Each step leans on the one before it, so doing them roughly in order saves a great deal of going backwards. Here is what the order actually is, and which parts of it are somebody's published rule rather than ours.
Budget, deposit, and the costs beside them
Work out what you can put down before you look at a single listing, because that number decides which houses are real and which are daydreams. Then budget separately for the solicitor and the survey. Those are not part of the deposit, they land months apart, and they are what catches first-time buyers out more than anything else on this page.
An agreement in principle
Estate agents will usually want to see an agreement in principle from a lender before they take an offer seriously. That is our reading of how the market behaves rather than a published requirement: GOV.UK's own home-buying guidance does not mention one, and no rule anywhere obliges you to get one.
The legal work
You need a solicitor or a licensed conveyancer. GOV.UK's home-buying guidance says to "choose a solicitor or conveyancer who will do the legal work involved in transferring ownership", and that work is the searches, the contract and the exchange itself. Ask what the quote includes before you instruct anyone, because the headline fee and the final bill are rarely the same figure.
The survey
RICS runs three levels, and their consumer guide names them. A Level 1 Home Survey was "previously called a 'Condition Report'". A Level 2 was "previously called a 'Home Buyer Report'". A Level 3 is, in their words, "the most comprehensive survey report" and was "previously known as an 'RICS Building Survey'". An older house, or one that has clearly been altered, is where the higher level earns its fee.
Insurance from exchange, not completion
This one surprises people. Citizens Advice is unambiguous: "If you buy a house you should take out buildings insurance when you exchange contracts." You are on the hook from exchange, which can be weeks before you hold a key, so the cover has to start then rather than on moving day.
That advice is written for England, Wales and Northern Ireland, where a purchase turns on exchange of contracts. Scotland has no exchange: a Scottish sale is concluded by missives and completed at the date of entry. We could not source a Scottish authority stating exactly when responsibility passes there, so rather than guess at it we will say plainly that a buyer in Scotland should put the question to their own solicitor, who will know which clauses their missives actually carry.
Buying is the front half of the move. Once you have a completion date, the moving house checklist takes over, and what to do first in a new home covers the evening you get in. A first home gift made from a photograph of the actual house is how the milestone ends up on a wall rather than in a folder of solicitors' letters.
The conveyancing line quoted from GOV.UK; the survey levels quoted from the RICS consumer guide; the exchange-of-contracts insurance position quoted from Citizens Advice. All read 3 September 2026. GOV.UK's home-buying guidance was checked the same day for a mortgage agreement in principle and does not mention one.
Written by Craig Fearn, Our House Print. Last updated .