Upon exchange of contracts or immediately after that, the buyer’s solicitor needs to do some final pre-completion checks and to request the mortgage advance from the bank for the day of completion.
One of these checks is to make sure they have received all signed documents from the buyers – the contract, the transfer deed (if applicable), the mortgage deed, the stamp duty land tax return, any other documents relating to the property if it is a leasehold. If anything is missing, it needs to be sorted out as soon as possible and in any event before completion.
This is the time when both solicitors would prepare a completion statement for their respective clients to show then all expenses and costs and to request any outstanding sums for the day of completion.
There is also a check at the Land Registry that nothing on the title register has been changed since the last copies were issued and this check also gives priority for registration of the mortgage after completion.
Finally on the day of completion, first thing in the morning the buyer’s solicitor will check the public register to confirm the buyers haven’t declared bankruptcy.