Residential Conveyancing – Pricing

Thank you for looking at our property services. Whether you are a first-time buyer or an investor, we are here to take the stress out of buying and selling residential property.

We will guide you through each step of your transaction and offer a service that that fits your exact requirements.

At a time where money really matters, we always provide a quality service at a fair price. We will keep you up-to-date with all of the relevant information so you can make informed decisions and have complete confidence that every detail has been properly taken care of.

Why Us

We have an experienced team who understand the stress involved in buying your property. Our approach is simple; we provide a first-class service from our expert team who make the difference by removing confusion and uncertainty, dealing with all of the legal details of a property transaction on your behalf.

Our team is made up of highly qualified solicitors and licensed conveyancers who have the legal and technical “know how” to resolve any issues as they arise in a professional and efficient manner. We understand that communication is key, so will make sure we are always available to answer your questions in plain English and ensure you are kept up-to-date with everything you need to know.

You will have the confidence that you are our priority, with our aim being that any member of the team is available to speak with you when you need some clarity and certainty at any stage in the process. We feel this provides reassurance and gives you an outlet for any concerns that you may have. Potentially this is the biggest investment of your life and we not only want to provide that first-class service, but value for money and no hidden fees.

We are proud to hold Conveyancing Quality Scheme Accreditations, issued by the Law Society. This involves the firm undergoing rigorous audit processes and training which ensures we maintain high levels of client care.

Pricing

No property is exactly the same and our fees will reflect the particular requirements of your sale or purchase. For example dealing with a listed building may, because of added complexities, cost more than a freehold residential house. It is therefore difficult to give a reliable estimate of the cost of us helping you until we have details of your intended transaction.

We typically work on a fixed fee basis. We will always give you an individual cost estimate at the start of your transaction, taking into account the actual features of your purchase. We will always advise you immediately about any unexpected complications, and fully discuss the potential cost implications before any additional charges are incurred. The following is for guidelines purposes only and does not constitute a legally- binding agreement.

Our firm’s fees range from £295 + VAT (at 20%) for a low range re-mortgage of a freehold property up to £5,995.00 + VAT (at 20%) for a purchase of a new build leasehold apartment in Central London.

Factors Which Affect the Cost of Your Transaction

A number of factors will affect the costs of our services which could include but are not limited to:

  • Whether freehold or leasehold
  • Whether a new build
  • Whether first registration of title (unregistered land)
  • Whether a mortgage or not
  • In purchase cases, whether primary residence, buy to let or second/holiday home
  • Whether multiple owners
  • Whether a shared ownership scheme
  • Whether using a help to buy scheme
  • Whether purchase under right to buy
  • Whether purchase at auction
  • Whether property has been repossessed
  • Whether indemnity insurance is required to cure title defects

How Long Will Your Transaction Take?

It is very difficult to predict how long a Conveyancing transaction will take due to the range of factors that can affect the timescales of a transaction. These include the length of the chain, the speed that Solicitors acting for the parties can review the paperwork or obtain mortgage funding (where required), the speed of other parties in the transaction dealing with enquiries and the ability of other parties in the transaction obtaining mortgage offers or other financial arrangements.

The factors referred to above are not an exhaustive list.

A Conveyancing transaction could take as little as 4-6 weeks or as long as 4-6 months. We aim to exchange or complete on an agreed date at the outset or early on in the transaction. However, due to the number of variables involved in a transaction we cannot guarantee that this date will be met.

We will keep you updated in respect of any changes to the timescale and when we have more information we will let you know the reasonable estimated timescales for your matter. As the transaction progresses we should be able to give you more accurate timescales estimates.

Searches

Before committing you to the purchase (or the Lender to the loan) we undertake relevant searches to ensure you are both made aware of any problems or potential problems that could affect your decision to proceed with the purchase or the Mortgage Lender’s decision to proceed with the Mortgage or Re-Mortgage. Searches may include but are not limited to:

  • Local Authority Search
  • Environment Search
  • Water and Drainage Search

Until we have been able to review the title, we are unable to say, precisely what searches would be appropriate for the property you wish to buy and whether any additional searches may be required.

The cost of a search pack usually ranges between £250 to £450 + VAT (at 20%). This includes our professional charges and administration fees to review the searches and advise you of their content, raise any relevant enquiries and pursue any issues arising to our satisfaction. The cost of searches may substantially increase if additional searches are required.

What do your fees include – Purchase

  • Obtaining information from your Seller’s solicitors.
  • Checking that the Seller’s have good Title.
  • Making enquiries of the Seller.
  • Agreeing the terms of the contract.
    Once we are satisfied that all matters have been properly dealt with, reporting to you with the Contract for signature.
  • Agreeing a completion date, obtaining the deposit and exchanging Contracts.
  • We will also calculate any additional monies required from you and arrange to complete your purchase.
  • Once completion has taken place, we will deal with Land Registry formalities and, following registration will provide you with a copy of your title.

What is Not Included

Mortgage

The estimate of fees given above is given purely for acting on your behalf and does not include additional work required for acting on behalf of any Lender in the registration of a new mortgage. If applicable, this additional work will include receiving Mortgage instructions from your Lender and ensuring all Mortgage conditions have been met before exchange of Contracts takes place and ensuring the mortgage deed is executed. Following exchange, making application for and obtaining your Mortgage Advance. If we are instructed to act for your lender, then our fees for doing so will be borne by you. Our estimated fees for this additional work usually range between £100 to £300 + VAT (at 20%).

Leasehold

If the property is leasehold, then there will be additional work relating to the leasehold aspect. If this is the case, then you will be charged for that work. For example, in relation to obtaining information from the Landlord/Managing Agent and any work relating to the Landlord’s freehold title and to Compliance Certificate relating to leasehold titles (and also to freehold titles subject to service charges). Such additional costs will depend on individual circumstances and the complexity of the matter and range between £100 and £300 + VAT (at 20%).

What do your fees include – Sale

  • Applying to Land Registry for Title Deeds
  • Preparing draft contract pack
  • Assisting in dealing with enquiries raised by the Buyer’s Solicitors
  • Agreeing the terms of the contract.
  • Once we are satisfied that all matters have been properly dealt with, reporting to you with the Contract for signature.
  • Agreeing a completion date and exchanging Contracts.
  • Taking steps to deal with the repayment of mortgages and third party charges
  • Paying estate agent commission
  • Accounting to you for the net sales proceeds

What is Not Included

Mortgage

The estimate of fees given above is given purely for acting on your behalf and will not include additional work required for redeeming Mortgages and/or loans secured against the property. This company is on the panel of a number of Lending Institutions who may or may not choose to instruct us to act for them. In the event this company is so instructed, then our fees for acting for each Lending Institution will be borne by you. Our estimated fees for this additional work usually range between £100 to £300 +VAT (at 20%).

Leasehold

If the property is leasehold, it will be necessary to obtain up to date service charge information from the freeholder/management company/managing agent. There will usually be a charge by the provider for the information, which can be a few hundred pounds. The additional work in obtaining the information and dealing with the subsequent enquiries that will usually follow from the buyer’s solicitors will attract additional costs Additional fees will be incurred for any additional land as this will usually involve further additional due diligence. Such additional costs will depend on individual circumstances and the complexity of the matter and range between £100 to £300 +VAT (at 20%).

Additional Costs Information

Fixed Fees

We aim to provide clients with fixed fees wherever this is possible. In order for a fixed fee to be financially viable for us the time that the work takes to complete must fall within an anticipated window. The rationale for this is that where a fixed fee takes a greater number of hours than predicted the result is that any profit is diluted until the point that the work becomes unsustainable.

Bank Transfers

Electronic and manual bank transfers are charged at a maximum of up to £40+ VAT (at 20%) for each transfer of funds.

Our conveyancing fixed fees are based upon certain assumptions as follows:

  • Correspondence between us is kept to the minimum that is reasonably necessary
  • The information that has been supplied to us regarding the transaction is accurate
  • There are no title defects
  • It has been disclosed to us if the property is:
  • – a new build
  •  – subject to any affordable home ownership schemes
  • – a transfer of part
  • – to be subject to any tenancies
  • – unregistered or is held under multiple title numbers
  • – to involve a mortgagee in possession
  • – is freehold yet subject to the involvement of a management company
  • It has been disclosed to us if the transaction must complete within a particular timescale
  • The property is not subject to any existing Legal Dispute
  • The property is not being sold as part of a divorce settlement
  • There are no significant complications in agreeing exchange or completion dates
  • There are no problems on the contractual completion date
  • The title is not unusually complex
  • The transaction involves a timescale whereby we are expected to progress matters as soon as reasonably possible
  • The matter proceeds as would be expected for a standard conveyancing transaction
  • The transaction does not take substantially longer than 12 weeks to complete
  • There are no issues stemming from a breach of contract that need to be resolved after completion

Where the above assumptions are not met (and in particular should your matter become protracted or unusually complex) then we reserve the right to make additional charges in order to reflect the additional time that is required and/or the additional risk that is borne by Emin Read Solicitors.
Should you wish to contact us for a tailored quotation, we will be pleased to discuss your individual needs with you and to provide a quotation ahead of your instruction. We appreciate the time you have taken to review this information.