Selling: What to expect when you go Sale Agreed

Congratulations! You've just accepted an offer on your property and now you're sale agreed- but now what? This is the main bulk of my job- supporting and explaining to my clients what happens next, what your obligations are, and how you get through to closing.

1: Instruct your solicitor

If you haven't got a solicitor yet (and we've already discussed here why you should get a solicitor once you list your property), now is the time to get one. If you have a mortgage your solicitor will have to request the deeds from the bank, which can take four or five weeks.

Your agent will ask you for your solicitor's details in order to send out Sales Advice Notes. These have your name, the purchaser's name, the details of both solicitors, the agreed offer and the deposit that the purchaser has paid. These will be sent once the booking deposit is in from the purchaser- so that you know that they're serious about their purchase.

Top tip: give your agent your solicitor's direct email address so that they can contact them directly if needs arise.

Once you go sale agreed, the whole process is in your and the purchaser's solicitors' hands. That being said, your agent should still be there as support for you until closing, offering advice when you need it.

2: Title deeds and sending contracts

Once your solicitor has the deeds in their hands, they can draft up the contracts. Once this is done, contracts are issued to the purchaser's solicitor.

3: Pre-contract enquiries

Once the purchaser's solicitor has received the contracts, they will then be able to review them. At this stage, the purchaser's solicitor will prepare pre-contract enquiries. These are requests for documents such as the BER report, proof of payment of Local Property Tax, planning permission, etc, and sent over to your solicitor, usually in one correspondence.

At this stage the purchaser will be in contact with your agent to organise a bank valuation and structural survey if they need them. A bank valuer is necessary if the purchaser is getting a mortgage, and the valuation usually takes 15 minutes. A structural survey is optional, but recommended regardless of the age of the property, and these can take an average of an hour and a half, depending on the size of the property.

Your solicitor will receive these pre-contract enquiries and begin answering them, before returning them to the purchaser's solicitor. Answering pre-contract enquiries can take several weeks as your solicitor waits for answers from other authorities.

4: Purchaser signs the contracts

Once pre-contract enquiries are returned to the purchaser's solicitor these are then reviewed. If the purchaser and their solicitor are both happy with these replies, a date will be agreed for the purchaser to come into the solicitor office to sign the contracts. At this stage the purchaser will send the rest of their deposit to their solicitor to send to you upon closing.

At this stage, a closing date can be negotiated between both solicitors to suit both parties.

5: You sign the contracts

Once the purchaser signs, their solicitor will send the contracts to your solicitor for you to make an appointment to sign. As soon as you do, one copy of the contracts will be sent back to the purchaser's solicitor.

6: Closing

Your agent will have asked you for your electric MPRN and gas GPRN, along with your suppliers, as well as any alarm codes. It is imperative that you make sure that your agent has these details to pass to the purchaser upon closing- especially the keys.

Top tip: leave a spare front door key with your agent in preparation for closing day so that it's one less thing for you to worry about

If the purchaser is getting a mortgage, they will draw down from the bank several days before the intended closing date. At this stage, the bank is in control of the funds, and it's important to note that neither the purchaser nor their solicitor can speed the process up.

The funds are sent to the purchaser's solicitor, and then transferred to your solicitor on closing day. At this stage, the solicitors will conclude with their final searches before announcing that the property has closed.

It's important to note that your estate agent can only release the keys to the purchaser when your solicitor decides that they are happy. Your agents will let you know once the keys have been collected.

7: Receiving the funds

Upon closing, your estate agent's office will transfer the booking deposit that the purchaser paid when they first went Sale Agreed- usually minus the agent's fee. Unless you ask for it specifically to be sent to you directly, it will be sent you your solicitor, who will then transfer it to your own account. Your new chapter is just beginning!

If you are looking for an agent in the Dublin area to represent you and your property, contact me to get a free valuation and a better understanding of the housing market right now.