What happens on completion day when you sell a house?

Completion day is the day the sale finishes. The buyer's money arrives with your solicitor or conveyancer, ownership passes to the buyer, and the buyer gets the keys. Your solicitor then pays off your mortgage and any agreed costs and sends you what's left. GOV.UK says completion and the handover of keys often happen around lunchtime, and that you're likely to need to be out of the house by then.

This guide walks through the day hour by hour, explains how the money moves, and covers what to do if completion is delayed. It applies to England and Wales.

Exchange and completion: what's the difference?

Exchange of contracts is when the sale becomes legally binding. You and the buyer sign matching contracts, the solicitors swap them, and the buyer pays a deposit. The completion date is agreed and written into the contract at this point.

Completion is when the rest of the money is paid and ownership passes. The Council for Licensed Conveyancers describes it as "the moment when the transfer of ownership and remaining payment for the property are formally completed".

GOV.UK's buying guide says completion is often around two to four weeks after exchange, though the two can happen on the same day. Our guide to exchange and completion explains the gap between them.

Completion day, step by step

Every sale is different, but a typical day looks like this:

When	What happens
The days before	Your solicitor sends you a completion statement and gets a final redemption figure from your mortgage lender. You finish packing.
Morning	You move out. The buyer's lender has usually sent the mortgage money to the buyer's solicitor, who adds the buyer's own funds.
Late morning to afternoon	The buyer's solicitor sends the money to your solicitor. In a chain, each sale can only complete once the money from the sale below it has arrived.
Once the money arrives	Your solicitor confirms completion. The house now belongs to the buyer.
Straight after	Your solicitor tells the estate agent to release the keys.
Later that day or soon after	Your solicitor pays off your mortgage, pays the agent's fee and any other agreed costs, and sends the balance to you.
The following weeks	The buyer's solicitor registers the buyer as the new owner with HM Land Registry.

How the money moves

On completion, GOV.UK says the buyer's solicitor "transfers the remaining funds to the seller's legal representative". The deposit paid at exchange is part of the price, so the buyer is now paying the balance.

Your solicitor then, in GOV.UK's words, pays off your mortgage and any other debts secured on the home, pays the estate agent's fees if you've agreed for them to come out of the sale, and sends "the balance due to you to your account". The Council for Licensed Conveyancers confirms that your conveyancer pays off the mortgage for you using the buyer's money.

Before the day, ask your solicitor for a completion statement. It shows the sale price, every deduction, and the amount you'll receive, so there are no surprises.

Check for early repayment charges. The Council for Licensed Conveyancers suggests checking whether your mortgage has early repayment charges and, if it does, thinking about whether to time completion for after the charge period ends. See our guide to early repayment charges.

Keys and moving out

Most sale contracts require vacant possession: the buyer is buying an empty home and nobody else has any right to stay there. The Council for Licensed Conveyancers says you must remove everything from the property apart from the items that have been agreed, including rubbish in the loft, garage and any outbuildings. Anything you listed as staying on your fittings and contents form (TA10) must be left behind.

On the keys:

• GOV.UK says the buyer gets the keys from the seller or the estate agent.
• The Property Ombudsman's code for estate agents says an agent must not give the buyer the keys after exchange without your permission or your solicitor's.
• The same code says agents should offer to help with handing over keys during office hours, and must help if you ask.

The Council for Licensed Conveyancers says keys are usually handed over through the estate agent, who releases them when your solicitor confirms the money has arrived. Never hand keys to the buyer yourself until your solicitor has confirmed completion.

A completion-day checklist for sellers

• Pack and move out by the time agreed, usually by lunchtime.
• Take final meter readings for gas, electricity and water, and photograph them. GOV.UK suggests recording the readings and calling your energy suppliers to close your accounts.
• Leave the items agreed on the TA10 form, plus manuals, spare keys, window keys and alarm codes.
• Clear the loft, shed and garage.
• Leave all the keys with the agent, or as your solicitor tells you.
• Keep your phone on and stay in touch with your solicitor through the day.
• Don't cancel your buildings insurance until your solicitor confirms completion.
• Redirect your post and tell the council, your bank and others that you've moved.

What can delay completion?

GOV.UK warns that "delays can happen due to many people in the chain completing on the same day", and that complex money transfers take place on completion day. Common causes include:

• The chain. If the sale below yours is late, the money for your sale is late too. See what is a property chain?
• Mortgage funds arriving late from the buyer's lender.
• Bank transfer delays when large sums are moving between several firms.
• Last-minute checks or paperwork that one of the solicitors still needs.
• Moving out late, which can hold up the buyer and everyone above them.

If there's a delay, keep your phone close and let your solicitor deal with the other side.

What if completion is late or doesn't happen?

Once contracts have been exchanged, both sides are legally bound. GOV.UK says that, usually, neither of you can pull out at that point without paying compensation.

• If completion is late, your contract normally sets out what happens, including any compensation the side causing the delay has to pay. Ask your solicitor what your contract says before the day.
• If the buyer fails to complete altogether, the Council for Licensed Conveyancers says the seller is entitled to keep the deposit. Your solicitor will tell you what other steps you can take.
• If you can't complete, perhaps because you haven't moved out, you could face a claim for compensation. Speak to your solicitor immediately.

Watch out for fraud on completion day

Completion day is when the most money moves, so it's when fraudsters strike. GOV.UK warns about "misdirection fraud", where an email or phone call appears to come from your solicitor with new bank details. Its guidance says it's "extremely rare" for a legal representative to change their bank account.

• Give your bank details to your solicitor in person or by phone on a number you already know.
• Never act on an email asking you to change account details, and if you're in any doubt, don't transfer money.
• If you're leaving a home empty after a sale falls through, or own one without a mortgage, consider HM Land Registry's free Property Alert service.

After completion

• Capital Gains Tax. You don't pay tax on your own home if it's been your only or main home the whole time you owned it and the other conditions on GOV.UK apply. If tax is due, for example on a second home or a rental, UK residents must report and pay it within 60 days of completion. See Capital Gains Tax on property.
• Keep your paperwork, including the completion statement and your solicitor's final letter, in case you need them for tax.
• Council tax and utilities. Make sure accounts at the old address are closed from the completion date.

If you'd like to choose your own completion date, we buy homes for cash in England and Wales, pay the seller's legal fees, and let you pick a date from as little as 7 days to a later date that suits you. Our offer is below market value, so if you're not in a hurry and your home is in good condition, an estate agent sale will usually get you more.