The death of one of the contracting parties between contract and completion will not affect the validity of the contract; the benefit and burden of the contract will pass to the deceased’s PRs who are bound to complete. A failure to complete on time will lead to a claim for damages. 


If it is a sole buyer who has died, then the deceased’s PRs will step into his shoes and will be required to complete the contract. At the least, the transfer will have to be redrafted to reflect the change in parties, and the PRs will not be able to complete until they obtain the grant of representation. In practice, the death of the potential borrower will usually mean the revoking of the mortgage offer, and thus the PRs may find that they do not have sufficient funds to complete. 


If it is one of two joint buyers who has died, the survivor remains bound by the contract and can be forced to complete. One complication is that joint buyers will have obtained an equitable interest on exchange of contracts, and it is therefore possible that the deceased’s share may on death have passed to a third party (not to the co-purchaser) under their will or intestacy. In order to avoid delay, it may be better to transfer the property into the names of two trustees on completion. Either way, the transfer will have to be redrafted to reflect the change in parties, and there is also the potential problem that a mortgage offer may be revoked.