Module 4 · Chapter 9

Exchange and Completion

Exchange binds the buyer and the seller to the sale. Completion, some weeks later, pays the price and passes the building. This chapter shows what must be ready for completion, and how the day runs.

≈ 12 min read 8-question test

In this chapter

  • How contracts are exchanged, and which deadlines exchange sets
  • What must be ready for completion: the statement, the transfer and the money
  • Why a solicitors' undertaking can stand in for a form not yet signed

9.1Exchange and completion in one paragraph

A property sale binds in one step and completes in another. At exchange, the Contract binds both sides and the buyer pays a deposit. At completion, the buyer pays the rest of the price, called the balance, and the building becomes its own.

The weeks between are for getting the money and the papers ready. Fellgate and Holmfield exchanged on 20 May 2026 and fixed completion for 17 June.

Key point

After exchange, neither side can walk away. After completion, the building is Fellgate's. The register still names Holmfield until the Land Registry acts on Fellgate's application.

Also in this chapter

  1. How contracts are exchanged
  2. What the buyer must pay
  3. The transfer, and how each company signs it
  4. Where the money comes from
  5. The moment of completion
  6. An undertaking in place of the DS1
  7. What the seller hands over
  8. Your job

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