Selling and Buying Property

We can act for you in connection with your sale and/or purchase of a residential property.

We aim to guide you through the conveyancing process to ensure that the transaction is handled thoroughly and as quickly and efficiently as the circumstances allow.


 

Click here to download our Conveyancing Services Guide including price guide

 

What we do for you on a Sale

The following matters will usually be dealt with in relation to your sale.

Initial Enquiries

  • Taking Instructions from you; and
  • obtaining title to your property; and
  • collating information which will be required by your buyer’s; and
  • preparing the draft contract and submitting the draft contract to the buyer’s solicitor or conveyancer; and
  • dealing with additional enquiries raised by the buyer and arranging for you to sign the contract.

Exchange of Contracts

  • Organise exchange of contracts and receive deposit from the buyer’s solicitor; and
  • obtain redemption statement from your lender (if a mortgage); and
  • approve the Transfer document and arrange for you to sign the Transfer.

Completion

  • Complete the sale and authorise the estate agents to release the keys; and
  • Use the proceeds of sale to pay off the mortgage (if any); and
  • pay the Estate Agents commission account; and
  • account to you for the net proceeds of sale.
How long will my house sale take?Typically a sale can take between 4 – 20 weeks but the exact timescale will depend on the requirements of the various parties to the sale.

 


 

What we do for you on a Purchase

The following matters will usually be dealt with in relation to your purchase.

Initial Enquiries

  • Taking Instructions from you; and
  • reviewing the title to your property; and
  • reviewing and approving the draft contract; and
  • submitting searches and appropriate additional enquiries to the seller’s solicitor or conveyancer; and
  • reporting to you on the title to the property and arranging for you to sign the contract; and
  • reporting to you on joint ownership if there are two or more buyers.
  • If you are having a mortgage then we will also report to you on the mortgage and arrange for you to sign the mortgage deed. We are also usually required to ensure that the lender’s requirements are met and this includes making sure that the property has buildings insurance in accordance with the lender’s requirements from exchange of contracts.

Exchange of Contracts

  • Organise exchange of contracts and paying the deposit which we will ask from you before exchange of contract to the seller’s solicitor; and
  • requesting the drawdown of your mortgage advance; and
  • approving the Transfer document and arranging for you to sign the Transfer; and
  • carrying out pre completion checks; and
  • submitting pre completion searches and providing you with a statement of account so that you can arrange to let us have the balance of the funds required in readiness for completion.

Completion

  • Complete the purchase; and
  • attending to submission of the Stamp Duty Land Tax (or Land Transaction Tax if in Wales) return; and
  • registration of the purchase (and mortgage) at the Land Registry.
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 4-20 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 6 weeks. However, if you are buying a leasehold property that requires an extension of the lease, this can take significantly longer, between 2 and 4 months. In such, a situation additional charges would apply.

 

Our fees in dealing with your Sale and Purchase

Our basic conveyancer’s fees and disbursements for all sales

Legal fee [1]                                                 £995 plus VAT

Electronic money transfer fee                 £35 plus VAT

Office Copy Entries[2]                              £6 plus VAT per title

VAT payable                                                £207.20

Estimated total:                                   £1,243.20[3]

 

Our basic conveyancer’s fees and disbursements for all purchases

Legal fee [4]                                                 £995 plus VAT

Electronic money transfer fee                  £35 plus VAT

Search fees [5]                                             £350

HM Land Registry fee [6]                          £135

Land Registry Searches                             £7 plus VAT

VAT payable                                                £207.40

Stamp Duty Land Tax                             (see section below)

Estimated total:                                 £1,729.40[7]

 

 

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(https://www.tax.service.gov.uk/calculate-stamp-duty-land-tax/) or if the property is located in Wales by using the Welsh Revenue Authority’s website here. (https://beta.gov.wales/land-transaction-tax-calculator).

 


 

Click here to download our Conveyancing Services Guide including price guide

 

[1] Our basic legal fee is for a freehold property with a sale price of up to and including £300,000. If the sale property price exceeds £300,000 then an additional £175 plus VAT will be payable for each £100,000 or part £100,000 that the sale price exceeds £300,000.

[2] Office Copy Entries are charged at £6 per title plus VAT. If there are any referred to documents which need to be obtained from the Land Registry then these can cost from £3 – £10 plus VAT each

[3] Our fees cover all of the work required to complete the sale of your property subject to the assumptions at the end of this guide and subject to any additional fees that may be payable as detailed in our conveyancing services guide

[4] Our basic legal fee is for a freehold property with a purchase price of up to and including £300,000. If the purchase property price exceeds £300,000 then an additional £175 plus VAT will be payable for each £100,000 or part £100,000 that the purchase price exceeds £300,000.

[5] This is an estimated amount – Search fees include the cost of a Local Authority Search, Drainage and Water Search and Environmental Search – the cost of the pack can vary from £250 – £350 depending on the location of the Property

[6] The HM Land Registry fee payable will depend on the price of the Property and whether the application can be submitted electronically – you can see the costs here https://www.gov.uk/guidance/hm-land-registry-registration-services-fees

[7] Our fees cover all of the work required to complete the purchase of your property 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 but does not include the actual amount of tax payable and is subject to the assumptions at the end of our conveyancing services guide and subject to any additional fees that may be payable as detailed in our conveyancing services guide