Purchase of a freehold residential property

Our fees cover all of 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, or Land Transaction Tax (Land Tax) if the property you wish to buy is in Wales.

Please review the worked example blow, including the Stamp Duty and Land Tax Calculator.

Our legal fees (see example below) are based on the value of the property and typically range from £850.00 plus VAT of £170.00 total £1020.00 for a property valued at £250,000 to £2,000.00 plus VAT of £400.00 total £2,400.00 for a property valued at £1.0 million. The fee may also increase if there are legal complications in the transaction (further explanation at the end of the example).

Below you will also see listed disbursements (which are additional fees required to pay for items such as searches and Land Registry fees), and costs for non-legal work. The prices of these additional items varies according to the cost of the property and the complexity of the matter; higher property prices are likely to attract higher fees.

This is an example of an average house purchase.

Example of Conveyancer's fees and disbursements based upon a sample purchase of £350,000

• Legal fee £875.00 plus VAT (£1050.00)
• Search fees inclusive of VAT £275.00
  
• Land Charges /Land Registry Search fee £5 (sole Purchaser No VAT)
• HM Land Registry fee (no VAT) £150.00
  
• Electronic money transfer fee £36 (inclusive of VAT)
• Subtotal inclusive of VAT £1,516.00
  
• Referral fee (if any)

In a small number of cases there may be a referral fee. If there is such a fee this will be explained to the client at the outset and the name of the referrer made known to you.

The referral fee is not added to the legal fee you pay to us.

An example of a referral fee payable to any agent or other referrer is

£100, No VAT

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as Land Registry fees. You pay those fees and we handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.

• Stamp Duty or Land Tax (on purchase)

This depends on the purchase price of your property. You can calculate the amount you will need to pay by using HMRC's website or if the property is located in Wales by using the Welsh Revenue Authority's website.

This total is based on a first-time buyer using the property as their main residence and average transaction, should there be particular complications or unforeseen problems you will be advised and any figures as to fees up dated.

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 8 and 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, where the build is completed with a mortgage in principle, it could take   approximately 12 weeks. However, if you are buying a leasehold property that requires an extension of the lease, this can take significantly longer, between 12 weeks and 6 months. In such, a situation additional charges would apply.

Stages of the process

The precise stages involved in the purchase of a residential property vary according to the circumstances. However, below we have suggested some key stages that you may wish to include:

• Take your instructions and give you initial advice
• Check finances are in place to fund purchase and contact lender's solicitors if needed
• Receive and advise on contract documents
• 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 conditions of mortgage offer with you
• Send final contract to you for signature
• Agree 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 purchase
• Deal with payment of Stamp Duty/Land Tax
• Deal with application for registration at Land Registry

Examples of additional legal work required which could increase the legal fee and disbursements, include:

• Shared ownership
• Your lender instructing a separate solicitor
• Buying at Auction
• A new build purchase
• A re- possession purchase

 Purchase of a leasehold residential property

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, or Land Transaction Tax (Land Tax) if the property is in Wales.

Please review the worked example below, including the Stamp Duty and Land Tax Calculator.

Our legal fees (see example below) are based on the value of the property and typically range from £950.00 plus Vat of £190.00 total £1140.00 for a property valued at £250,000 to £2,500.00 plus VAT of £500.00 total £3,000.00 for a property valued at £1.5 million. The fee may also increase if there are legal complications in the transaction (further explanation at the end of the example).

Below you will also see listed disbursements (which are additional fees required to pay for items such as searches and Land Registry fees), and costs for non-legal work. The prices of these additional items varies according to the cost of the property and the complexity of the matter; higher property prices are likely to attract higher fees.

This is an example of an average leasehold purchase.

Example of conveyancers’ fees and disbursements based upon a purchase of £350,000

• Legal fee £950.00 plus VAT £190.00 Total £1140.00 this includes any fee for acting on behalf of the mortgage lender
• Search fees £275.00 Including VAT
• Land Charges/Land Registry Search £5 no Vat based upon a sole purchaser
• HM Land Registry fee (no VAT) £150.00
  
• Electronic money transfer fee £36 inclusive of VAT
• Subtotal inclusive of VAT £1,606.00
  
• Referral fee (if any)

In a small number of cases there may be a referral fee if there is such a fee this will be explained to the client at the outset and the name of the referrer made known to you.

An example of a referral fee payable to any agent or other referrer is

£100, No VAT

• Disbursements

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as search fees. You pay these but 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 have already been set out above. This list is not exhaustive and other disbursements may apply depending on the term of the lease. We will update you on the specific fees upon receipt and review of the lease from the seller's solicitors.

Additional Anticipated Disbursements

• Notice of Transfer fee – This fee if chargeable is set out in the lease. Often the fee is between £50 to £200
• 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 and £200
• Deed of Covenant fee – This fee is provided by the management company for the property and can be difficult to estimate. Often it is between £150 and £350.
• Certificate of Compliance fee - To be confirmed upon receipt of the lease, as can range between £150 and 350.

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 this we receive this information.

Stamp Duty Land Tax

This depends on the purchase price of your property. You can calculate the amount you will need to pay by using HMRC's website or if the property is located in Wales by using the Welsh Revenue Authority's website.

The precise stages involved in the purchase of a residential leasehold property vary according to the circumstances. However, below we have suggested some key stages that you may wish to include:

• Take your instructions and give you initial advice
• Check finances are in place to fund purchase and contact lender's solicitors if needed
• Receive and advise on contract documents
• 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 conditions of mortgage offer
• Send final contract to you for signature
• Draft Transfer
• Advise you on joint ownership
• Obtain pre-completion searches
• Agree 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 purchase
• Deal with payment of Stamp Duty/Land Tax
• Deal with application for registration at Land Registry

How long will my leasehold 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 8 to 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 12 weeks. However, if you are buying an existing leasehold property that requires an extension of the lease, this can take significantly longer, between 12 weeks and 6 months. In such, a situation additional charges would apply.

* Our fee assumes that:

1. 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
2. this is the assignment of an existing lease and is not the grant of a new lease
3. the transaction is concluded in a timely manner and no unforeseen complication arise
4. all parties to the transaction are co-operative and there is no unreasonable delay from third parties providing documentation
5. no indemnity policies are required. Additional disbursements may apply if indemnity policies are required.

• purchase at auction
• property has been repossessed

Examples of additional legal work required which could increase the legal fee and disbursements, include:

• Shared ownership
• Your lender instructing a separate solicitor
• Buying at Auction
• A new build purchase
• A re- possession purchase

Fees in relation to a re- mortgage on a property

If you need to re-mortgage your property an example of the fees that will apply are as follows:

Free hold property – typically a house

Legal fees £650.00 plus Vat of £130.00 Total £780.00

Lease hold property – typically a flat

Legal fees £750.00 plus VAT £150.00 total £900.00

Additional costs

There are additional costs you will have to pay, these include

• Bank transfer fee (per transfer) £36.00 including VAT
• Search fees between £24.00 to £250.00 including VAT depending on geographical area
• Land Charges/Land registry searches between £5.00 and £7.00 no VAT
• Land Registry fee between £20.00 and £140.00 no VAT depending on, for example the size of the loan and whether the registration can be achieved electronically or not
• Land Registry documents between £6.00 and £24.00 no VAT depending on the number of documents required