Exchanging contracts is the point where selling your property or buying a house becomes legally binding. If either party cancels the transaction at this point, they can face significant legal and financial penalties. But how long does it take to exchange contracts?
For a straightforward property transaction, it typically takes 8 to 12 weeks from having your offer accepted to exchanging contracts, although chains, mortgage delays and leasehold paperwork can stretch that out.
Here, we explore the timing of the process, how long each stage usually takes, why it can take longer and what you can do to keep things moving.
Please note, the timings mentioned apply to property transactions in England and Wales – Scottish property transactions follow a different legal process.
For a deep dive into what this step means, read our Exchange of Contracts Explained guide.
What’s in this guide?
- Exchanging Contracts: At a Glance
- How Many Weeks From Offer Accepted to Exchange of Contracts?
- Exchange of Contracts Timeline With and Without a Chain
- How Long Does Exchange of Contracts Take on the Day?
- How Long Does It Take for Solicitors to Exchange Contracts Once You’re Ready?
- Why Does Exchanging Contracts Take So Long?
- How to Speed Up Exchange of Contracts
- How Long Between Exchange and Completion?
- Let Bespoke Law Services Handle Your Conveyancing
- FAQs About the Exchange of Contracts Timeline
Exchanging Contracts: At a Glance
Reaching exchange typically takes 8 to 12 weeks after an offer is accepted. The exchange itself can take anything from a few minutes without a chain to most of a working day in a long chain. Completion usually follows 1 to 2 weeks after exchange.
| Stage | Typical time |
| Offer accepted to exchange of contracts | 8 to 12 weeks |
| Exchange on the day | A few minutes to most of a working day |
| Exchange to completion | 1 to 2 weeks |
How Many Weeks From Offer Accepted to Exchange of Contracts?
Once a property is marked as ‘Sold STC’ (sold subject to contract), most buyers and sellers can expect to wait around 8 to 12 weeks before contracts are exchanged. That’s where most of the waiting happens, because the legal, financial and practical checks all need to be finished before anyone can commit.
In rough order, the stages look like this:
- Offer accepted and conveyancers instructed (week 1)
- Contract pack sent and searches ordered (weeks 1 to 3)
- Mortgage valuation and formal mortgage offer (weeks 2 to 6)
- Search results, enquiries and report on title (weeks 3 to 10)
- Contracts signed, deposit sent and completion date agreed (weeks 8 to 12)
- Exchange of contracts
These stages overlap, and the week ranges are a guide only. Everything has to be in place before exchange can go ahead, such as the mortgage offer and buildings insurance. Read our house buying journey guide to understand the whole process.
Exchange timelines by situation
How long it takes to exchange contracts depends a lot on who’s buying, who’s selling and what kind of property it is. The table below shows how different situations tend to compare.
| Situation | Typical time to exchange | What drives the timing |
| Cash buyer, no chain | Often towards the shorter end of 8 to 12 weeks, sometimes quicker | No lender to wait for. Searches and the seller’s position set the pace. |
| First-time buyer with a mortgage | Around 8 to 12 weeks | No property to sell, but the buyer waits on the lender and on any chain above the seller |
| Buying and selling in a chain | Often 12 weeks or more | Everyone in the chain has to be ready at the same time |
| Leasehold flat | Often longer than a freehold | The management pack and lease enquiries can take several weeks |
| New build | Set by the developer | Developers often ask buyers to exchange within around 28 days of receiving the contract |
| Probate sale | Often longer | The executors usually need the grant of probate before they can exchange |
| Shared ownership | Often longer | The housing association has to approve parts of the process |
These ranges are indicative. Your conveyancer can give you a more accurate estimate once they’ve seen the paperwork.
Exchange of Contracts Timeline With and Without a Chain
A property chain is one of the most common reasons a purchase takes longer than expected. When your sale or purchase depends on other buyers and sellers, everyone has to be ready to exchange at the same time, and a delay at one link holds up the rest.
| Stage | No chain | In a chain |
| Reaching exchange | Often towards the shorter end of 8 to 12 weeks | Often 12 weeks or more, depending on the slowest link |
| Exchange on the day | Minutes to a few hours | Can take most of the working day |
| Agreeing a completion date | Only two parties need to agree | All parties need to agree on the same date |
| Risk of a last-minute delay | Lower | Higher, as more people and properties are involved |
If you’re in a chain, your conveyancer can’t exchange until the transactions above and below you are ready too.
How long to exchange contracts as a cash buyer or first-time buyer
Cash buyers skip the mortgage application and lender valuation, which removes one of the most common sources of delay. Their own side of the transaction can move quickly, but they still have to wait for searches to come back and for the seller to be ready.
First-time buyers have no property to sell, so they’re chain-free on their own side. Most still need a mortgage, though, and if the seller is buying another home, the first-time buyer becomes part of that chain.
How Long Does Exchange of Contracts Take on the Day?
Without a chain, the exchange itself can take a few minutes to a few hours, once both sides have signed and given their conveyancers authority to go ahead. In a chain, it can take most of the working day, because each conveyancer has to confirm they’re ready before the exchange can be confirmed back down the line.
There’s usually no fixed time booked for exchange; it happens once all parties are ready, which is why you may be told ‘we’re aiming to exchange today’ and then wait several hours for confirmation.
Why exchange day can change
It’s common for a planned exchange to move by a day or more. The usual reasons are practical ones:
- Buildings insurance hasn’t been arranged from the date of exchange
- The deposit hasn’t arrived or cleared in the conveyancer’s account
- A signed document is missing or needs re-signing
- Someone in the chain can’t be reached to give their authority
- A lender has raised a last-minute condition
- Another buyer or seller further up the chain isn’t ready yet
Fridays can also be slower, as conveyancers tend to prioritise completions on that day. Most of these issues can be fixed within a day or two, so a delayed exchange day doesn’t usually mean the sale is in trouble.
How Long Does It Take for Solicitors to Exchange Contracts Once You’re Ready?
Both conveyancers and solicitors can handle the work involved with buying or selling a property. Bespoke Law Services is a conveyancing firm regulated by the Council for Licensed Conveyancers.
Once you’ve signed your contract, sent your deposit and answered all your conveyancer’s questions, it’s natural to expect exchange to follow straight away. Being ready on your side doesn’t mean the whole transaction is ready, though. Your conveyancer can only exchange once the other side, and anyone else in the chain, has reached the same point.
When all parties are ready, conveyancers can often exchange within a day or two. If you’re waiting longer than that, ask your conveyancer what’s still outstanding and ask your estate agent where the rest of the chain stands, as the agent is usually in touch with everyone involved.
Want a conveyancer who keeps you updated throughout? Get a quote from our team.
Why Does Exchanging Contracts Take So Long?
Waiting weeks for exchange can be frustrating, especially when it feels like nothing is happening. In most cases, the time goes on checks that protect you, or on waiting for other people in the transaction.
| Delay | Why it happens | What helps |
| Chain length | Each buyer and seller has to be ready at the same time | Ask your estate agent for regular chain updates |
| Mortgage offer delays or down-valuations | The lender needs a valuation and underwriting before it issues a formal offer | Send your lender or broker any documents they ask for promptly |
| Unanswered enquiries or missing documents | Your conveyancer can’t report on the property until questions are answered | Sellers can gather certificates and guarantees early |
| Leasehold management packs | The freeholder or managing agent has to supply information about the lease and building | Sellers can request the pack as soon as the property goes on the market |
| Survey issues | Problems found in a survey can lead to renegotiation or further investigation | Book the survey as soon as your offer is accepted |
| Source of funds checks | Conveyancers must check where the money for the purchase comes from | Provide bank statements and gifted deposit paperwork upfront |
| Probate | Executors usually can’t exchange until the grant of probate has been issued | Ask the seller’s agent where probate stands before you offer |
How property searches affect the exchange timeline
Your conveyancer orders several searches – local authority, water and drainage, and environmental searches – early on.
Local authority searches are often the slowest to come back, and turnaround times can vary between councils. Your conveyancer can’t finish their report on the property until the results arrive.
In some cases, buyers use personal searches carried out by a search company, which can be quicker in areas with long council backlogs. Your lender has to accept them, so check with your conveyancer first. Some buyers rely on search indemnity insurance instead, although this covers certain financial losses and doesn’t tell you what a search would have found.
Discover more in our guide to what searches are done when buying a house.
Mortgage offer expiry dates
Mortgage offers are valid for a set period, which varies by lender. If the process drags on, your offer could run out before completion, and the lender may need to extend it or ask you to reapply. That adds time and can mean a different interest rate.
Tell your conveyancer the expiry date of your mortgage offer as soon as you receive it. If the timeline is getting tight, speak to your broker or lender early about an extension.
How to Speed Up Exchange of Contracts
You can’t control every part of the process, but quick responses on your side remove a lot of avoidable delays.
If you’re buying
- Instruct a conveyancer early. Do it as soon as your offer is accepted, or line one up before you start viewing.
- Reply quickly. Return ID, forms and signed documents within a day or two of receiving them.
- Send source of funds evidence upfront. Include bank statements and any gifted deposit paperwork.
- Book your survey straight away. Problems found late can lead to renegotiation.
- Keep your deposit accessible. Move it into an easy-access account so you can send it to your conveyancer in good time before exchange.
- Get buildings insurance quotes in advance. You’ll need cover in place from the date of exchange.
If you’re selling
- Instruct a conveyancer before you accept an offer, so the contract pack can go out quickly.
- Gather your paperwork early. That includes guarantees, warranties, building regulations certificates and planning documents.
- Order the leasehold management pack as soon as the property goes on the market, if you’re selling a leasehold.
- Answer enquiries promptly. Unanswered questions from the buyer’s conveyancer are a frequent cause of delay.
Our guide to selling your home has more on preparing for a sale.
Does your choice of conveyancer affect how long it takes?
How your conveyancer works affects the pace of your transaction, even though some delays, such as council searches and slow chains, are outside their control. The things that make a difference are how many cases they’re handling, how quickly they respond to the other side, and how they keep you updated.
Online and high street firms can both be quick or slow, so focus on how a firm will run your case. Before you instruct anyone, ask:
- Who will handle my case day to day?
- How quickly do you usually reply to calls and emails?
- How will you keep me updated on progress?
Instructing early is one of the simplest ways to avoid delays. Get your conveyancing quote today.
How Long Between Exchange and Completion?
Completion commonly takes place 1 to 2 weeks after exchange, although it can be longer in a chain or when people need more time to arrange their move. The completion date is agreed before exchange and written into the contract, so once you’ve exchanged, you’ll know the date you’re due to get the keys.
Exchange is when the sale becomes legally binding. Completion is when the money is transferred, ownership passes to the buyer and the keys are handed over. Our exchange of contracts guide explains the difference between the two stages in more detail, including when they can happen on the same day.
New builds work slightly differently, because buyers often exchange before the property is finished, and completion takes place once the developer confirms the home is ready.
Learn more about this process on our new build conveyancing page.
Let Bespoke Law Services Handle Your Conveyancing
How long it takes to exchange contracts depends partly on things outside your control, and partly on how quickly the legal work moves.
Our expert team is regulated by the Council for Licensed Conveyancers and ready to handle the legal side of your purchase or sale. We’ll keep you updated throughout the process, as each stage is completed, so you know exactly where things stand.
FAQs About the Exchange of Contracts Timeline
What’s the fastest you can exchange contracts?
There’s no set minimum time for exchanging contracts. When there’s no chain or mortgage to hold things up and the searches come back quickly, exchange can happen within a few weeks of an offer being accepted. However, this is uncommon as most purchases depend on a lender, chain or both.
To get a realistic idea of how long exchanging contracts will take for you, ask your conveyancer for an estimate once they’ve seen the paperwork.
Can I choose the day contracts are exchanged?
Not usually. Exchange happens once all parties are ready, so there’s rarely a fixed date booked in advance. The completion date is agreed before exchange, and your conveyancer can tell you when exchange is likely to happen as the transaction progresses.
How will I know contracts have been exchanged?
Your conveyancer will contact you to confirm, usually by phone or email. Your estate agent may also let you know once they hear from the conveyancers.
Do I need to be there when contracts are exchanged?
No. Your conveyancer exchanges contracts on your behalf, once you’ve signed your contract and given them your authority to go ahead.
Why hasn’t my conveyancer exchanged yet when I’m ready?
In most cases, another party in the chain isn’t ready yet. Ask your conveyancer what’s still outstanding and ask your estate agent where the rest of the chain stands.
How long does it take to exchange contracts on a new build?
Developers often ask buyers to exchange within around 28 days of receiving the contract, so new build exchanges can move quickly. Completion may take place later, once the property is finished. Read more about new build conveyancing.
Should I give notice on my rental before exchange?
No. Wait until contracts have been exchanged, because the purchase isn’t legally binding until then and could still fall through.
When should I book removals?
Get removal quotes early so you’re ready to move, then confirm the booking once contracts are exchanged and your completion date is fixed.
Is exchange of contracts the same in Scotland?
No. Scotland uses a different system, known as ‘concluding missives’, and the timescales differ. This guide covers England and Wales.
