At a glance
- Selling runs in a clear order: prepare, choose an agent, market the home, agree an offer, do the legal work, exchange contracts and complete.[1][2]
- An offer is not legally binding until contracts are exchanged, and your property is not legally sold until then.[3]
- The government’s own figures put the average sale at about 120 days to complete, with around one in three sales falling through.[4]
- You will need to prove your identity and address, and an EPC must be ordered before the home is marketed.[1][5]
Rules and figures last checked October 2026.
The stages, in order
- 1
Get ready
Gather your documents, decide your move and order an EPC. You will also be asked to prove who you are and where you live.[1] Our legal paperwork guide lists what is needed.
- 2
Choose an agent and agree a price
A good valuation is realistic, not flattering. Read how to choose an estate agent, then book a free valuation.
- 3
Market the home
Photographs, a floorplan, an accurate description and a listing on the major portals. See how we market your home.
- 4
Accept an offer
The agent must tell you about every offer until contracts are exchanged.[6] An accepted offer is still “subject to contract”. See offers and exchange.
- 5
Instruct a conveyancer
After you accept an offer, your conveyancer draws up the contract, and the buyer’s side checks the title and runs searches.[2]
- 6
Exchange contracts
On exchange, the agreement to sell and buy becomes legally binding.[2]
- 7
Complete
The balance is paid, once the mortgage and fees are settled, and you hand over the keys. You must leave the property in the state agreed in the contract.[2]
How long does it take, and why do sales fall through?
The government’s home buying and selling roadmap puts the average time to complete at about 120 days and says around one in three sales falls through. It plans to legislate for sales packs and binding conditional contracts, but only later in this Parliament, and until then buyers and sellers are not required to enter binding contracts.[4]
- Price it right. The biggest single factor in a quick, successful sale. An overpriced home attracts few viewings.
- Be ready with paperwork. Delays often start with missing documents. Ask your conveyancer for the forms early.
- Choose your conveyancer early, so legal work can start the day an offer is accepted.
- Keep in touch with your agent, who can chase the chain and the buyer’s side for you.
Where to go next
- Costs of sellingTax, early repayment charges and what is, and is not, payable by the seller.
- Offers and exchangeWhat happens between agreeing a price and completion.
- Free valuationFind out what your home is worth from a local agent.
- Selling an inherited propertyHow selling from an estate works, and the tax involved.
Sources
Every figure and rule above comes from one of these, read in October 2026. The dates are the ones each publisher shows as when the page was last updated.
- [1]Selling a home: preparing to sell (opens in a new tab)GOV.UK
- [2]Selling a home: transferring ownership (conveyancing) (opens in a new tab)GOV.UK
- [3]Selling a home: offers and negotiations (opens in a new tab)GOV.UK
- [4]Home buying and selling reform roadmap (opens in a new tab)GOV.UK (Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government) · page updated 19 June 2026
- [5]Energy Performance Certificates (buying and selling your home) (opens in a new tab)GOV.UK
- [6]Selling a home: estate agents (opens in a new tab)GOV.UK
This is a general guide to selling a home in England, not legal, tax or financial advice. Your own circumstances, and your conveyancer’s advice, decide what applies to you.