An accepted offer is an important step, but an ordinary purchase in England or Wales is not legally binding until contracts are exchanged. You do not have to use the firm your estate agent recommends. GOV.UK: making an offer. Ask for specific advice if an auction or a separate agreement creates other commitments. The government’s instruction guidance explains when to appoint your legal representative.
1 Getting a quote, instructing and authorising costs
These are three useful questions to settle with the firm:
| Decision | What to confirm |
|---|---|
| Getting a quote | Has the firm priced your actual property and circumstances? What information is still missing? |
| Instructing the firm | Has it agreed to act, and have you understood its engagement terms and payment arrangements? |
| Authorising paid work | What will it do now, what will that cost, and what could still be owed if the purchase stops? |
Getting a price helps you compare. Ask the firm to confirm when it considers itself instructed and what you are authorising. Keep the written quote and terms together, with any later changes.
For SRA-regulated firms advertising residential conveyancing, published costs information must cover the charging basis, likely disbursements (payments to third parties), VAT, included work and relevant exclusions. Use those details to question a price that looks incomplete. SRA Transparency Rules, rule 1.
2 Should you instruct before making an offer?
You can shortlist firms and ask for quotes while looking for a property. Update the quote when you know the address, price and relevant details. If a particular legal issue could affect whether you offer at all, ask about advice before committing to the purchase. GOV.UK: instructing a legal representative.
For example, tell a prospective firm that a flat is leasehold and part of the deposit is a gift. Ask what further information it needs to confirm the quote. A price based on a different type of purchase is not a reliable comparison.
3 Should you wait for the mortgage offer?
Choosing a conveyancer and deciding when to spend money on searches are separate decisions. Government guidance recommends instruction after offer acceptance, while recognising that some professionals advise waiting for mortgage confirmation before ordering searches. Discuss the timing and cost risk with your conveyancer. GOV.UK: searches.
Give the firm your intended lender's name and ask whether it can act for that lender on your purchase. If your lender changes, ask again. Use our mortgage lender-panel checklist to record the answer and confirm any restrictions. MoneyHelper includes lender approval among the questions to ask.
4 What to prepare after your offer is accepted
Use this list to organise the first conversation. The firm will confirm its own document requirements and secure submission method.
- The purchase: address, agreed price, estate agent's details and anything you know about the tenure or property type.
- The buyers: names and contact details, plus identity and address evidence requested by the firm.
- The money: intended lender and how the deposit is funded, including any gift, inheritance or proceeds from another sale. Be ready to provide evidence of the source of funds.
- The complications: leasehold, shared ownership, new build, a related sale or any concern that could change the work.
- Your questions: what can begin now, what is waiting on someone else, and which payments need your agreement.
Identity and source-of-funds checks are part of the buying process. Do not assume the documents supplied to your lender satisfy the conveyancer's requirements. GOV.UK: ID checks.
5 What should you check in the conveyancing quote?
Compare the total for the same work, then check how it is made up. Ask about legal fees, applicable VAT, third-party costs and additional work that may become necessary. Confirm what is payable now and later. MoneyHelper recommends comparing firms and asking about lender approval, relevant experience and communication arrangements. MoneyHelper: finding a property solicitor or conveyancer.
For a leasehold flat with a gifted deposit, ask for those facts to be reflected in writing. “Please confirm what is included” is more useful than assuming a low headline fee covers everything.
Property tax also belongs in your overall budget. For a home in England, check Stamp Duty Land Tax with HMRC. For a home in Wales, check Land Transaction Tax with the Welsh Revenue Authority. Ask your conveyancer to confirm the treatment of your purchase and any separate charge for preparing the return.
Use our quote comparison guide and worksheet to record missing items before choosing.
6 What happens to an upfront payment if the purchase falls through?
Ask what each payment covers and which terms apply if the matter stops. Searches are usually paid for upfront; that payment is different from a promise about legal fees. A “no move, no fee” label does not explain every charge or payment. Read the written conditions and ask the firm to account for money already paid. GOV.UK: searches and MoneyHelper: payment and fee questions.
Our no move, no fee guide includes a payment-reconciliation checklist to help you ask the right questions.
7 A message to send before instructing
My offer of [price] for [address] has been accepted. The property is [freehold/leasehold/other], my intended lender is [name], and my deposit comes from [brief description]. I also need to flag [gifted deposit, related sale or other detail].
Please confirm whether you can act, including the lender arrangements, and send a written quote showing VAT, third-party costs and exclusions. What is payable now, what work does that authorise, and what might I owe if the purchase stops? Please also confirm the documents you need and who will handle my matter.
Adapt this request to your circumstances. Send sensitive documents only through the firm's agreed secure process.
8 What happens after instruction?
Your conveyancer handles the legal work, including contracts, searches, advice and the transfer of funds. Ask who is waiting for what and what needs to be resolved before exchange. A proposed moving date should be discussed with the people handling the transaction, rather than treated as a promise based on a general online estimate. MoneyHelper: what conveyancers do.
A lender’s valuation and a survey have different purposes. If you need an assessment of the property’s condition, discuss an appropriate survey separately from the legal work. GOV.UK explains searches, valuations and surveys. For payment instructions, confirm bank details through a contact route you already trust; do not rely on a message announcing new details. See the government’s payment-fraud guidance.
For the wider sequence, see the conveyancing process and exchange versus completion. If you are still comparing how you will work with a firm, our online versus local guide covers contact, appointments and document handling.
9 How MoveGuide can help after your offer is accepted
MoveGuide is a free conveyancing quote comparison service for people buying, selling or remortgaging a home in England and Wales. We compare firms on our panel, not every firm in the market. For your purchase, tell us about any details that could affect the work, such as a gifted deposit or leasehold flat, so the quote can be clarified with the firm.
MoveGuide may contact you to explain your quotes. Getting quotes does not send your details to any firm. A firm gets your contact and enquiry details only when you ask it to call you. Requesting a call does not commit you to instructing the firm. MoveGuide is not a law firm and does not give legal advice. The firm you choose does the legal work.
If you instruct a firm through MoveGuide, a £150 file-opening payment to MoveGuide is included in that firm’s quoted total and credited against your final bill. It is not an extra charge on top of the quote. Before paying, confirm the payment and cancellation terms, including what happens to that payment if the purchase stops.
Compare quotes for your purchase, then check the scope and service before requesting a call from your chosen firm.
Sources and further reading
Sources checked on .
- GOV.UK: how to buy a home. Instruction timing, engagement terms, ID/source of funds, searches and payment-fraud precautions.
- GOV.UK: making an offer. Commitment at exchange, choosing a firm, referrals, search payments and surveys.
- SRA Transparency Rules. Rule 1: published cost information for covered firms and services.
- MoneyHelper: find a solicitor or conveyancer. Compare scope, fees, payment timing, relevant experience and contact arrangements.
- HMRC: Stamp Duty Land Tax. England tax scope; check the current official rules for your purchase.
- Welsh Revenue Authority: Land Transaction Tax. Welsh property tax, distinct from England’s SDLT.