Until contracts are exchanged the answer has to be "we don't know". It is impossible to guess how long the sale or purchase will take until all lose ends are sorted out.

If a buyer has ready cash and the property is empty, completion can take place in a matter of days, but where a chain is involved, or mortgages are hard to come by, weeks can go by with apparently little progress being made.

It is useful to establish at the outset whether the chain of buyers and sellers is complete and whether all concerned are likely to make satisfactory financial arrangements without undue delay.

PLEASE DO NOT make any final arrangements for moving until contracts have been safely exchanged and a definite completion date has been agreed.