Conveyancing: Fees and Work.

Fixed Fees

We offer fixed fee conveyancing with no hidden costs. Our fixed fees cover all our fees for acting for you from the beginning of the transaction to the end of the standard transaction and everything in between. They are detailed below: Please note that any reference to VAT means Value Added Tax, which is a tax payable on services and charged at the current rate of 20%:

• For a freehold purchase, our fixed fee is £1,250 plus VAT plus disbursements
• For a leasehold purchase, our fixed fee is £1,600 plus VAT plus disbursements
• For a freehold sale, our fixed fee is £1,250 plus VAT plus disbursements
• For a leasehold sale, our fixed fee is £1,600 plus VAT plus disbursements
• We charge £25 plus VAT for implementing a same-day bank CHAPS transfer

If you are buying a new build property, or a flat in a high rise building, or using a help to buy scheme, or purchasing a shared ownership property, due to the complexity and amount of additional paperwork to review, we charge an additional £300 plus VAT.

Please note that if the value of your transaction exceeds £1 million, then we reserve the right to charge a higher fixed fee. Please contact us for a quote tailored to your particular circumstances.

What are disbursements?

Disbursements are fees payable to third parties as part of your transaction. No VAT is payable on Disbursements unless specified below. Disbursements you are likely to pay are as follows:

• Our bank charges us a same day bank transfer fee of £20 per same day bank transfer payment. If you are buying and selling a property and the property you are selling has a mortgage to be redeemed on the same day, you will probably have 2 or 3 same day bank transfer fees to pay but you can opt for slower BACS payments if possible, which do not carry a fee.
• When selling a property, we will need to download your title deeds from the land registry. Each document costs £3. You should budget for £6 for a freehold sale (to cover your freehold title register and plan) and £18 for a leasehold sale (to cover freehold and leasehold title deeds and official copy lease). No VAT is payable on any land registry fees.
• When purchasing a property, you should budget for a local authority search, a water and drainage search and an environmental search. These fees may vary depending on the local authority and water service provider. We use a search provider, and the fees to include Brighton and Hove searches are £256 for a package including a local authority search, water search from Southern Water and an environmental search. If a flood search is required, this fee is approximately £44. These fees may differ for each local authority, and depending on where you are buying, we might recommend other searches as well. No VAT is payable on the search fees.
• Stamp duty is payable based on the amount of consideration paid, and depending on your personal circumstances, different rates apply. Check the HMRC stamp duty calculator.
• When you buy a property, we protect your position at the land registry by carrying out a priority search in between exchange and completion. This prevents anyone else from registering anything at the land registry before the transfer has been registered. This is called an OS1 search and costs £3. We also carry out a bankruptcy search against each name to be registered at £2 per name searched.
• The land registry fee is on a sliding scale depending on the value of the property being transferred. You can check out the land registry fee calculator.
• When you buy a leasehold property, you will probably have to pay freeholder’s fees for them to deal with the administrative duties of registering you as a new owner. We do not know what these fees are until we have heard from the freeholder or managing agent, but we recommend you budget for £120.
• If you are selling a leasehold property, and your property is managed by a managing agent, you are likely to have to pay for the managing agent’s pack prepared for the new buyer. We do not know what these fees are until we have heard from your managing agent, but we recommend you budget for £300 plus VAT, although VAT is not always payable. You may also have to pay additional freeholder’s costs or their legal fees plus VAT for dealing with the transaction.
• Sometimes, indemnity insurance policies are required for missing documentation or defects in the title or breaches of covenants. We will obtain quotes for you depending on your situation.
• If you would like us to provide you with a quote tailored to your personal circumstances, please do contact us.