Before the property is handed over as empty, the central point to confirm is whether vacant possession is due upon completion. The Estate Agents Authority states that the seller generally delivers vacant possession on completion unless the property is sold with a tenancy, and that the buyer normally inspects the property beforehand to verify that delivery.
Does the sale require vacant possession on completion?
The sale agreement must be checked for the agreed handover position. Under the general rule described by the Estate Agents Authority, vacant possession is delivered upon completion. If the property is sold with a tenancy, that general rule does not apply in the same way.
“Empty” should therefore not be treated as a complete description of the legal handover obligation. The cited EAA statement does not address every possible physical item or condition, so matters such as keys, fixtures or other handover requirements should not be added to the checklist as universal requirements without checking the particular agreement.
How is vacant possession checked before completion?
The EAA says sellers normally let buyers inspect the property before completion. The stated purpose of that inspection is to verify delivery of vacant possession.
The relevant confirmation is therefore whether the pre-completion inspection took place and what it established about the handover condition. The cited statement does not prescribe a standard inspection report or a detailed inventory, so it does not support treating any particular list of items as an official universal checklist.
What must still be confirmed directly?
Before completion, the parties still need to confirm:
- Whether the property is being sold with a tenancy.
- What the sale agreement says about delivery of vacant possession.
- Whether the buyer has inspected the property before completion.
- Whether the inspection verified the agreed vacant-possession delivery.
- Whether the particular agreement contains any additional handover conditions.
The supported central check is the tenancy status, the completion delivery obligation and the pre-completion inspection. Any broader handover checklist should be confirmed separately rather than inferred from this general rule.