Residential Conveyancing Fees Guide

We are required by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) to provide pricing information to potential clients in relation to certain types of work. However, we encourage our clients to contact us for more detailed information based on their specific situation and not to base any decision solely on price.

Below you will find pricing information for conveyancing matters on which we are able to advise. No property is exactly the same and our fee will reflect the particular requirements of your sale or purchase. For example, dealing with a listed building may, because of the added complexities, cost more than a non-listed property. Leasehold and new build purchases are other examples where a substantial amount of time may be spent due to the sheer volume of documentation that has to be reviewed and checked. However, some property transactions may be at the bottom of our scale, for example, a plot purchase on an estate/development where we have had multiple instructions previously.

Transparency is key and we would encourage you to contact us for a more accurate fee estimate. It is our policy to provide detailed fee estimates up front and if a property transaction does have unexpected complications, we will always inform you of that immediately and would discuss in full the potential consequences before any extra charges were incurred.

How do we charge?

• Our legal costs for a Re-mortgage range from £ 750 – £2000 + VAT
• Our legal costs for an Equity Release Mortgage are £750 + VAT
• Our legal costs for Shared Ownership and Help to Buy Purchases range from £1800 – £3000 + VAT
• Our legal costs for a Transfer are £1000 + VAT
• Our legal costs for a Transfer & Mortgage £1000 + VAT
• Lease Extension £1500 + VAT

Property Purchases

Property Sales

Variable Factors

Factors that may increase the cost of the service include (this list is not exhaustive):

• if legal title is defective or part of the property is unregistered
• if building regulations or planning permission has not been obtained
• if crucial documents we have requested are not provided
• if parties in the transaction are uncooperative and there is an unreasonable delay from third parties
• matrimonial matters or disputes over ownership
• delay in mortgage offers being issued and/or lenders requirements
• Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT)

The amount of SDLT paid is dependent on the purchase price of your property. As taxes charged by HMRC are subject to change we have not included them in our estimates. Please find a link to HMRC’s online SDLT calculator that will work out the tax payable for most property transactions.

https://www.tax.service.gov.uk/calculate-stamp-duty-land-tax/#/intro

Disbursements

Disbursements are costs related to your transaction which are payable to third parties, such as Land Registry fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process. These disbursements are payable on top of our own legal fees. Below are some of the most common disbursements but further disbursements may be payable in your particular case. We will be able to advise which disbursements are applicable to you if you ask us to provide a quotation based on your specific requirements. 

• Property search fees: Approximately £450 (further searches may be advisable and these will be priced individually)
• HM Land Registry fee: these fees vary depending on the nature of your transaction. You can see the fees at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/hm-land-registry-registration-services-fees
• Land Registry Search fee: £3.00 per title
• Land Charges Search fee: from £2.00 per name
• Electronic Transfer fee: £ £30.00 + VAT (includes our handling fee)
• Leasehold properties often attract extra disbursements which have to be paid, for example, to a landlord or managing agent. These fees vary.
• VAT payable in some instances

How long will my property transaction take?

The average residential property purchase or sale process takes 8 weeks from acceptance of an offer to exchange of contracts however the time taken to complete your transaction can depend on a number of factors. It can be quicker or slower, depending on the number of parties in the chain as all parties need to have completed the necessary steps.

As a property buyer or seller, it’s important to understand the basics of the conveyancing process so you can be involved and understand what is happening in the various stages.

In summary, buying or selling property happens in 10 stages:

Stage One

An offer is made by a buyer and this usually happens through an estate agent. The buyer and the seller will both need a solicitor, this is often where the first delay happens. It may seem obvious that if you buy a house, you need a solicitor. However, it is surprisingly common for a buyer to only start looking for a solicitor once they have had their offer accepted. It may take a while to select a firm and go through the process of appointing the solicitors, signing terms & conditions and verifying the buyer’s identity, which is a legal requirement. It’s only after all this has happened that the buyer’s solicitor will now write to the seller’s solicitor to confirm they are acting for the buyer. Once the buyer’s solicitor has contacted the seller’s solicitors, the seller’s solicitors will need to send all the initial information to be sent to the buyer’s solicitors.

Stage Two

The sale information and documents are prepared and sent to the buyer’s solicitor.

A typical residential sale requires at least:

1. A contract;
2. A transfer;
3. Title documents;
4. Property information form;
5. Fittings and content form.

Title documents are generally available from Land Registry instantly (assuming the property is registered). The property information form and fittings and content form are for the seller to complete and will be provided by their solicitor. These forms ask for a lot of information, some of which is not always known to the seller and may take some investigation.

Stage Three

The buyer’s solicitor receives the seller’s property information. Once the seller’s solicitor has provided the title documents, the buyer’s solicitor will request property searches. Searches are advised for all property purchases and are mandatory where a person is purchasing with the help of a mortgage. Searches can take anywhere from 3 days to 8 weeks to be returned.

Information and documents to be reviewed include:

1. Contract –Behind all residential contracts, there is a set of ‘standard conditions’, these standard conditions have been drafted by a body of professional experts to be as fair as possible for both parties. The contract is a legally binding document and can have significant implications for a party who breaches its terms. In practice, if no terms are breached, the document is not used for anything further after the purchase has taken place.
2. Transfer –The form used to ‘transfer’ the property from the seller to the buyer and update the title records at the Land Registry.
3. Title documents – All registered properties have a title Register and a title Plan. Often, there are additional documents which contain other rights affecting or benefiting the property.

3.1 Title Register has 3 main sections –

Section A: which includes (to name a few) –

• Description of the land with reference to the Title Plan;
• Details of any exclusions from the title, such as mines and minerals particulars of Lease (if leasehold);
• Matters that benefit the land such as: Easements, Rights, Privileges, Covenants, Party wall declarations.

Section B:  which includes –

• Class of Title;
• Name of the owner;
• Address for service of the owner;
• Restrictions;
• Notices;
• Positive covenants;
• Purchase price (or value declared).

Section C:  which includes notices of –

• Leases;
• Mortgages and charges;
• Other interests adversely affecting the property;
• Restrictions relating to charges/mortgages;
• Notices relating to charges/mortgages.

3.2. Title Plan is a map which shows the boundary of the property edged in red. It may also show access ways and other areas which have various rights in other colours on the plan. The plan is commonly shown at a scale of 1:1250 therefore the red line showing the boundary is only accurate to approximately one metre.

3.3. Additional Deeds, often historic, may also be noted against the property title. These deeds often contain rights of access, restrictive covenants and positive covenants affecting the property. Such rights and covenants lead into a vast area of law and careful consideration needs to be given to whether they remain in place and/or are enforceable. Further information can be found by following the links in the previous sentence.

3.4. Lease where a property is leasehold.

3.5.  Property Information Form. This specifically prepared form is designed to address all the common queries a solicitor may have when seeking information about a residential property. A solicitor reviewing the form will request further information from the seller’s solicitors where they consider the information provided by the seller is either insufficient or requires further investigation.

3.6. Fittings and Contents Form. This is another specifically designed form for the seller to complete indicating which fixtures and fittings will remain at the property once sold. There is no obligation on the seller to include any items in the sale, however, they must make it clear on this form if they are not leaving them. It is extremely important the buyer checks this form and is aware of which items are remaining and which items are not.

Stage Four

Property searches

Conveyancing property searches are reports that reveal if there are any risks to a property being purchased in relation to issues including planning enforcements, environmental issues including flooding, mining or subsidence, and more.

A local authority search, for example, will provide information on any planning and/or building regulation applications, approvals and enforcement notices. It will also reveal if a property is a listed building if it is in a conservation area and if any land within the property is required for public use, etc. A local authority search can take anywhere from 3 days to 8 weeks, depending on the local authority and their lead times. Because a local authority search can take several weeks, it is imperative a buyer’s searches are undertaken at the earliest opportunity.

If you are purchasing a property with the assistance of a mortgage, you must undertake at least a local authority search as well as a water and drainage search. A mortgage lender requires your solicitor to undertake ‘all necessary searches’. Depending on the use (current and former), location and other factors, additional searches as set out below may be necessary and therefore mandatory to satisfy your mortgage lender’s requirements.

Common residential searches include:

• Local authority search;
• Water and drainage search;
• Environmental search;
• Planning search;
• Flooding search;
• Chancel repair search;

Coal mining search.

Stage 5

Enquiries

The buyer’s solicitor will ‘raise enquiries’ with the seller’s solicitors on any points which require further investigation from stages 3 and 4 above. Such questions may relate to the property title, for example, requesting further information on a right of way over, or from, the property or more information on covenants affecting the property. The buyer can now review the information including checking the boundaries against the title plan, review the list of fixtures and contents which are being left at the property, and ensure they are satisfied with the information provided so far.

If you are selling a property and have any documentation, certificates or information about the property which is either mentioned in the Property Information Form or you consider may be needed, you should send them (or copies of them) to your solicitor at the very beginning of the sale as this can save considerable time during the process.

Stage 6

Responding to Enquiries

When the buyer’s solicitor has sent the enquiries to the seller’s solicitors, the seller’s solicitor will need to liaise with the seller to obtain the requested additional information and/or documentation. Hopefully, this doesn’t take the seller’s solicitor more than 48 hours to start reviewing the enquiries, Once all the buyer’s solicitor’s questions have been sufficiently addressed, the information and any documents will be sent to the buyer’s solicitor for them to check.

Until the legal issues have been adequately addressed, the matter will not be able to move forward. In some cases, an indemnity insurance policy can be taken out to address the issue and allow the matter to progress.

Stage 7

Buyer’s Report

Once the legal issues have been adequately dealt with, all the information provided by the seller needs to be presented to the buyer, with summaries and explanations, to ensure the buyer is aware of the relevant information relating to the property and the transaction. Depending on the extent of any reports already provided to the buyer, a final report is usually provided to the buyer to ensure they have had all the information and, more importantly, are satisfied with all the information.

Along with the final information, at this stage the buyer should also expect:

• Draft invoice and completion statement;
• Stamp duty form;
• Final contract for signing;
• Final transfer for signing;
• A form confirming they are satisfied with all information and are agreeable to exchanging contracts.

If the buyer is taking a mortgage, they will also be provided with a very brief mortgage summary and the mortgage deed for signing.

Stage 8

Exchange of Contracts

To be able to exchange contracts ALL of the following needs to occur:

1. Both solicitors hold their respective client’s signed contract.
2. A completion date has been agreed upon (by all parties in the ‘chain’).
3. The buyer has paid their deposit to their solicitor.
4. Final authority to exchange contracts has been given from the buyer and the seller to their respective solicitors (usually on the day of exchanging contracts).

Following the exchange of contracts, the seller’s solicitor needs to:

1. Prepare a completion statement.
2. Obtain a final redemption statement to pay off the seller’s mortgage (if any).
3. Send account details and completion information to the buyer’s solicitor.
4. Send the seller’s executed contract to the buyer’s solicitor.

Following the exchange of contracts, the Buyer’s solicitor needs to:

1. Prepare a completion statement.
2. Request mortgage money from the buyer’s lender (if any).
3. Obtain a final balance of monies from the buyer. This will include stamp duty, legal fees and disbursements.
4. Send the seller’s executed contract to the buyer’s solicitor.

Stage 9

Completion

Once the post-exchange steps above have been done and all money is with the buyer’s solicitor, the buyer’s solicitor will send the completion money to the seller’s solicitors by electronic bank transfer.

When the money has been received by the seller’s solicitor, they will telephone the buyer’s solicitor to confirm the money has been received and the sale has completed. The seller’s solicitor will then call the estate agent to confirm the matter has been completed and the keys to the property can be given to the buyer, who is now the owner of the property.

Once the seller’s solicitor has confirmed completion to the buyer’s solicitor, the buyer’s solicitor will telephone the buyer to confirm the purchase has been completed. They are now the owner of the property and they can collect the keys to their new house from the estate agent.

The seller’s solicitor will pay any mortgage the seller had and send the balance to the seller on the same day. They will also send the seller’s signed transfer and any original documents relating to the property to the buyer’s solicitor. The buyer’s solicitor will pay the buyer’s stamp duty and attend to the registration of the property transfer.

Stage 10

Registration

The buyer’s solicitor will register the transfer of the property at the Land Registry. This is usually done electronically and can take anywhere up to 6 months for Land Registry to process. Once the transfer has been registered, the Land Registry will send an updated copy of the Title Register to the buyer’s solicitor who will, in turn, send it to the buyer. The Title Register is an electronic printout of the Land Registry’s electronic records or property ownership. If a Title Register is lost, a further copy can be obtained from Land Registry for a small fee.

Who will advise you?

David Tang deals with all of the conveyancing transactions and is assisted by Tracy Zhao (trainee) and Bonnita Wong (caseworker).