Residential Purchase Conveyancing Estimate Calculator
If you would like an estimate of likely costs please click on our instant conveyancing estimator below. This is a good indication of the likely costs, vat and disbursements, but some disbursements may change when we have more information about your specific transaction.
Your Purchase Quote
| Estimated Costs, Vat and Disbursements and Stamp Duty Land Tax (if applicable) | Cost | VAT |
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| Purchase price for residential property: |
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| Marshalls Fees |
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| Electronic bank transfer fee to transfer funds to seller’s solicitors | £35.00 | £7.00 |
| Disbursements and other payments to third parties: | ||
| Chancel Check insurance (only likely to be payable if the property has not been sold since October 2013) | £10.60 | |
| Law Society copyrighted Protocol form (Completion Information form and Requisitions) | £1.00 | £0.20 |
| Electronic identity check to comply with Anti-Money Laundering requirements | £4.96 | £0.99 |
| Bankruptcy search (£2.00 per person) – where there is to be a mortgage/transaction at undervalue. |
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| Searches | ||
| We arrange searches through Conveyancing Data Services. The search bundle includes a personal search of Local Authority records. An official water authority search. A Ground Sure Avista Search (which covers contaminated land and other environmental concerns including flood risk, planning applications in the immediate vicinity, energy concerns (eg solar panels/wind turbines) and transportation (including where relevent the route of HS2). A Terra Firma Search which provides information about natural ground stability and historic mining works. | £219.25 | £43.85 |
| Abortive Transaction insurance if purchased at time of searches (Optional) (Arranged through Qdos – we do not receive any commission for selling this policy. We do not research the insurance market to look for other policies) NB This policy does not cover you, if you decide not to proceed. It is to protect you, if the property is withdrawn from sale by the seller for reasons beyond your control. It covers other, limited, situations and a copy of the policy will be sent to you, to see, before you decide on whether you want to proceed with it. | £44.58 | £8.92 |
| Stamp Duty Land Tax | ||
| Stamp Duty Land Tax (providing that you do not own any other land. If you do, a higher rate is payable). If you are a first time buyer, then Stamp Duty Land Tax is not payable for properties outside London sold for £300,000 or less in any event. Please let us know if either applies to you. |
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| NB As a temporary measure the SDLT nil rate threshold is £500,000.00 until 30 June 2021 so if your transaction completes before then no SDLT will be payable. The threshold reduces to £250,000.00 on 1 July 2021 and reduces to £125,000.00 on 1 October 2021 | ||
| Land Registry Priority search – to restrict anyone else from registering an interest before your transaction is registered | £3.00 | |
| Land Registration Fee (varies depending on purchase price and whether a new lease is being registered or where only part of land in a title is being transferred) |
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| For leasehold property fees will probably payable to the landlord or management company to register your interest as owner. Sometimes there is a fee to approve a deed of covenant. The cost might be set out in the lease. They vary from £50.00 upwards. We cannot tell what these will be until the contract papers are received. | ||
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| Total likely costs including Stamp Duty Land Tax if applicable |
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Additional information
SDLT HOLIDAY For completions between 8 July 2020 and 30 June SDLT starts above £500,000.00, from 1 July to the end of September, it starts on property above £250,000. From 1 October 2021 normal rates apply ie above £125,000.00.
Disbursements
These are expenses which other parties charge and because of this might change.
Acting for a Mortgage Lender
Where we are on the panel of the proposed mortgage lender, acting for you and for the mortgage lender is included in this estimate.
Where the mortgage lender instructs its own solicitor, they will also charge you a fee for the work which they do. The sum can vary, but typically is likely to add approximately £300.00 plus vat to the estimate (£450.00)
OTHER POTENTIAL CHARGES
In most cases, there are no further charges. However, there are situations when they can arise. We have set out below some examples in order to ensure that you have clear information. Where additional expenses arise, we will advise you before we proceed.
Freehold properties with leasehold garages or with obligations to contribute to a management company for maintenance and repair
Some properties, particularly those on housing estates, may include a leasehold garage or carry with them an obligation to pay annual fees to a management company, such as for landscaping and for maintenance and repair of private roads. We make an additional charge of £50.00 to deal with the additional steps necessary to obtain the management pack/draft deed of covenant/make arrangements to assign the lease on completion of the sale.
Statutory Declarations
These are additional legal documents which sometimes have to be prepared, such as to confirm that the buyer is not the person who is referred to in a bankruptcy search or to confirm that a buyer is solvent in matrimonial related transactions or transactions at under value. Our fees for preparation of a Statutory Declaration are £50.00 plus vat
Declarations of Trust
If two or more parties are buying, we are sometimes asked to prepare a declaration setting out their respective shares in the event of a sale. Our fees for preparation of this type of declaration are £100.00 plus vat, if the declaration relates solely to the percentage shares. If a more complex document is required, then fees vary depending on what is required. We would provide an estimate, once we know what is involved.
Insurance
Sometimes, there are defects in title, such as missing documents, which can be adequately dealt with by arranging insurance. Our fees for arranging and if required putting a policy on cover are £50.00 plus vat. The insurance premium payable to the insurance company will vary depending on the nature of the indemnity required. We would discuss this with you before proceeding.
More than one Mortgage lender
We do not make an additional charge where we are also acting for a mortgage lender if the purchase is with a single mortgage. For any additional mortgages, or Long Service Advances of Pay, our fees are £100.00 plus vat for each additional.
Leasehold Element
If your estimate is based on the property having a freehold title and it transpires that there is also a leasehold title which needs to be conveyed to you or we need to convey a share in a management company to you, we charge an additional £130.00 plus vat to deal with that aspect of the matter. This might arise, for example, if the property is a new build or is on a relatively new estate and there are leasehold arrangements in place for the estate to cover maintenance and repair of the estate. We will advise you on receipt of the contract papers if this applies.
Land Registry Fees
The Land Registry fees quoted apply in the vast majority of cases, but for some transactions, they charge a higher fee, for example:
- when a new lease is being registered
- the purchase relates only to part of land included in one title at the Land Registry
- the title to the property has not already been registered at the Land Registry/li>
In these cases, the fees charged by the Land Registry are usually double the figure quoted in our estimator. We will only be able to advise you of those fees once we have specific information.
What is not included in the estimate?
Defects in title
Occasionally, it will become clear, once paperwork has been provided, that there are problems with the title to a property which need to be resolved. Our estimate does not include the cost of resolving defects relating to the title. Once we become aware of any issue, we will advise you in writing of the likely costs involved to rectify the problem including disbursements and VAT, based on our usual hourly charging rate of £210.00 plus vat (£42.00), being a total of £252.00 will apply. The hourly rate may be made up of time spent advising you, attending you and others, reading documents, preparing documents and in correspondence. Letters and telephone calls of up to 6 minutes are charged at 1/10 of the hourly rate. Longer telephone calls are charged according to the time spent on the call.
Insurance
Sometimes there are missing documents which can be dealt with by taking out an insurance policy. We charge £50.00 plus vat to arrange an insurance policy in these circumstances which is in addition to the cost of the policy itself. This fee includes obtaining an insurance quotation online. Sending the policy details to you or to the other party if it is for the other party’s benefit. Placing the policy on cover on completion. Forwarding the policy documents to the relevant person on completion. We do not make enquiries of the whole of the insurance market. We only use one or two companies which specialise in this type of policy.
Leasehold Aspects of a Freehold purchase
If you have asked for an estimate for a freehold property and it becomes clear that part of the title is subject to a lease, we charge an additional fee of £100.00 plus vat of £20.00 (total £120.00) to deal with the leasehold aspects of the matter. For example, some relative new housing developments include leasehold obligations to ensure that the estate is maintained to a decent standard. This additional fee is to include reading the lease and advising you on the meaning and implications for you. Raising enquiries relating to the leasehold title and reading the responses, if required. Advising you on them. Arranging for you to sign a deed of covenant if that is required. Informing the landlord/lessor of your involvement in the transaction and obtaining consents if necessary to register you as an owner or shareholder, if required
Dealing with More than one Mortgage lender on a sale or purchase
On a purchase, providing we are on the conveyancing panel of the lender, we do not charge an additional fee to act for a lender as well as for you. If you are having a second or third mortgage there is an additional fee of £100.00 plus vat for each additional mortgage. Our fee is for us to read the mortgage offer and related documentation. Prepare the mortgage deed or check it as required. Advise you of the terms of the mortgage. Arrange for you to sign the mortgage. Request funds from the lender in time for completion. Register the mortgage at the Land Registry on completion.
If there is more than one mortgage to be repaid on a sale we charge an additional £100.00 for each additional one. Our fee for us to write to you and to the lender to establish the sum which needs to be sent to them. Checking that there will be sufficient funds to enable the mortgage to be cleared. Preparing the paperwork to send payment to the lender. If required preparing the Land Registry form to discharge a mortgage. To inform the buyer once the mortgage has been redeemed.
Declarations of Trust
If two or more parties are buying, we are sometimes asked to prepare a declaration setting out their respective shares in the event of a sale. Our fees for the preparation of a basic declaration of trust to reflect this are £100.00 plus vat (£120.00) if the declaration relates solely to the ownership of percentage shares.
If a more complex document is required, such as to set out the circumstances in which the property can be
sold, whether one party is to have the ability to purchase the other party’s share, changes in the shares owned if improvement works are later carried out by one party, the procedure to be followed to implement any transfer to one party, our fees would be greater and based on the time needed to take your instructions on what is required, prepare a draft document, and send it to you to be checked with a recommendation that you each seek independent advice. Our hourly rate is £210.00 plus vat – (total £252.00). We would give you our best written estimate of our fees and vat as soon as we were aware of what was involved. The cost ranges from £315 to £410.00 plus vat (total including vat £378.00 to £492.00).