Purchase Fees

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 payment of any Land Transaction Tax (in Wales) or Stamp Duty Land Tax (in England).

Please see our costs for purchases (including freehold reversions) here. You may notice that we include fewer items than other providers in our charges. That is not because we have any “hidden” charges, but because we consider matters such as checking your ID and the details of other lawyers to be essential parts of our work, and don’t expect you to make separate payments to us for this.

Please note that our charges do not include the LTT or SDLT tax liability itself, although this must be paid to us as part of the total payment from you so that we can forward it to the appropriate tax authority. The LTT calculator is available here, and the SDLT calculator is here.

Our fee assumes 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
• the transaction is concluded in a timely manner and no unforeseen complication arise
• all parties to the transaction are co-operative and there is no unreasonable delay from third parties providing documentation

How Long?

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 4-16 weeks.

It can be quicker or slower, depending on the parties in the chain and their circumstances. As an indicator, a first time buyer buying an empty property might be able to move in within 4 weeks. However a buyer of a leasehold flat with a related sale in a long chain might take 16 weeks. If there are serious issues with a property, such as a leasehold property requiring a lease extension, or where it transpires that part of a garden isn’t within the title to a property, a transaction might take up to 6 months. In such, a situation additional charges would apply.

The Process

The precise stages involved in the purchase of a residential property vary according to the circumstances. However, here is a general guide to the work we will do.

• Take your instructions and give you initial advice
• Check finances are in place to fund purchase and contact lender’s solicitors if needed
• Receive,review and advise on contract documents
• Carry out searches
• Obtain further planning or title 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
• Meet with you to sign the documentation
• Advise you on joint ownership
• Agree completion date (date from which you own the property)
• Exchange contracts (commit you to the purchase) and notify you that this has happened
• Arrange for all monies needed to be received from (any lender) and you
• Complete purchase
• Deal with payment of Land Transaction Tax / Stamp Duty Land Tax
• Apply for registration of you as owner at the Land Registry

Leasehold Properties

These fees vary from property to property, and are usually specified in the lease. It is therefore difficult for us to give an estimate, and so they can on occasion be significantly more than the ranges given below. 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 in the case of flats) will be 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.

Common Leasehold Disbursements

• Notice of Transfer fee – This fee if chargeable is set out in the lease. Often the fee is between £10-125.
• Notice of Charge fee (if the property is to be mortgaged) – This fee is set out in the lease. Often the fee is between £10-125.
• 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 £150-250, but is not charged in every case.