What happens after I’ve accepted an Offer?
Sometimes an offer will be subject to various conditions. It is quite common for the seller to accept the offer first and then give the buyer a chance to satisfy those conditions.
For example, the offer might be subject to the buyer having a survey carried-out on the roof or on an area of suspected damp. Once this has been done, if the buyer is happy, the offer can be described as ‘clean’ and the offer moves into the conveyancing stages.
If the buyer isn’t happy, there might still be some negotiation to be done about the final selling price to take into account the potential spend that the buyer will have to make on those areas of concern. Or at this stage the purchase might fall apart and the seller has to re-market the property.
Conveyancing
Your solicitor takes care of the conveyancing stages. The conveyancing contract consists of ‘missives’, which literally means the exchange of letters. When all the letters have been exchanged, the ‘missives’ are ‘concluded’ and you have a binding contract.
Common causes of delay of ‘conclusion of missives’ are a lack of paperwork relating to alterations and delays or problems with the buyer’s finance.
If you have a long Date of Entry, it can be an anxious time for sellers. However, once missives have concluded, you can put the champagne on ice!
Then there are the practicalities of moving – informing your utility companies that you are moving, putting a divert on your mail at the Royal Mail (this can be done via their website for a small fee) and perhaps getting a decorator lined-up for your new property if it needs some attention … never a dull moment!
This Guide is as comprehensive as we can make it but we can’t cover all scenarios. If you have any questions about selling your property, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with our Valuation team at MOV8 by calling 0345 646 0208 (Option 1) or email [email protected]. You can also instantly book a free valuation appointment online by following this link.
