Moving house is exciting, whether you’re buying, selling, or both. The champagne might be chilling, friends are sending congratulations, and you’re already mentally arranging furniture. Or maybe you’re deep into clearing out cupboards and staging your home for viewings.
But while all that’s going on, an important decision needs to happen early: instructing your solicitor. It’s not the most exciting part of the process, but the timing of this step can make or break your move.
Some transactions glide along smoothly. Others get bogged down in delays, paperwork, and last-minute problems. Often, it comes down to how early the residential property conveyancing process gets underway and how prepared your legal team is to keep things moving.
Why Timing Matters in Conveyancing
Conveyancing is the backbone of your entire property transaction and can mean the difference between a smooth sale and a stressful delay.
Once an offer is made or accepted, the ball needs to start rolling with several time-sensitive tasks. These include:
- Identity checks,
- Anti-money laundering procedures,
- Property searches
- Reviewing title deeds
Any delay in instructing your solicitor or conveyancer puts these essential processes on hold.
Getting your solicitor on board early means they can start pulling together the paperwork and checking over the contracts before anything causes a holdup.
If something’s missing, like a title plan, or there’s a question about where a boundary lies, they can pick it up early, before it becomes a bigger issue. It also gives them time to get in touch with your mortgage provider, arrange searches (which can take a few weeks), and check in with surveyors if needed.
When to Instruct a Solicitor When Selling a House
It’s a good idea to start gathering conveyancing quotes as soon as you decide to put your property on the market.
Your solicitor can begin putting together the contract pack, including the title deeds, property information forms (like the TA6 and TA10), and any relevant planning permissions. Selling a house with title problems or uncovering issues like missing documents will slow things down, so getting out in front with the contract pack means you can deal with this before a buyer enters the picture.
When you accept an offer, your solicitor can have the draft contract ready to go, showing the buyers you’re serious and organised. It also helps your buyer’s solicitor begin their checks sooner, reducing the risk of delays or renegotiations.
When to Instruct a Solicitor When Buying a House
The moment your offer is accepted, things start to move quickly, so your solicitor should be one of the first calls you make. Instructing a conveyancing solicitor early keeps everything on track and helps avoid delays that can stall your purchase.
Ideally, you’ll have a solicitor chosen and ready before you even find your new home. That way, once your offer’s in, they can jump straight into action with the common legal checks and speaking to your mortgage lender to make sure everything’s lined up.
Having a solicitor in place early also means you’ve got someone to turn to with questions or concerns. From explaining what enquiries mean to guiding you through contracts, having that support from the start can make the whole process feel a lot less overwhelming.
Why Leasehold Buyers or Sellers Should Get a Solicitor Early
Timing is even more important if you’re buying or selling a leasehold property. These transactions come with extra legal steps that can easily delay things if not handled early in the conveyancing process.
When you instruct a solicitor early, they can begin reviewing the lease terms, checking details like the lease length, service charges, ground rent, and any obligations you’ll be taking on. They’ll also look out for restrictive covenants that could limit how the property is used, and start communicating with the freeholder or managing agent straight away.
One of the biggest causes of delay in leasehold transactions is waiting for the leasehold information pack (LPE1 form). Managing agents can take weeks to provide it, and if you’re selling your property, this delay can really slow things down. Any issues in the lease, like rising ground rent or planned building works, need careful review and sometimes negotiation before the sale can move forward.
When it comes to freehold vs leasehold properties, leaseholds almost always involve more paperwork, more parties, and more room for delays. The conveyancing process takes longer and often depends on third parties like managing agents and freeholders. Instructing a conveyancing solicitor early is the best way to speed up the sale and avoid being held up by documentation or issues that could have been tackled much sooner.
The Risks of Instructing a Solicitor Late in the Conveyancing Process
Delays in Getting Started
When a solicitor is brought in late, there’s a backlog of checks to clear before they can get to work. Before they can do anything, they’ll need to carry out ID checks, open your file, and gather all the essential documents needed to sell or buy a house. These steps alone can take several days, and nothing else can progress during that time.
Late Searches & Chain Pressures
Even if your solicitor is able to move quickly with paperwork and checks once instructed, their hands are tied when it comes to conveyancing searches. These are handled by external bodies, like local authorities and water companies, and typically take two to three weeks to come back, sometimes longer in busy areas.
If your solicitor is instructed late, they can’t request these searches until your file is open and initial checks are complete. That lost time can quickly start to affect your wider timeline. Searches are needed for your mortgage lender to issue a formal offer, and for you to progress to the exchange of contracts. So even with a proactive solicitor, the transaction can grind to a halt if searches aren’t ordered early enough.
In a property chain, this kind of delay not only affects you – it holds up everyone else as well. The knock-on effect creates pressure, leads to frustration, and increases the risk of someone pulling out of the deal altogether.
No Time for Buffering
When solicitors don’t have enough time to thoroughly review contracts and documents, there’s less room to manage issues before they start affecting the timeline. Things like restrictive covenants, questions over boundaries, or rights of way often need further checks or follow-up with the seller’s side.
With more breathing room, these kinds of issues can usually be handled quietly in the background without holding things up. But when time is tight, there’s no buffer to absorb delays, so a small legal query can quickly start to impact your completion date.
In a property chain, this can stall progress for everyone else too, increasing the chance that someone in the chain pulls out or tries to renegotiate. And with a new build, where developers often work to fixed deadlines, it could mean missing the window to exchange and risking penalties or even losing the property.
Higher Costs from Late or Inaccurate Work
When problems are picked up late, it often means rushing to fix them or trying to unravel incomplete or inaccurate work that’s already been done. That kind of last-minute legal firefighting is not only stressful, but it usually comes at a higher cost. Many solicitors will charge extra for urgent work or for sorting out issues caused by earlier delays or mistakes.
Choose Triangle Legal Services to Take Care of Your Conveyancing
Having the right legal support from the start makes all the difference when buying or selling a home. At Triangle Legal Services, we help keep your move on track by handling the legal work clearly, efficiently, and with minimal fuss.
From day one, we focus on getting everything in order early so your transaction runs smoothly. We stay ahead of deadlines, keep you informed at every stage, and speak in plain English, not legal jargon.
Whether you’re buying a first home, selling a family property, or managing a chain, our conveyancing team is here to keep things moving. We’re experienced in spotting issues before they cause delays and dealing with unexpected problems without disrupting your plans.
If you’re ready to instruct a solicitor or just want to get a conveyancing quote, speak to our friendly team today. We’ll guide you through the process, give you a clear breakdown of costs, and support you every step of the way.