Residential Property Fees Explained

These are payments that must be paid to third parties as part of the transaction, and they vary from transaction to transaction. The typical disbursements are:

• Land Registry documents are needed for a sale. As a bare minimum, the title register and plan will be required on a freehold sale at a cost of £14 + VAT. On a leasehold sale, the title register, plan and lease will be required for the property plus the register and plan for the freehold building at a cost of £35 + VAT. Sometimes additional deeds are noted on the title and they will cost £7 + VAT each.
• For Leasehold sales an information pack is required from the freeholder or their agent. The costs vary from freeholder to freeholder and could be several hundred pounds.
• Searches are recommended in purchase matters (and generally required where a mortgage will be taken). They may also be required for remortgage matters. The cost and recommended searches vary from area to area. You should budget for £400 + VAT as a bare minimum.
• Stamp Duty Land Tax / Land Transaction Tax may be payable on completion of your purchase. Both HMRC and the Welsh Revenue Authority have calculators to help you determine the level of tax that will be payable: Stamp Duty Land Tax Calculator / Welsh Land Transaction Tax Calculator
• HM Land Registry Fees are payable when we register a change of ownership. The fees range from £20 – £1105.

Timeframe

Sales

As a guideline, a straightforward freehold sale can take between 8-12 weeks, and a straightforward leasehold sale can take 12-16 weeks to complete from the point at which Contracts are issued. However, there are some instances where this may be reduced, for example if there is no chain or if the matter is a cash transaction not requiring a mortgage. There are also instances where this may be increased, usually where there is a long chain, where a landlord or management company is unresponsive or where steps need to be taken to  establish whether the Building Safety Act 2022 applies.

Purchases

A straightforward freehold purchase can take between 8-12 weeks to complete from the point at which Contracts are issued, and a straightforward leasehold purchase can take between 12-16 weeks. Again, there are some instances where this may be reduced, for example if there is no chain or if the matter is a cash transaction not requiring a mortgage. There are also instances where this may be increased, usually where there is a long chain, the matter is more complex than a typical purchase or where the building is not owned by tenants and steps need to be taken to establish whether the Building Safety Act 2022 applies.

For newbuild purchases, developers typically require exchange of contracts within four weeks of Contracts being issued with completion happening months later once construction is finished. There will be instances where it is not possible to achieve this timeframe; perhaps because a mortgage offer is delayed or where defects in title have been identified but not resolved in time.

Remortgages

A straightforward freehold Remortgage will take 6-8 weeks from us receiving your completed forms and ID and a Leasehold Remortgage will typically take 8-10 weeks. There are some instances where this may be reduced, for example where search insurance is acceptable to the lender. There are also instances where this may be increased, perhaps where we need to liaise with a third party or where a title defect is identified.

Recommendations

The cost and timescale information above is intended to provide you with an indication of the likely costs and timings. We recommend that you contact our team so that we can discuss your individual needs and provide a bespoke written estimate

• Taking your instructions
• Reviewing contract pack documentation/paperwork relating to the property
• Undertaking appropriate searches and reporting on the results
• Carrying out title checks
• Raising enquiries and reporting on the replies (purchase)
• Reviewing mortgage offers and reporting on the mortgage
• Reporting on the Legal title
• Obtaining mortgage funds from the lender
• Payment of completion monies to seller’s Solicitor
• Preparing and submitting the Stamp duty return
• Preparing and submitting the Land registry application

• Taking your instructions
• Reviewing contract pack documentation/paperwork relating to the property
• Undertaking appropriate searches and reporting on the results
• Carrying out title checks
• Raising enquiries and reporting on the replies (purchase)
• Reviewing mortgage offers and reporting on the mortgage
• Reporting on the Legal title
• Obtaining mortgage funds from the lender
• Payment of completion monies to seller’s Solicitor
• Preparing and submitting the Stamp duty return
• Preparing and submitting the Land registry application

• Taking your instructions
• Obtaining necessary title documentation from Land Registry
• Dealing with enquiries raises
• Dealing with payment of completion monies from the buyer’s Solicitor
• Accounting to you with the sale proceeds
• Obtaining redemption statements from lenders and redeeming the mortgage