Short answer: once your offer is accepted, instruct a solicitor or conveyancer, apply for your mortgage, and book your survey. All three run side by side. The survey needs to be done well before exchange of contracts, because exchange is the point where you become legally committed to buy.
An accepted offer is a good moment, but in England it is not binding on either side. Until contracts are exchanged, you or the seller can still walk away. That gap is your chance to find out exactly what you are buying.
The steps between an accepted offer and moving in
- The estate agent confirms the sale. They send a memorandum of sale to both solicitors with the agreed price and contact details.
- You instruct your solicitor or conveyancer. They handle the legal side: checking the title, ordering searches, and raising questions with the seller's solicitor.
- You apply for your mortgage. If you have an agreement in principle, your broker or lender turns it into a full application. The lender then arranges its own valuation of the property.
- You book your survey. This is your own inspection, carried out for you, not for the lender. More on timing below.
- Searches and enquiries. Your solicitor receives the local authority, water and drainage, and environmental searches, plus the seller's answers to the property information forms.
- You receive your mortgage offer. This follows the lender's valuation and underwriting.
- Exchange of contracts. You sign, pay your deposit, and a completion date is fixed. From this point the purchase is legally binding.
- Completion. The money moves, the keys are released and the property is yours.
When should you book your survey?
As soon as your offer is accepted and you are confident about the purchase. In practice that usually means:
- your mortgage is agreed in principle, so the finance is realistic, and
- you have instructed a solicitor, so the legal work is moving.
There is no benefit in waiting for the searches or the mortgage offer before booking. The survey takes time to arrange and write up: our reports arrive within 5 working days of the inspection. If the survey finds something that needs a specialist, such as a drainage camera survey or a structural engineer, you will want time to arrange that before exchange.
Booking early also helps your negotiating position. If the report shows repairs you were not expecting, you can raise them with the seller while there is still plenty of time before the exchange date everyone is aiming for.
Which survey should you book?
For most conventional homes in reasonable condition, a RICS Level 2 Home Survey is the right choice. For older or period homes, those that have been extended or altered, or anything of unusual construction, choose a RICS Level 3 Building Survey.
Across our area that means a Level 3 is usually the better fit for Victorian and Edwardian terraces in Farnham and Aldershot, older cottages around Alton and the Hampshire villages, and 1930s homes that have been extended over the years. A Level 2 suits most post-war and modern homes in places like Fleet, Farnborough and Basingstoke.
If you are unsure, our guide to Level 2 vs Level 3 surveys explains the difference, or send us the listing and we will advise.
What the survey gives you before exchange
- A clear picture of condition: the roof, walls, damp, timbers, windows, services and drainage, as far as can be seen.
- Repairs you need to plan for, and how urgent they are.
- Questions for your solicitor, for example about an extension, a removed chimney breast or a shared drain.
- Evidence for any price discussion with the seller.
If the report raises concerns, read our guide on what to do after a bad building survey.
Frequently asked questions
Book your survey
Altura Surveyors is an independent, RICS-regulated firm based in Farnham, covering Hampshire, Surrey and Berkshire. Get your fixed-fee quote online or call 01252 929125, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm.