Buy a House with Confidence
When you buy a house, the period between an accepted offer and collecting the keys can feel surprisingly uncertain. You may be asked to commit to dates while reports are outstanding, or find that everyone has a different understanding of what happens next.
Jason Corbett has worked in property since 1988. At Rowallan, our involvement continues through the purchase: keeping conversations moving, helping you understand the practical decisions and working alongside your solicitor, surveyor and other advisers.
How long does it take to buy a house?
There is no reliable timetable that fits every purchase. The chain, mortgage arrangements, legal documents, survey findings and readiness of the people involved all affect progress. A target date is useful, provided everyone understands what still needs to happen.
Preparation helps. Instruct your legal adviser early, organise funding evidence and establish who is responsible for each outstanding item. Our role is to identify the obstacle and help resolve it, while allowing proper investigation before you commit.
Accepted offerIn a standard private-treaty purchase in England, an accepted offer is normally subject to contract.
ExchangeThis is the point at which the purchase becomes legally binding.
CompletionThe purchase funds are transferred and the agreed handover takes place.
Our work continues after the offer
Our full service covers the search, assessment, negotiation and purchase. If you have already found a home, we can discuss the advice and representation you need before making a commitment.
- UnderstandYour circumstances, priorities and the move you need to achieve.
- FindAdvertised homes and opportunities introduced privately.
- AssessValue, suitability and investigations with the right specialists.
- SecureNegotiation, communication and support through to completion.
On the market.
Behind the scenes.
We search publicly advertised homes alongside private opportunities through agents, owners and professional contacts. An off-market introduction deserves the same scrutiny as any other purchase.
For larger homes, private estates and country properties, that may include shared roads, drainage arrangements, outbuildings, land and restrictions on future changes. We help identify the questions and coordinate the appropriate investigations.
Buy a house: the ten stages of a purchase
This guide describes a typical private-treaty purchase in England. Several stages run together; the right sequence depends on the property and your circumstances.
| Stage | Main responsibility | What matters |
|---|---|---|
| Preparation | Buyer and advisers | Instructions, documents and funding |
| Investigation | Legal adviser, surveyor and lender | Title, searches, condition and finance |
| Decisions | Buyer, with professional advice | Understand findings and resolve concerns |
| Exchange | Legal representatives | Binding commitment and agreed terms |
| Completion | Legal representatives and moving team | Funds, confirmed completion and handover |
1. Choose your solicitor or licensed conveyancer
Ask who will handle the file, how they communicate, what the quotation includes and whether they have relevant property experience. If borrowing, check that the firm can act for your lender. The individual’s experience and service matter more than assumptions based on their job title. With your permission, we work alongside your chosen adviser.
2. Complete onboarding and funding checks
Provide the identity, address and source-of-funds evidence requested, sign the engagement documents and arrange any initial payment. Gifts, overseas funds, trusts or company ownership can require additional information. Ask early what is needed. Checks by your solicitor, lender and agents may overlap; one organisation’s checks do not automatically satisfy another.
3. Check the memorandum of sale
The selling agent normally circulates the agreed price and parties’ legal representatives. Check the details, proposed dates and any agreed conditions. Record important inclusions, exclusions or works in writing and ask your solicitor to ensure the contract reflects the agreement. The memorandum itself is not the binding purchase contract.
4. Arrange the survey and mortgage application
Discuss the appropriate survey with a surveyor experienced in that type of building. A substantial, altered or older home may warrant a Level 3 survey or a tailored inspection. A lender’s valuation is not a substitute for your own condition survey. Progress any full mortgage application and understand its conditions and expiry date.
Read the survey and discuss significant findings with the surveyor. Arrange recommended specialist investigations and repair estimates before committing, and share relevant matters with your solicitor. A conversation helps explain the written report; it should never be used to dismiss an unresolved warning. RICS explains the different survey levels.
5. Investigate the title, searches and enquiries
Your legal adviser reviews the contract papers, title and relevant seller information, including the Property Information Form and Fittings and Contents Form where used. They commission appropriate searches and raise enquiries. Common searches cover local authority matters, environmental risks, and water and drainage; additional checks depend on the property.
Highlight what you intend to do with the home. Extensions, a home business, equestrian use or alterations to a listed building may raise specific questions. For land and private estates, establish access, covenants and maintenance liabilities. A standard search is not a complete investigation of every nearby development or practical concern.
6. Read your solicitor’s report
Understand the ownership, restrictions, obligations and unresolved risks before authorising exchange. Ask about anything unclear and read the documents supplied with the report. We help bring the practical findings together and discuss their effect on the purchase; your solicitor advises on the legal position.
7. Prepare the contract, funds and insurance
Follow your solicitor’s signing instructions. Confirm the exchange deposit, remaining funds, taxes, fees and transfer arrangements in good time. Ask when buildings insurance must begin, usually at exchange for a house, subject to the contract. Verify bank details through a trusted contact method before sending money, especially if a message claims they have changed.
8. Exchange contracts
Your solicitor exchanges when authorised and ready, agreeing the completion arrangements with the other side. Signing a contract alone is not exchange. Once contracts are exchanged, withdrawal can have serious financial consequences. Make sure you understand any completion-on-notice provisions or longstop date before agreeing to them.
9. Organise removals and the practical handover
Obtain removal quotations and check availability early; confirm bookings against the agreed completion date and the firm’s terms. Arrange utilities, broadband, post forwarding and access for the move. Discuss alarms, gates, keys, manuals and any equipment needing explanation. We can make introductions through our support network; we do not receive commissions from businesses we recommend.
10. Complete and collect the keys
Your legal representative transfers the completion funds. Wait for confirmation that completion has taken place and keys may be released before moving in. Timing depends on the contract, bank transfers and any chain. We help coordinate the handover; your solicitor also handles the relevant post-completion tax filing and registration work.
Prepare for the decisions ahead
What should be investigated?
Understand how we assess the home, its setting and the questions needing specialist advice.
When a purchase falls through
Consider what went wrong, what you can learn and how to approach the next opportunity.
See our work in practice
Explore client purchases and the judgement, negotiation and support behind them.
Ready to buy a house, or weighing up a particular property?
Tell us where you are in the process and what concerns you. We can discuss a full search or the assessment, negotiation and purchase support you need for a home already identified.