Overview
You send a statement showing enough money for the deposit, then your solicitor asks for earlier statements and evidence of where a transfer came from. The first statement answered whether the money was there. It may not have answered how you obtained it.
Source-of-funds checks connect the money used for the purchase to a credible, evidenced origin. Preparing that trail early is usually more useful than collecting a large folder of unrelated documents at the last minute.
Quick Answer (Read This First)
A source-of-funds check looks beyond the final bank balance to the origin and movement of the money being used. Evidence depends on whether it came from earnings, a gift, inheritance, a sale or another source, and on the risk assessment of the firm checking it.
There is no universal rule that three or six months of statements will always be enough. Ask your conveyancer for the evidence needed for your actual funding arrangement before moving money or committing to a completion timetable.
Why More Than One Organisation May Ask
The mortgage lender checks whether the deposit and application meet its requirements. The conveyancer has separate professional and legal responsibilities, including anti-money-laundering checks.
The SRA's warning notice explains obligations and warning signs for the solicitors it regulates in England and Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own legal regulators; your local conveyancer determines the requirements for the transaction.
Passing the lender's deposit check does not automatically complete the solicitor's check. Equally, an estate agent seeing proof that you can afford an offer does not establish that the whole purchase file has been approved.
If several people request documents, ask which period and purpose each request covers. You may be able to reuse suitable originals, but one organisation's acceptance is not a substitute for another's decision.
Separate the Origin From the Transfer Route
The origin is how the money was acquired. The route is how it moved to the account that will fund the purchase.
As an invented example, £18,000 saved from earnings is moved from a savings account to a current account before purchase. The current-account statement shows an £18,000 receipt. The savings statements and income evidence help explain the origin; records from both accounts connect the transfer.
A further question about source of wealth concerns how a person's wider assets were built up. Not every file requires the same depth of enquiry, but identifying those different questions helps you understand what evidence is being requested.
Sending another screenshot of the final balance does not fill a gap earlier in the chain. Ask which link remains unexplained.
Match the Evidence to Each Contribution
The following is a preparation checklist to discuss with your conveyancer, not a promise that a particular document will be accepted.
| Contribution | Evidence to ask about preparing |
|---|---|
| Savings from earnings | Statements showing accumulation and relevant income records |
| Family gift | Gift declaration, donor identification and evidence of the donor's funds |
| Inheritance | Estate or solicitor correspondence and records of the payment received |
| Property sale | Completion statement and the bank record receiving the proceeds |
| Investment sale | Provider statement, sale record and receipt into your bank |
| Overseas funds | Origin records, transfer and currency-conversion records, and any required translations |
Ask which document formats the firm accepts and how to submit them securely. Clear filenames and complete pages can make a mixed-source deposit much easier to follow.
If an older statement is missing, request it from the bank rather than recreating it yourself. Where a document cannot be obtained, explain the gap and ask what alternative evidence the firm can consider.
A Worked Example of a Mixed Deposit
Suppose a buyer's £45,000 contribution comprises £18,000 of savings, a £12,000 gift and £15,000 inherited from an estate. All three have now been combined in one account.
Write those three components on a cover sheet and match each to its supporting records. The savings trail should explain £18,000, the donor evidence should explain £12,000, and the estate evidence should connect to the £15,000 received.
Then show how the components reached the final account. If £45,000 was transferred between two accounts you own, include the corresponding debit and credit where requested rather than describing the transfer itself as the original source.
The example totals £45,000, but that does not establish the buyer has enough for the whole transaction. Fees, property taxes and other completion costs need their own place in the funding plan.
A Gift Letter Does Not Explain Every Part of a Gift
The gift declaration addresses matters such as repayment expectations and any interest in the property. It does not necessarily establish how the donor acquired the money.
Halifax's gifted-deposit guidance and Nationwide's application-proofs guide illustrate lender-specific evidence requirements. Your solicitor may need additional evidence for its own checks.
Read our gifted-deposit letter guide for the declaration itself. Tell the lender and conveyancer if the contribution must be repaid; describing a family loan as a gift creates an inaccurate application.
If the donor is uncomfortable sharing documents with you, ask whether they can provide them directly through the firm's secure process. That addresses privacy without leaving the origin undocumented.
What Commonly Creates Avoidable Confusion
Money moved repeatedly between several accounts can require more records to trace. Keep existing records and disclose the route accurately; do not rearrange funds to disguise where they came from.
Large cash deposits, an unexplained payment from a third party, or a last-minute change of donor may prompt further questions. The SRA's money-laundering case studies show why firms must take unexplained money movements seriously.
Avoid deleting pages, cropping out identifying details or editing transactions on a statement. If you have privacy concerns, agree an acceptable way to supply the evidence instead of assuming redacted documents will pass.
Before Sending Purchase Money
Evidence approval and payment instructions are separate checks. Confirm bank details independently using a trusted contact route already established with the firm, particularly if an email says the details have changed.
If you have already sent money following a suspicious change, contact your bank immediately and follow our bank-transfer scam guide. Do not wait for the next routine update on the purchase.
For the wider sequence, read the mortgage-to-completion timeline and mortgage underwriting guide. Our mortgage hub links the related deposit and application topics.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sources and Further Reading
Sources checked on 20 September 2026. Requirements depend on the transaction, lender and legal jurisdiction.
