Our Residential Property Services
We have provided the following information to help you understand some of the key stages, timescales and the experience and qualifications of the people who will carry out the work for you.
The guidance is provided is based on a number of assumptions and in particular assumes that:
- this is a standard transaction of registered property and that no unforeseen matters arise including for example (but not limited to) a defect in the 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 complications arise
- all parties to the transaction are co-operative and there is no unreasonable delay from third parties in providing documentation
- no indemnity policies are required. Additional costs and disbursements may apply if indemnity policies are required
You may request a quotation of the legal fees and likely disbursements for our residential property services by using our Conveyancing Calculator Quote. The legal fees quoted will usually be fixed but disbursement costs are subject to variation.
The experience of the people who may carry out the work for you:
The professional details of the firm’s residential conveyancers are stated on the Residential Property Team part of the ‘Our Team’ tab on our website. All work is undertaken under the supervision of a Solicitor Partner.
Purchase of Freehold Property
Our quote for our fees and the disbursements covers all of the legal work required to complete the purchase of a property, including dealing with registration of the transaction at the Land Registry and with the payment of any 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.
There may be circumstances when other costs may be incurred due to the particular circumstances of your transaction e.g. the land is unregistered, purchase of part of a registered title, but we shall advise you if that is the case and will inform you about any additional costs when they arise.
Conveyancing Legal Fees and Disbursements:
NOTE: Disbursements are costs/expenses related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as pre-contract searches and Land Registry fees. Some payments attract VAT, others do not. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure the smooth process of the matter.
Main stages of the Process:
Taking your initial instructions and checking whether your finances are in place.
Receive the contact documents and checking the seller’s title.
Carrying out local and other searches and advising you of the results.
Obtaining mortgage instructions from your lender and going through the same with you.
Going through the contract documentation with you.
Make any necessary enquiries of the seller’s solicitors.
Agree a completion date with you and the seller’s solicitors (the date you will own the property).
Get you to sign the contract and proceed to exchange of contracts and notify you once that had happened.
Prepare the Transfer deed and Mortgage deed and obtain your signature to both documents.
Arrange for all moneys needed to complete the purchase to be sent to us by you and your lender.
Complete the purchase.
Deal with payment of any Stamp Duty / Land Tax.
Submit the Transfer deed and Mortgage deed together with other relevant documentation to the Land Registry for registration of the transaction.
Following registration, send you and your lender copies of the amended title documentation for the property.
Purchase of Leasehold Property
Our quote for our fees and the disbursements covers all of the legal work required to complete the purchase of a property, including dealing with registration of the transaction at the Land Registry and with the payment of any 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.
This information is based on a number of assumptions and in particular the fee assumes that:
- this is a standard transaction of registered property and that no unforeseen matters arise including for example (but not limited to) a defect in the title which requires remedying prior to completion or – the preparation of additional documents ancillary to the main transaction.
- this is the transfer of an existing lease and is not the grant of a new lease.
- the transaction is concluded in a timely manner and no unforeseen complications arise.
- all parties to the transaction are co-operative and there is no unreasonable delay from third parties providing documentation.
- no indemnity policies are required. Additional costs and disbursements may apply if indemnity policies are required.
There may be circumstances when other costs may be incurred due to the particular circumstances of your transaction but we shall advise you if that is the case and will inform you about any additional costs when they arise.
Conveyancing Legal Fees and Disbursements:
Note: Disbursements are costs / expenses related to your matter that are payable to third parties such as pre-contract searches and Land Registry fees. Some payments attract VAT others do not. We handle the payment of disbursements on your behalf to ensure the smooth progress of your matter. Some disbursements will be detailed in the lease relating to the property. We shall advise you of those disbursements once we have seen the lease.
In the case of Leasehold property you should be aware that ground rent and service charges may be payable. We will confirm those payments to you as soon as we receive the relevant documentation.
Anticipated additional Disbursements:
- Notice of Transfer / mortgage fees payable to the Landlord – these fees are usually detailed in the Lease.
- Deed of Covenant fee – payable to the Landlord. This fee is detailed in the Lease.
Main stages of the Process:
Taking your initial instructions and checking whether your finances are in place.
Receive the contact documents and checking the seller’s title.
Carrying out local and other searches and advising you of the results.
Obtaining mortgage instructions from your lender and going through the same with you.
Going through the contract documentation with you.
Make any necessary enquiries of the seller’s solicitors.
Agree a completion date with you and the seller’s solicitors (the date you will own the property).
Get you to sign the contract and proceed to exchange of contracts and notify you once that had happened.
Prepare the Transfer deed and Mortgage deed and obtain your signature to both documents.
Arrange for all moneys needed to complete the purchase to be sent to us by you and your lender.
Complete the purchase.
Deal with payment of any Stamp Duty / Land Tax.
Submit the Transfer deed and Mortgage deed together with other relevant documentation to the Land Registry for registration of the transaction.
Following registration, send you and your lender copies of the amended title documentation for the property.
For both freehold and leasehold purchases:
Stamp Duty or Land Tax:
You may have to pay Stamp Duty or Land Tax (see above) on your transaction. This depends on a number of factors in addition to the property value. You can calculate the amount you may have to pay by using HMRC’s website http://www.tax.service.gov.uk/calculate-stamp-duty-land-tax/#/intro or if the property is located in Wales by using the Welsh Revenue Authority’s website http://beta.gov.wales/land-transaction-tax-calculation.
The typical timescales and key stages of the purchase transaction:
The time it takes from your offer being accepted until you can move into your new home will depend on a number of factors not least of which is whether you require mortgage finance and whether you have a property to sell. On average the process will take between 6 to 12 weeks but longer if you have a property to sell.
Sale of Freehold Property
Our quote for our fees and the disbursements covers all of the legal work required to complete the sale of property based in England & Wales.
There may be circumstances when other costs may be incurred due to the particular circumstances of your transaction e.g. the property is unregistered but we will advise you if this becomes the case and will tell you about any additional costs when they arise.
Conveyancing Legal Fees and Disbursements:
Note: Disbursements are costs / expenses related to your matter that are payable to third parties. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.
The typical timescales and key stages of the sale transaction:
The time it takes from your offer being accepted until you have to vacate your home will depend on a number of factors. On average the process takes between 6 to 12 weeks.
It can be quicker or slower, depending on the parties in the chain. For example, if your buyer has a property to sell it could take longer.
Main stages of the Process:
The precise stages involved in the sale of a residential property vary according to the circumstances but will typically include:
Take your instructions and give you initial advice.
Completing the Property Information and Fittings and Contents Forms relating to your property.
Checking the title of the property you are selling.
Preparing, the sale contract.
Dealing with questions and enquiries raised by your buyer’s Solicitors.
Reporting and providing information to you in respect of your sale.
Following any necessary negotiations on the terms of the contract, obtaining your signature to it and proceeding to exchange of contracts.
Approving the transfer deed to the buyers and obtaining your signature to it.
Completing your sale and accounting to you for the net proceeds of sale after discharging any mortgage on the property and ours and the estate agents costs.
Sale of Leasehold Property
Our quote for our fees and the disbursements covers all of the legal work required to complete the sale of a property based in England & Wales.
There may be circumstances when other costs may be incurred due to the particular circumstances of your transaction but we will advise you if this becomes the case and will tell you about any additional costs when they arise.
Conveyancing Legal Fees and Disbursements:
Note: Disbursements are costs / expenses related to your matter that are payable to third parties. 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 lease relating to the Property. We can confirm those disbursements on perusing the lease.
The typical timescales and key stages of the sale transaction:
How long it will take from the offer being accepted until you have to vacate your home will depend on a number of factors. On average the process takes between 6 – 12 weeks.
It can be quicker or slower, depending on the parties in the chain. For example, if your buyer has a property to sell, it could take longer.
Main stages of the Process:
The precise stages involved in the purchase of a residential property vary according to the circumstances but will typically include:
Take your instructions and give you initial advice.
Advise on contract documents.
Obtain the management pack.
Supplying information to you and those involved with the transaction.
Checking the title of the property you are selling.
Preparing documents, the sale contract and deeds relating to your sale.
Dealing with questions and enquiries raised by your buyer’s Solicitors.
Reporting and providing information to you relating to the property you are selling.
Exchanging contracts, following any necessary negotiations on the terms.
Approving the transfer deed to the buyers.
Completing your sale and accounting to you for the proceeds or receiving from you any monies required to complete the sale.
Dealing with all post-completion matters, particularly repaying any outstanding mortgages or loans.
Mortgages and Re-mortgages
A mortgage is a loan secured against your property where there is no current mortgage. A re-mortgage occurs when you redeem your existing mortgage and replace it with a new mortgage with either the same lender or a different lender. Our fees for a mortgage or re-mortgage as detailed below only apply if you are using a mainstream or high street Lender. If your lender is not mainstream or a high street lender then our fees will be higher.
It is important to note that you cannot normally re-mortgage your property unless you have owned it for longer than 6 months. You should check the situation with your lender.
In addition to the fees and disbursements stated additional costs may arise due to the particular circumstances of the transactions. We shall advise you of those when and if they arise.
Please note that some lenders require local and other searches to be carried out against the property whereas some will accept Indemnity Insurance instead which is usually cheaper than the cost of the searches. We shall advise you of the situation once we know who your lender is.
Conveyancing Legal Fees and Disbursements:
Note: Disbursements are costs / expenses related to your matter that are payable to third parties. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.
The typical timescales and key stages of the transaction:
How long it will take from the offer being made until the mortgage/re-mortgage is completed will depend on a number of factors. On average the process takes between around 4 to 6 weeks.
It can be quicker or slower, depending on the lender requirements.
Main stages of the Process:
The precise stages involved vary according to the lender but will typically include:
Obtaining office copies of title of your property or the whereabouts of your Title Deeds (if applicable). If you already have a mortgage on the property, we will require the address of your lender as well as your account number.
Investigating the title of the property and obtaining a redemption figure for your existing mortgage.
We may need to carry out a Local Authority and other Searches. This will entirely depend upon whether your new lender requires such search to be undertaken (see above).
Considering the lender’s instructions to us and the terms and conditions of your mortgage to ensure that they are complied with.
Preparing the mortgage deed and any other documents and obtaining your signatures to them where appropriate.
Reporting to the lenders and obtaining the mortgage advance.
Completing the mortgage or re-mortgage.
Registering the transaction at the Land Registry.
Forwarding the amended title document to the lender and yourself and accounting to you for the advanced monies.
What happens if my residential property transaction does not complete
We reserve the right to apply a fee which will be based on the following:
If the transaction does not complete we shall make a charge for the work carried out up to the date / cessation based on our fixed fee as follows:
Stage: Prior to preparing / perusing draft documentation
% of our charge: 20%
Stage: Upon commencement of drafting documentation or perusing draft documentation received
% of our charge: 70%
Stage: Upon finalising the draft documentation
% of our charge: 90%
Any disbursements incurred will also be payable.
