Conveyancing fees are the legal costs you have to pay when buying or selling a property. They cover the cost of exchanging contracts as well as the fees necessary to carry out all the steps in order to complete your purchase or sale. Conveyancing fees are really variable, depending on who you instruct and it is important to be sure of exactly what is covered in a quote so that you are not surprised by any unplanned costs. Cheaper quotes may have hidden costs and may not cover all of the disbursements, which are fees not covered by the legal costs, for example, property searches.
Some conveyancing firms, such as Sam Conveyancing offer a no sale no fee conveyancing option and fixed fee quotes. This is vital if you want absolute certainty of the final bill. An estimate is not fixed and costs will keep rising if there are any issues in the conveyancing process.
Are conveyancing fees cheaper for buying or selling?
Buying a property usually means higher fees than selling, and if you’re purchasing a leasehold property or using an affordable housing scheme such as the Help-to-Buy scheme or Shared Ownership, you can expect higher costs because these transactions involve much more legal work.
What are the disbursements involved in purchasing a property?
Stamp Duty Land tax is usually paid through your conveyancer, although these costs are not conveyancing fees. Buyers must pay Stamp Duty if the cost of a property is above a certain threshold. First time buyers are allowed a higher threshold which rises even further for properties in London. There are also different costs when you’re buying an investment property. You can find all the rates here. Another cost which buyers will incur is the transfer of ownership which is handled by the Land Registry. The cost of this will depend on the value of the property.
There are also property searches to consider, including Local Authority and environmental searches, for example. A conveyancer will be able to advise you as to which searches your property will require. Property Surveys are vital in order to flag up any potential issues which could cost a lot to put right. A qualified surveyor will carry out a survey and provide you with a report showing any issues that need addressing.
What conveyancing fees are involved in selling a property?
The fees involved with selling a property tend to be lower because there is less legal work to do. An estate agent can help market the property and will charge between one and three per cent of the sale price. Anyone selling a property must obtain a copy of the Title of Deeds from the Land Registry and this costs about £6.
Everyone will incur a Bank Transfer Fee in order to transfer funds from buyer to seller and ensure that the money gets transferred on the agreed day. You may be selling a property and buying another, in which case you may incur additional legal costs if your mortgage isn’t portable from one to the other.
There is no set amount for conveyancers to charge and what you will pay will depend on the house price, whether it is freehold or leasehold, where it is located and whether you are using an affordable housing scheme.