Buying A House Or Flat

What’s the difference between exchange and completion?

What’s the difference between exchange and completion?

“Exchange” means the exchange of contracts.  Many years ago the solicitors for the seller and buyer would meet and actually exchange contracts in identical form signed by their respective clients.  Of course this does not happen today and exchange is usually agreed by the solicitors over the telephone.  On exchange there is a legally binding contract between seller and buyer for the sale and purchase of a property.  One of the terms of the contract will be the completion date.  This is the date on which title to the property is transferred by the seller to the buyer and the buyer takes possession of the property.  There is inevitably a period between exchange and completion and this period can vary from a few seconds if exchanged and completion take place on the same day or several months, even years.  In current practice the usual period is between 5 and 20 working days.  

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