Help Exchange of contracts

Rosesgirl

My house is stc I received an email from my solicitor today asking me to come in to sign the contract and transfer of deeds in readiness for exchange of contracts . Does this mean exchange of contracts happens a little further along I need clarity is signing the paperwork legally binding so once I sign the paperwork I've committed to exchange of contracts even though she's not been clear as she said in readiness for exchange of contracts. 

Thanks !

user1977

In short, no. It just means your solicitor will have the signed bits of paper on her file ready for if/when they're needed.

loubel

You need to sign the contract before you can exchange but your solicitor won't exchange without your agreement. Exchange might be imminent or still a way off. Presumably your solicitor will let you know during your meeting.

Laurelii

loubel said:

You need to sign the contract before you can exchange but your solicitor won't exchange without your agreement. Exchange might be imminent or still a way off. Presumably your solicitor will let you know during your meeting.

so there's a step before exchange. I thought all the signing WAS the exchange!  

Doozergirl

Laurelii said:

loubel said:

You need to sign the contract before you can exchange but your solicitor won't exchange without your agreement. Exchange might be imminent or still a way off. Presumably your solicitor will let you know during your meeting.

so there's a step before exchange. I thought all the signing WAS the exchange!  

 No, but you're not far off, put it that way.  

MaryNB

Laurelii said:

loubel said:

You need to sign the contract before you can exchange but your solicitor won't exchange without your agreement. Exchange might be imminent or still a way off. Presumably your solicitor will let you know during your meeting.

so there's a step before exchange. I thought all the signing WAS the exchange!  

Once everything is ready to go and all parties agree on a date to exchange your solicitor will contact you to confirm you are happy to proceed with exchange of the signed contracts. Once you confirm this and they exchange contracts with the seller's solicitor it becomes legally binding. My date of exchange got delayed a few times (issues further up the chain) and my solicitor emailed me each day to confirm if I was happy to proceed.

Windofchange

When we exchanged, our solicitor rang both myself and my partner independently to confirm that we were happy to exchange. He read out a short legal notice and we both verbally agreed. Before this we had signed and returned god knows how many bits of paper. Nothing will happen without your consent, recorded for posterity at their end as proof. 

canaldumidi

Your solicitor cannot Exchange without having your signiture on the contract. So rather than saying "OK, we're ready to Exchange tomorrow so get you ar*e in here double quick and sign", you sign it in advance and the solicitor sticks the signed contract in a drawer somewehere.

Then when everything's ready to Exchange, there's no panic. A phone call to you "Ready to Exchange - do you still want to proceed?" and if you say yes your solicitor just feels around in the drawer and pulls out the signed contract!

Or if you say "No, actually we've had 2nd thoughts please don't Exchange." then your solicitor wo't Exchange.

As you physically signing is just one step in the process, it does not necessarily indicate how close you are to Exchange. It just means the solicitor can tick that job off.