Everything you need to know about reservation agreements and how your money is protected.
A reservation agreement is a legally binding contract between a buyer and seller that takes a property off the market for an agreed period. The buyer pays a reservation fee which is held securely, and in return, the seller agrees not to accept other offers during the exclusivity period.
This protects both parties — the buyer is protected from being gazumped, and the seller is protected from the buyer pulling out without consequence.
Yes. Once both the buyer and seller have signed, the agreement is a legally enforceable contract. Both parties are bound by its terms, including the consequences of withdrawal.
The exclusivity period is set by your estate agent, typically 28 to 56 days. During this time, the property is reserved exclusively for you. The exact period is stated in your agreement. Extensions can be arranged through your agent if needed.
Your reservation fee is processed by Stripe Payments UK, Ltd, an FCA-authorised Electronic Money Institution (firm reference 900461).
Neither the estate agent, the seller, nor PurchaseSecured can access your funds. The money is only released when the conditions in your agreement are met.
This depends on the fee type in your agreement:
Towards purchase price: Your fee is deducted from the final purchase price — you don't pay extra.
Buyer premium: The fee is retained by the agent as a separate charge and is not deducted from the purchase price. This will be clearly disclosed in your agreement and SDLT disclosure notice.
If you withdraw without valid reason (such as discovering a material defect that wasn't disclosed), you may forfeit your reservation fee. The exact terms are set out in your agreement.
Valid reasons for withdrawal typically include: undisclosed structural defects, failed searches revealing issues, mortgage refusal, or the seller's failure to meet their obligations.
If the seller withdraws, you will receive a full refund plus potential compensation as set out in the agreement.
1. Agreement sent — Your agent prepares and sends the reservation agreement.
2. Review & sign — You review the terms and digitally sign.
3. Seller countersigns — The seller reviews and accepts.
4. Pay reservation fee — You pay securely via Stripe.
5. Property reserved — The property is off the market, exclusively for you.
6. Exchange & completion — Proceed to exchange of contracts as normal.
Yes. The reservation agreement does not replace the normal conveyancing process. You should still instruct a solicitor or conveyancer to handle searches, contracts, and the exchange/completion process. The reservation simply protects both parties while conveyancing is underway.
Under the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, you may have a 14-day cooling-off period when signing agreements online. However, if you want the property taken off the market immediately, you can waive this right during the signing process.
By waiving the cooling-off period, you agree that the agreement takes effect immediately and the property is reserved for you straight away. This is optional — if you don't waive it, the agreement won't take full effect until the cooling-off period has passed.
PurchaseSecured is a technology platform. We do not hold client funds. All reservation fees are processed by Stripe Payments UK Limited (trading as Stripe), which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
We comply fully with the UK GDPR and Data Protection Act 2018. Your data is used only for the reservation process and is shared only with the parties involved (buyer, seller, agent) and our regulated payment services provider. See our Privacy Policy for full details.