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Selling

How to sell your home

Selling a home is part marketing, part paperwork. Getting the documents ready early — especially the energy certificate and the facts buyers need — helps avoid delays once you've found a buyer.

Last reviewed 27 September 2026 · Applies to: England, Wales and Northern Ireland, with notes for Scotland

In short
  • You must have an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) when you sell a home.
  • Estate agents dealing with UK residential property must belong to an approved redress scheme.
  • An accepted offer isn't legally binding in England, Wales or Northern Ireland until contracts are exchanged.
  • In Scotland a Home Report is normally required once a home is on the market.

Before you put your home on the market

  • Check your mortgage for early repayment charges and whether it can move with you.
  • Get valuations. Ask more than one agent to value your home, and compare their figures with what nearby homes actually sold for on HM Land Registry's house price search.
  • Get an EPC. GOV.UK says you must have one when you sell a property; certificates last 10 years. Check whether you already have a valid one on the EPC register.
  • Find your paperwork: guarantees, planning permissions and building regulations sign-offs for any work, and — for leasehold homes — the lease and recent service charge accounts.

Our free valuation request form is a quick way to get the ball rolling.

Choose how to sell

MoneyHelper describes three main routes: an estate agent, an auction, or selling privately. MoneyHelper's selling guide covers the pros and cons of each.

If you use an estate agent, read the contract carefully — the fee, how long you're tied in, and whether you'd owe a fee if you sell to someone they introduced after the contract ends. GOV.UK says estate agents dealing with residential property in the UK must join a redress scheme, either The Property Ombudsman or the Property Redress Scheme, so you have somewhere to go if things go wrong.

Tell buyers what they need to know

Listings shouldn't leave out information a buyer needs to decide whether to view — such as the price, Council Tax band and tenure, and for leaseholds the lease length and charges. See our material information guide. Your conveyancer will also ask you to fill in property information forms; answer them fully and honestly.

From offer to completion

  1. Accept an offer. Ask about the buyer's position: are they chain-free, do they have a mortgage in principle?
  2. Instruct your solicitor or conveyancer and return their questionnaires promptly.
  3. Negotiate if the buyer's survey finds problems.
  4. Exchange contracts. The sale becomes legally binding and a completion date is fixed.
  5. Complete. The buyer's money arrives, your mortgage is paid off and you hand over the keys.
Until contracts are exchanged, a buyer can lower their offer or withdraw. MoneyHelper calls a last-minute price cut gazundering and explains how to respond.

Selling in Scotland

In Scotland, a seller or selling agent must give a buyer the Home Report within nine days of being asked. It has three parts: a single survey and valuation, an energy report and a property questionnaire. See mygov.scot: Home Report.

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