Conveyancing Fees
Legal Fees
Our legal fees vary tremendously depending on the type of property involved (eg freehold, leasehold, new build, remortgage, shared equity, it's value) and the circumstances / complexities of the transaction. Our legal fees would therefore fall within the range of £850 - £5000 plus VAT.
Please note you will also incur our bank admin fee of £35 plus VAT for each bank transfer we need to undertake.
In addition to our fees you will incur disbursements (payments to third parties):-
Sale Disbursements
There are limited disbursements on a sale and they include the cost of documents from the Land Registry £6.00-£12.00 (approximately) together with the fees of your selling agent (if any).
Purchase Disbursements
Turning to a purchase, there are additional disbursements and these can be summarised as follows:-
- Local Search and Drainage Search - £99.60 (please be aware the searches required and costs will depend on the location of the property and the mortgage lender)
- Bankruptcy Search - £2.00 per name (if a mortgage is required for the purchase)
- Land Registry Search - £3.00 (if the property is registered otherwise Land Charges Searches based on £2.00 per name if the property is unregistered)
- Land Registry fee - £20.00-£910.00. The Land Registry fee is dependent on three matters:-
- The value of the property
- If it is registered or unregistered
- If it is a transfer of whole or transfer of part
Below is a link to the Land Registry website which sets out their charges:-
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/hm-land-registry-registration-services-fees
- Stamp Duty Land Tax – You can calculate the amount of tax you will pay if the property is located in England via the government website:-
https://www.gov.uk/stamp-duty-land-tax
Alternatively if the property is in Wales you will need to utilise the Welsh Revenue Authority calculator:-
https://beta.gov.wales/land-transaction-tax-calculator
Stages of the Conveyancing Process
- Check that finances are in place to fund the purchase and contact the lender’s solicitors if needed
- Receive and advise on the contract documents
- We will carry out searches
- Obtain further planning documentation if required
- Make any necessary enquiries of seller’s solicitor
- Give you advice on all documents and information received
- Go through the conditions of the mortgage offer with you
- We will send the final contract to you for signature
- Agree a completion date (date from which you own the property)
- Exchange contracts and notify you that this has happened
- Arrange for all monies needed to be received from lender and you
- Complete the purchase
- Deal with the payment of Stamp Duty/Land Tax
- Deal with the application for registration at the Land Registry
How long will my house sale or purchase take?
The average process takes between 10-16 weeks. It can be quicker or slower, depending on the parties in the chain.
For example, if you are a first time buyer, purchasing a new build property with a mortgage in principle, it could take 10 weeks. However, if you are buying a leasehold property that requires an extension of the lease, this can take significantly longer, between 3 and 5 months. In such, a situation additional charges would apply.
Our solicitor fee makes a number of assumptions:
- That this is a standard transaction and that no unforeseen matters arise including for example (but not limited to) a defect in title which requires remedying prior to completion or the preparation of additional documents ancillary to the main transaction
- That this is the assignment of an existing lease and is not the grant of a new lease
- The transaction is concluded in a timely manner and no unforeseen complications arise
- All parties to the transaction are co-operative and there is no unreasonable delay from third parties providing documentation
- No indemnity policies are required. Additional disbursements may apply if indemnity policies are required