Conveyancing and Moving House

Moving house requires planning and time.  It is not just a case of booking a removal van and filling in a few forms.

The property world is definitely more complex than it used to be – we are not trying to scare you – simply we are telling you that there is more to think about – more you need to know.

At Harrop White, Vallance & Dawson we are entirely independent – we do not and will not pay referral fees to estate agents, whoever they are.   We will work with all estate agents.  We will give you an all-in quotation with no hidden extras, so you can budget properly.

All our conveyancing work is carried out by Mr C G Dawson (Senior Partner and Solicitor) with over 40 years experience of property transactions, and by Mrs Rosalynde Green (Chartered Legal Executive) with over 30 years experience of property transactions. Mr Dawson spends approximately half his professional time on property transactions, Mrs Green all her professional time.  Both work within the Law Society’s Quality Scheme with its continuing training requirements

In all transactions we have regard to government and professional money laundering requirements and we will obtain evidence of your identity and (where appropriate) proof of your funds.

Harrop White, Vallance & Dawson offer not the cheapest, nor the most expensive conveyancing service.  We are experienced, friendly and keen to help you move home.  We will be professional, independent, and above all good value for money.

Harrop White, Vallance & Dawson have been awarded the Conveyancing Quality Mark by the Law Society.

Our Fees – for residential conveyancing (Purchases & Sales)

Freehold and Leasehold* fees

Our scale of fees for each transaction is set out below. These fees do not include disbursements.  Note our additional fee for leasehold transactions which are increasingly complex – see the notes specific to leases later in these notes.

If you are using a Help to Buy ISA or Lifetime ISA to purchase we charge a fee of £50 plus VAT (at 20%) for the extra work involved.

*For leasehold purchase transactions and transaction involving the Homes and Communities Agency or shared ownership schemes the additional work involved is significant.  We charge an additional £200 plus VAT(at 20%) for each transaction.

Bank Charges: -We charge £30 plus VAT (at 20%) for each electronic transfer made by us to cover our administration costs – usually on transmitting purchase monies to Seller’s Conveyancers, paying off your existing mortgage and accounting to you.

Note: – No extra charges are made for preparing and submitting SDLT forms, dealing with unregistered titles or for mortgage work (if we also act for the lender).

Purchases of single properties at auction are dealt with on the same scale.  However, with auction sales the seller will usually undertake the usual conveyancing searches before the auction and pass the cost onto the buyer on completion.  These costs should be detailed in the auction particulars.   Many auction houses charge administration fees or buyer premiums which are in addition to the purchase price.  These charges can be substantial so buyers need to be careful – once the hammer goes down you are liable to pay these.

In dealing with any property purchase you will incur certain other costs known as disbursements. We set out below a guide as to the most common items and an indication of what each item costs.

Conveyancing Disbursements on your Purchase

These will depend on the location, description and value of what you are buying, selling or mortgaging/re-mortgaging. Listed below are the usual disbursements.  These costs do vary and are not under our control.

Search fees: –

Land Registry £10-£30 (plus VAT 20%)

Land Registry registration fees are usually £20-£655 (depending on purchase price and whether the title to your property is already registered) – presently not subject to VAT

Examples for properties in the range –

£100,001 to £200,000 the fee is £100 (First Registration fee £230)

£200,001 to £500,000 the fee is £150 (First Registration fee £330)

Note: -Sometimes the title to the property you are buying may not yet be registered at H. M. Land Registry – in these cases fees payable to the Land Registry are the higher fee as noted above.

Stamp Duty Land Tax – There is an online calculator available on the Government’s website, which can be used to calculate stamp duty for straightforward residential transactions.

Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) is also liable to change at short notice – for example on the day of the Budget. Stamp Duty Land Tax will also vary depending on a number of factors, such as whether the property is residential, commercial or mixed use.  Currently, no duty is payable for the purchase of a main residence below £250,000 in value and below £425,000 in value if you are a first time buyer.

It is important to remember that there is an additional 3% levy for additional properties purchased for £40,000 or more.

Stamp Duty Land Tax is a complex tax and we will estimate the cost when we have full details of your proposed purchase

Conveyancing Disbursements on your Sale

Disbursements on Sales are usually limited to the following: –

(Stamp Duty Land Tax, Search fees and land Registry fees apply to purchases only not sales)

Land Registry title documents – £12-£50 (plus VAT at 20%)

Planning & Building regulation documents £10-£50 (incl VAT at 20%)

Indemnity Policies: – Sometimes a buyer will ask for an indemnity policy to be provided as a form of insurance to cover something that has been revealed by a survey or searches.  We are often asked to provide cover where there is an absence of building regulations or planning documents or where there is a possible breach of an old Restrictive Covenant.  The actual cost of the policy will depend on what is perceived to be “at risk” and the value of the property.  For example, a typical Restrictive Covenant Indemnity Policy will cost in the region of £60 to £780 (including VAT at 20%) depending on the value of the property being sold and the risk insured.  We will not know whether or not an indemnity policy will be required until the transaction is underway, but the possibility of this extra disbursement should be borne in mind when budgeting.

We do not charge any additional fee for obtaining an indemnity policy

The above figures are indicative only and vary from case to case.

Leasehold Purchase of house or flat

Our fee will be the same as those shown above, but note the £200 plus VAT (at 20%) additional fee to cover the extra work we will need to do on a leasehold purchase.  Search fees are likely to be the same as on a freehold purchase (See above)

When you purchase a leasehold house or flat we will need to give notice of your purchase  and mortgage to the Landlord or Management Company.  Notice fees vary but are usually between £50-£200 (in each case plus VAT at 20%).  In addition you may be required to sign a Deed of Covenant with the Landlord or Management Company – fees vary considerably but are usually between £50-£250 (plus VAT at 20%)

Until we see the documentation, we cannot give precise figures.

Sales of Leasehold Properties

Our table of fees also relate to sales, again an additional £200 (plus VAT at 20%) will be payable on leasehold sales to cover the extra work we will need to do.

When selling a leasehold house or flat we will usually need to purchase a Management Pack from the Landlord or Management Company.  Costs vary considerably, but are usually in the range of £200-£500 plus VAT (at 20%)

Freeholds with Management Company

On modern estate developments it is likely that a Management Company will exist to provide services i.e. maintain estate roads, open spaces, drainage, lighting, security et cetera.  Dealing with any sale or purchase will involve extra work.  We will charge an additional £200 plus VAT (at 20%) for our work.  On any sale you as Seller will need to purchase a Management Pack from the Management Company or Landlord.  Costs of this are likely to be between £200-£500 plus VAT (at 20%).  Following any purchase, notices of your purchase/mortgage will need to be given to the Management Company/Landlord – usually in the range £50-£200 plus VAT (at 20%).

Costs Example

Simultaneous Sale & Purchase (freehold)

Sale at £260,000

Purchase at £430,000

Mortgage on Purchase £310,000

Our fees:                                              £825 (sale) – plus VAT at 20%

£950 (purchase) – plus VAT at 20%

Mortgage

(if we are acting for the Lender)            Included                                              

£1775 plus VAT at 20%

£2130

Add      Searches on purchase

(say £300 plus VAT at 20%)     £  360

Other disbursements on

sale and purchase

(say £30 plus VAT at 20%)       £    36

Land Registry registration

fee on purchase                       £  150 (No VAT) *

*If the title to the property purchase is not already registered the fee is £330 (No VAT)

*Stamp Duty Land Tax              £9000

Bank electronic transfers (x2)

£60 plus VAT at 20%                £    72               £9618

TOTAL                                                             £11748        incl all VAT (at 20%) as above

*this may change at short notice

Note:- Additional costs on Leasehold Purchases/Sales i.e. in addition to the above fees

Residential Mortgage Advances and Re-mortgages

We do not charge an extra fee when we act for both you and the Lender.

When a Lender instructs its own lawyers, a separate fee will be charged, which will be payable by you.  This sum will depend on which firm the Lender instructs.   Where a separate Lender’s solicitor is instructed, we will charge an additional fee of between £125 and £200 (plus VAT at 20%) depending on the Lender’s requirements.

For re-mortgages involving no purchase, many Lenders have in-house or “fee free” schemes.  Where we are instructed to act for you, we will charge between £250 to £500 (plus VAT at 20%) depending on the size of the loan and the actual Lender requirements.  In addition, the Lender may require searches to be made and the transaction will need to be registered at HM Land Registry.  HM Land Registry set out their fees on their website.

Equity Transfers: – This results on divorce or separation, and on other inter family transactions.  The cost will vary according to the lender.  Likely fees are in the range of £300 – £500 (plus VAT at 20%) Searches and Land Registry and Mortgage fees will be in line with the other figures above.  However, cases do vary considerably and you should always seek a bespoke quote.

Timescales

Average timescales of sales/purchases range between 10-20 weeks. Where there is a chain of sales and purchases, you may find longer periods involved.  Unfortunately, we cannot guarantee timescales, which are frequently dependant on other parties.  Re-mortgages (not involving a purchase) are usually far quicker, most taking place between 4 to 8 weeks.

In order to assist you we have provided a brief summary of the work we carry out on both freehold and leasehold sales and purchases.

What work do we carry out in conveyancing timescales?

For a brief summary of the work Harrop White, Vallance & Dawson will carry out on your behalf we have provided a brief guide which is set out by clicking on the links above, dealing with the purchase of freehold properties, leasehold properties, and sales generally. Please take time to read these – they will help you better understand what is involved in property transactions.

Summary of Work carried out by us

Purchase

Taking your instructions and checking I D and proof of funds.

Explaining your mortgage offer

Making and reporting on replies to property enquiries

Carrying out Local Authority, Water/Drainage and Mining or Environmental Searches ( as appropriate)

Arranging exchange of contracts (tying your purchase up legally)

Applying for your Mortgage funds

Making Land Registry and bankruptcy searches

Completing your purchase (moving date)

Accounting to you

Explaining and obtaining signatures to contract and transfer documents.

Submitting Stamp Duty Land Tax return and paying any Stamp Duty Land Tax

Registering your purchase and mortgage at H. M. Land Registry.

Sale

Obtaining details of any existing mortgages(s) and repayment figures

Preparing the contract and pack of contract documents for the Buyer’s Conveyancers

(i.e. property information, fittings and contents schedule plus title details)

Answering enquiries from the Buyer’s Conveyancers

Arranging and agreeing exchange of contracts (tying up a sale and any related purchase legally) and agreeing  completion (moving dates)

Completing your sale, paying off your mortgage(s)

Accounting to you

Explaining and obtaining signatures to contract and transfer documents throughout

Leaseholds

On any leasehold sale or purchase additional work will involve obtaining information (accounts, service charges, rents, insurance et cetera from the Landlord) explaining the terms and meaning of the lease, and serving required legal notices.

Note: –

1. The above is only a brief summary. Every sale and purchase is different.
2. It will usually be necessary to tie in a sale and related purchase (moving house) together – this may not be easy and require patience and negotiation.
3. Very occasionally unexpected costs may arise which we will agree with you in advance

Finally

The above is our guide to our conveyancing services, fees and disbursements.  It is a complicated subject and we will provide you with a detailed quotation at the outset of your transaction.  We are here to help.  Above all we want you to be aware of the costs incurred in buying, selling and mortgaging your home.

Any questions? – Please ask