Conveyancing Explained: What Your Solicitor Does and Why It Takes So Long

When you instruct a solicitor or licensed conveyancer, they perform five categories of work: 1) Title investigation — confirming the seller actually owns what they're selling and there are no restrictions, rights of way, or charges that affect you. 2) Property searches — checking local authority records for planning applications, building control approvals, environmental risks, flood zones, and contaminated land. 3) Enquiries — asking the seller specific questions about boundaries, disputes, alterations, fixtures, and anything that affects the property. 4) Mortgage liaison — ensuring the lender's requirements are met and the mortgage offer reflects the property. 5) Completion mechanics — handling the transfer of funds, registration with Land Registry, and stamp duty submission.

Local authority searches take 2-8 weeks depending on the council and reveal planning history, conservation area status, smoke control zones, and tree preservation orders. Environmental searches check for flood risk, contaminated land, ground stability, and radon. Water and drainage searches confirm the property is connected to mains sewerage and whether any public drains cross the property (which restricts building). A mining search is essential in coal-producing regions. Of these, environmental searches produce the most deal-breaking results — particularly flood risk (which affects insurance and mortgage availability) and contaminated land (which can require expensive remediation).

The conveyancing timeline breaks down roughly as follows: Local authority searches: 2-8 weeks. Mortgage offer: 2-4 weeks. Seller's responses to enquiries: 1-4 weeks. Buyer's solicitor raising additional enquiries: 1-2 weeks. Report to buyer and mortgage sign-off: 1 week. Exchange preparation: 1 week. The biggest variable is enquiry response time — both from the seller and from the local authority. A responsive seller with an organised solicitor can cut weeks from the process. A seller who takes 3 weeks to answer questions about whether they replaced a window in 2015 adds weeks.

For sellers: instruct your solicitor before you accept an offer. Have your title deeds, planning permissions, building regulations sign-off, FENSA certificates, and completed TA6 property information form ready on day one. The new TA6 form (mandatory from 30 March 2026) requires more upfront information — filling it in thoroughly now prevents weeks of follow-up enquiries later. For buyers: respond to your solicitor within 24 hours when they ask you something. Ensure your mortgage application is complete before the search results come back. Have your deposit accessible in a UK bank account.

Exchange of contracts is when both parties sign and are legally committed. A deposit (usually 10%) is paid by the buyer. After exchange, pulling out incurs severe financial penalties — the buyer loses their deposit, and either party can be sued for damages. Completion is when the remaining funds transfer and you get the keys. The gap between exchange and completion is typically 1-4 weeks, though simultaneous exchange and completion is increasingly common (especially for chains).

The most common problems: mortgage down-valuation (the lender values the property lower than the purchase price — you must find the shortfall or renegotiate), title defects (unregistered land, missing deeds, boundary disputes), search results revealing planning issues or environmental risks, and chain breaks (another transaction in the chain collapses, pulling yours down with it). Of all agreed sales in England, approximately 28% fall through before exchange. The main causes: survey results, down-valuations, chain breaks, and change of mind.