Property Prices
Purchase of residential property Freehold and Leasehold
Our fees cover all the work required to complete the purchase of your new home, including dealing with registration at the Land Registry and dealing with the payment of Stamp Duty Land Tax (Stamp Duty) if the property is in England*
- VAT will be added to the Legal Fees and some disbursements at a rate of 20%
Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as search fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process. There are certain disbursements which will be set out in the individual lease relating to the Property. The disbursements which we anticipate will apply are set out separately below. This list is not exhaustive and other disbursements may apply depending on the terms of the lease. We will update you on the specific fees upon receipt and review of the lease from the seller’s solicitors.
| Legal fees: | £550 -£1200 (for properties between £100,000 and £1,000,000) | VAT@ 20% |
|---|---|---|
| Fees for acting on behalf of a mortgage lender | £150.00 | VAT@ 20% |
| Search fees: | £350 - £450 approx | |
| HM Land Registry fee: | This depends on the purchase price of your property, this amount can be calculated using HMLR’s website: http://landregistry.data.gov.uk/fees-calculator.html | |
| Stamp Duty Land Tax | This will depend upon the purchase price of your property. You can calculate the amount due by using HMRC’s website : https://www.tax.service https://www.tax.service.gov.uk/calculate-stamp-duty-land-tax/#/intro | |
| Electronic money transfer admin fee: | £25 | |
| Bankruptcy search | £2 per person | |
| Land Registry Priority Search | £3 |
Further Anticipated Disbursements:
- Notice of Transfer fee- This fee if chargeable is set out in the lease. Often the fee is between £50-£80. However, it varies from lease to lease
- Notice of Charge fee- (if the property is to be mortgaged)- This fee is set out in the lease. Often the fee is between £50-£80. However, it varies from lease to lease
- Deed of Covenant fee-This fee is provided by the management company for the property and can be difficult to estimate
- Certificate of Compliance fee- To be confirmed upon receipt of the lease
- In Leasehold matters we may also need to pay a fee to the Landlords Solicitors or Agents in respect of providing replies to Standard Leasehold Enquiries of the Landlord. This cost varies from one property to the next. We will advise you of this cost, however this usually ranges between £100 – £250 plus VAT
- You should note that for all new clients of the firm, we will conduct an electronic ID search for Anti Money Laundering compliance. The administrative fee for arranging these checks is approximately £15 plus VAT
These fees vary from property to property and can on occasion be significantly more than the ranges given above. We can give you an accurate figure once we have sight of your specific documents.
You should also be aware that ground rent and service charge are likely to apply throughout your ownership of the property. We will confirm the ground rent and the anticipated service charge as soon as we receive this information.
As part of our professional service we will:
- Take your instructions and give you initial advice depending on the terms of your purchase
- Check finances are in place and arrangements have been made to fund the purchase, we will contact the lender’s solicitors if needed
- Receive contract documentation and advise you on these
- Carry out the necessary searches
- Acquire further planning documentation if required
- Make any necessary enquiries of the seller’s solicitor
- Report to you and provide you advice on all documents and information received
- Go through conditions of any mortgage offers
- Send the final contract to you for signature
- Draft a Transfer Deed
- Agree a completion date, exchange contracts and notify you that this has happened
- Arrange for all monies needed to be received from the lender and you
- Complete purchase
- Deal with payment of Stamp Duty/Land Tax
- Deal with the application for registration at Land Registry
- Send you updated registration documents once registration at Land Registry has been concluded
If the property is leasehold we will also :
- Advise you on service charge, ground rent and any arrangements with managing agents/management companies involved
- Make enquiries in relation to any licence to assign required from the Landlord
- Review your lease and report to you on the terms
How long will my house purchase take?
How long it will take from your offer being accepted until you can move in to your house will depend on a number of factors. The average process takes between 5-8 weeks. It can be quicker or slower, depending on factors such as any the parties in a chain.
Our fee assumes that:
a. 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
b. this is the assignment of an existing lease and is not the grant of a new lease
c. the transaction is concluded in a timely manner and no unforeseen complication arise
d. all parties to the transaction are co-operative and there is no unreasonable delay from third parties providing documentation
e. no indemnity policies are required. Additional disbursements may apply if indemnity policies are required.
Residential Sale Freehold and Leasehold Estimated Fee
Our fee for dealing with a normal conveyancing property sale is:
| Sale Price | Our Legal Fees (Freehold) | Our Legal Fees (Leasehold) |
|---|---|---|
| £0 - £250,000 | £650 | £700 |
| £251,000 - £500,000 | £750 | £800 |
| £501,000 - £999,000 | £950 | £1,000 |
| £1,000,000+ | 0.15% - 0.175% | 0.15% - 0.175% |
Please note VAT will be added to our legal fees
If there are charges/ mortgage over the property you are selling we charge an additional fee of £125 plus VAT per mortgage assuming the mortgage is with a high street lender. This includes:
- Obtaining a redemption statement
- Transferring the redemption amount to the Lender on completion
- Obtaining discharge documents and sending to the Buyer’s solicitors following completion
Likely disbursements
(these are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process)
- Land Registry Title Documents (Freehold) £6 each (no VAT)
- Land Registry Title Documents (Leasehold) £6 (no VAT)
- Copy Lease £3.00 if it is available electronically or £12 if the land registry need to manually process this
- Acquiring any planning permission documents – price depends on the individual local authority
Potential Additional Disbursements
In Leasehold matters we may also need to pay a fee to the Landlords Solicitors or Agents in respect of providing replies to Standard Leasehold Enquiries of the Landlord. This cost varies from one property to the next, depending on the fees confirmed in the Lease/ agreed with the landlord. We will advise you of this cost, however this usually ranges between £100 – £250 plus VAT.
You should note that these disbursements can vary from property to property and can on occasion be significantly more than the ranges given above. We can give you an accurate indication of costs once we have had sight of the specific documents. Other disbursements may apply depending on the terms of your Lease.
You should note that for all new clients of the firm, we will conduct an electronic ID search for Anti Money Laundering compliance. The administrative fee for arranging these checks is £15 plus VAT. If we are arranging the transfer of funds electronically, we will charge a fee for our time involved in arranging each transfer, for example sending the proceeds of sale to you on completion, the cost of this and the amount we pay to the bank for the transfer is £25 plus VAT per transfer.
Information on Estimated Fees
Your fee will reflect work involved in your transaction. There may be additional documents and requirements for your specific sale transaction. There may be situations that arise which would require us to charge you additional fees. We will of course notify you of any additional costs and disbursements before they are incurred. Please note that if for any reason we are unable to proceed or you choose to close your matter after you have instructed us, you will still be charged for any work (including additional work) that we have carried out.
Average timescales
How long it will take from you accepting the buyer(s) offer to completing the sale will depend on various factors. The average process takes between 5 to 7 weeks to exchange, and a further one or two weeks before completion, dependent on all parties involved being agreeable to the completion date. The process can also be quicker or slower, depending on any parties in the chain. Leasehold matters often take longer due to the additional parties involved in the transaction, including landlords/ managing agents/ companies.
As part of our professional service we will:
- Take initial instructions from you and provide you any initial advice, according to the terms of your sale
- Acquire title documents from the Land Registry and prepare the contract pack
- Provide you guidance if needed on the the initial property information forms for the property you are selling
- Draft your sale contract and issue to the buyer’s solicitors
- Take your instructions and respond to any enquiries raised by your Buyer’s solicitors
- Send you the final contract and arrange for you to sign in readiness for exchange of contracts
- Agree a completion date
- Exchange Contracts and notify you that exchange has taken place
- Approve the Transfer Deed from the Buyer’s solicitors and send to you for signature and witnessing
- Request your Estate Agents Commission invoice for settlement upon completion
- Complete your transaction and send you the proceeds of sale once all fees and balances due have been settled
- Send executed transfer to the Buyer’s solicitors
- In relation to leasehold properties we will also
- Obtain a copy of your Lease from the Land Registry/ you
- Advise on service charge and ground rent as per the lease
- Contact the Landlord/ Managing Agent for replies to Standard Leasehold Enquiries and raise any specific enquiries raised by the Buyer’s solicitors to the Landlord or their agents
- Advise you of any additional costs required pursuant to the Lease in respect of landlord/ managing agents/ management company involved, as appropriate
