confirming the property is connected to mains supply
• Environmental search checking for flood risk, contaminated land and subsidence
• Chancel repair check and any other location-specific searches

You will be asked to pay for these searches upfront. Expect results to take anywhere from a few days to three weeks depending on the local authority.

This is the stage where most purchases either glide forward or stall. When search results come back, your solicitor will raise enquiries with the seller's solicitor about anything unclear or concerning. These might cover boundary lines, planning permissions, guarantees for works done, or alterations made to the property.

Meanwhile, you should arrange your survey. A homebuyer's report is usually enough for a standard property, but for older or unusual buildings a full building survey is worth the extra cost. Your mortgage lender will also carry out their own valuation at this point and, assuming everything checks out, issue a formal mortgage offer.

Once enquiries are satisfactorily answered and your mortgage offer is in, your solicitor will prepare a report on title for you. This explains exactly what you are buying, any restrictions, and what the searches revealed. Read it carefully and ask questions before you sign anything.

Once you are happy with the report and ready to commit, you will sign the contract and transfer your deposit (usually ten per cent of the purchase price, or five per cent for first time buyers with a lender's agreement).

Exchange of contracts is the legally binding moment. Once contracts are exchanged neither you nor the seller can pull out without serious financial penalty. A completion date is fixed at this point, typically one to four weeks after exchange.

On completion day, your solicitor will:

• Transfer the balance of the purchase price from your mortgage lender and your own funds to the seller's solicitor
• Confirm receipt of funds and notify the estate agent to release the keys
• Register your ownership with Land Registry and file your Stamp Duty return with HMRC

You pick up the keys, usually from the estate agent, and the property is legally yours.