Experts say that buying or selling a home is one of the three most stressful things you can do. Some people do find it traumatic, whether they are a first time buyer or an existing property owner. At Wards, helping clients move home is a key part of what we do and our team of qualified and experienced lawyers aim to make the process as painless as possible for you.

We believe that expertise, speed and communication are vital to any residential conveyancing service and - according to our survey of clients - 95% of them are satisfied that we provide this. You will find that we are readily available by phone, email or fax and, to speed up the process, we carry out many of our legal services and investigations online.

To calculate our charges for a property sale or purchase, click here for an estimate. 

Outlined below is a handy guide, which provides you with useful, plain English explanations of the sales and purchase process and, hopefully, answers some of your questions.

You may also like to look at our tips for choosing a solicitor. And our guide to registering your property title.

Who should I contact?
In the first instance, contact Gary Hope, who is head of our Residential Conveyancing team, and he will either help you himself, or put you in touch with a team member at an appropriate office. As well as acting locally, we act for many clients throughout the UK and, using the latest technology, we can complete transactions effectively, wherever you are based. E-mail Gary or telephone him on 0117 929 2811.

Alternatively, click here to find an office local to you.

2. You then need to instruct an estate agent, find a buyer and agree a price for your property. The ideal buyer is someone who has no property to sell and does not need a mortgage but this rarely happens, so check the position your buyer is in.

3. Once you have returned our Confirmation of Instructions form, we will submit a contract package to the buyer's conveyancer with copies of your title and information forms which we will have provided for you to complete.

4. The buyer's conveyancer may then ask questions about the information provided.  We use our own specially drafted information forms to provide as much information as possible, and to eliminate common enquiries. However, with your assistance, we then reply to any questions and continue to do so until the buyer's conveyancer is satisfied.

5. Once the buyer has a written mortgage offer, their search results and are happy with the replies to their questions, the buyer's conveyancer will usually arrange for the buyer to sign their part of the contract. We will also ask you to sign your part of the contract in readiness.

6. We are then ready to exchange contracts but if there is a chain involved, we may have to wait until everyone is ready.

7. We arrange the exchange of contracts by telephone. When contracts are exchanged, this is when both  you and you buyer are committed to the transaction. The completion date will have been discussed and agreed by everyone before exchange and is now fixed. You can  now make your removal arrangements and arrange for final accounts for your services, i.e. gas, electricity and telephone. The buyer will pay a deposit which is held by us or may be used on any related purchase you have.

8. On the completion date, we receive the sale money by bank transfer from the buyer's conveyancer. On receipt we authorise your estate agent to give the house keys to the buyer. You will usually need to have moved out by midday on the day of the move, depending on the number of properties in the chain.

9. We use the sale money to pay off your mortgage, your estate agent's fees and our fees before sending any balance to you.

10. Any documents which we hold for the property will be sent to the buyer's conveyancer.

Buying a home

1. You should ask the estate agent for a copy of the Home Information Pack so you can check this before you make your offer for the property. Contact us if you need any general or personal pre-purchase advice.

2. You may need to arrange a mortgage. Remember, when working out your budget that, in addition to the mortgage lender’s fees, you will have to pay solicitors’ costs, government expenses and other costs. We can assist with mortgage recommendations, if required.

3.  As part of your mortgage offer, your lender will insist that a valuation is carried out on the property. But it is a good idea to pay for a more detailed structural survey, which will tell you if there are any existing or potential problems and whether any building work needs to be carried out. If so, you may wish to negotiate a price reduction. We can assist with recommendations, if required.

4. We will receive a contract pack from the seller's conveyancer and usually provide copies of key documents to you. We will request any searches that are needed. Not all searches will be required for every transaction, particularly if there is a HIP with current searches in it.

5. We ask the seller's conveyancer to clarify, correct or obtain further information about the property. We check the legal ownership, the obligations and rights that go with the property and advise you of the key features.

6. When we receive your mortgage offer from your lender, we check to ensure that you and the property satisfy the mortgage conditions, thus safeguarding the money they are lending on your property. They may specify work that we need to do before we exchange contracts.

7. Once we have mortgage instructions, searches and replies to any questions raised of the seller's conveyancer, we will usually send you a report and then arrange for you to sign the contract and give us your deposit.

8. We arrange the exchange of contracts by telephone. This is when both you and your buyer are committed to the transaction. The completion date will have been discussed and agreed by everyone before exchange and is now fixed. You can now make your removal arrangements. Your deposit is paid to the buyer's conveyancer.

9. Once you’ve exchanged, you should ensure that you have life cover in place from the date of exchange, together with buildings insurance on the new property, if you are arranging this.

10. We tell your lender the completion date so they know when to send the mortgage money to us. We ask you for any further money needed.

11. On the completion date, we send the remainder of the purchase money to the seller's conveyancer and they authorise the estate agent to give you the keys. You can move in – usually after midday, depending on the number of properties in the chain.

12. After completion, we arrange for any stamp duty to be paid and for your title to be registered at the Land Registry. Once this has been completed we will send a copy of the title to you.

See our guide for the latest full information on HIPs.

Your questions answered

What are the ‘property deeds’? Most property titles are now registered at the Land Registry. These are now held electronically and no paper deed is generated, only a copy. You should be aware that the Land Registry registers are open to the public. This means that copies of any title may be obtained by other members of the public. The register will also show the price paid for the property.

What are the ‘Information forms’? There are usually two forms to be completed but more for flats and leasehold property. One relates to fixtures and fittings to be left at the property. Fixtures are assumed to be included in the contract unless you specify otherwise. Fittings (such as carpets and curtains) are not assumed to be included. The other contains general property information. We use our own specially drafted information forms to provide as much information as possible, and to eliminate common enquiries.

What is a ‘mortgage offer’? This is a written document offering to lend you money. It is only supplied when your lender has taken up references and had a surveyor's valuation report. The offer may not be made until various matters raised in the report have been sorted out, e.g. timber treatment.

What are the ‘searches’? We will make the necessary searches, for example, with the Local Authority, the Coal Authority, the water company or for an environmental search. They give us information such as planning permissions, whether adjoining roads are maintained by the Council, or whether a property could be at risk from old mine shafts which might cause subsidence. Not all these searches will be required for every transaction but key ones are required by your mortgage lender.

What is ‘exchange of contracts’? This is the point at which you are legally bound to sell or buy the property on a certain date. You are now committed and if either you or the seller pull out or delay completion, you will have to pay a heavy financial penalty. If you are buying, your deposit is paid to your seller's solicitor.

What is ‘completion’? When contracts are exchanged a completion date is fixed. If you are buying a brand new property completion will occur within a specified time of the property being finished by the builders. On completion, you become the legal owner of the property and can move in. You are now responsible for all bills and your mortgage payments.

On completion day, you can collect the keys when the seller's solicitor has told the estate agents that they have received the money from us. This may well be lunchtime or later, depending on the number of properties in the chain.

When do I give you the ‘deposit and how much is it? Before exchange of contracts you will need to give us a cheque for 10% of the purchase price. This can be agreed at 5% in special cases. If you are selling we can often use the deposit from your sale. A deposit may be lost if you fail to complete a purchase.

What is ‘Stamp Duty? Stamp Duty is a government tax which has to be paid by buyers. The amount payable is based on the value of the property.

How long will it all take? The whole process usually takes 8 to 13 weeks. But it may take longer if problems arise or a number of buyers and sellers are involved (a "chain"). Some lenders take a long time to issue mortgage offers, which we need before exchange of contracts. Some searches can also take a while to obtain.

When should I book my removers? From the outset either buyer or seller may have moving dates in mind. But the reality is that a moving date is only fixed on exchange of contracts, so you should not finalise your removal until contracts have been exchanged.

What will it cost? Our charges are based on various factors, including the value of the property and the complexity of the matter. We are always happy to provide estimates by telephone or you can use our online quotation system to get an estimate. Click here for an estimate.

When do I pay your bill? We ask you to pay our invoice before completion, plus give us the money to pay any stamp duty and registration fees, as we are required to do by your lender.

Are there any other issues I should be aware of? Buying a property can be a major step for some clients and we would also advise you to consider making a Will, especially if you are a first time buyer. If you have existing wills in place, you may still need to review your existing will.

In addition we can help with the preparation of Declaration of Trusts, where joint owners need to prepare an agreement reflecting their joint ownership arrangements.

After the sale has been completed, there may well be surplus funds available. Wards can offer tax advice and we can also put you in touch with qualified independent financial advisers who are well placed to help you to obtain the maximum benefit from the proceeds of your sale.

How you can help us