Newbie questions about buying a house/moving

Please help me out here with understanding what means what. There's closing and completion, what do they mean? What I am trying to find out (waiting for solicitors to call me back) is WHEN CAN WE MOVE IN? We are supposed to 'complete' next week, does that mean on that day we can move in, or on the day after, or what? What exactly do the terms mean? How does 'exchange' figure in?

We have no chain in the sense that our purchase isn't dependent on the sale of our current house; however we are selling it and the timing is working out so that 'completion' dates are within the same week (purchase completes before sale). Our purchaser is a FTB and our seller has got their next place sorted.

Anyway, now that it's so potentially close (I understand why moving is so stressful now, you never know what is happening or when), I just want to know what is going on! And when can we finally move???

Thanks

exchange- when you exchange contracts.  at this time the purchase becomes binding (well you can get out- but you'll lose money)

completion- the day you get the keys.  i arranged a time for me to go to the estate agents and pick up the keys.

can be the same day or a week or so apart. 

http://www.fool.co.uk/school/2006/sch060515.htm

Thank you so much!!! That link is great - so simple to understand!

I always thought 'exchange' had something to do with handing over the keys, lol.

 

meggles- thanks for that link! I'm not buying a house, but I've been looking for a good (read: easy to understand) UK personal finance website. I've bookmarked it

glad you like the link... the only word of warning i'll say is that i don't like their investment info.  i find it biased. 

Your exchange usually happens after you've completed.  You can set your completion date with the person you're selling to / buying from according to what's convenient for the two of you.  Our "exchange" date was the same as our completion date as we were moving straight in with no previous residence and the guy we were buying from wanted out ASAP as he was moving in with family...

Good luck & congrats on the new house!