Residential Conveyancing

Our residential conveyancing matters are handled by two of our Partners, Fleur Everett and Rebecca Abbott. Our trainee also assists on these matters as part of her training contract, which she commenced in September 2021. Fleur, who has over 20 years post qualification experience in this area is the overall supervisor of this area of work.

The majority of work in this area is carried out on a fixed fee basis, which varies depending on the type and value of the transaction involved. Our fixed fees for a residential purchase start at £700 plus VAT of £140 totalling £840. Our fixed fees for a residential sale start at £700 plus VAT of £140 totalling £840. If your matter involves any of the following, additional fees will be added:

• Help to Buy ISA Admin fee - £50 plus VAT of £10 totalling £60 per ISA
• Help to Buy Equity Mortgage - additional £200 plus VAT of £40 totalling £240
• Independent Legal Advice on Guarantee - £50 plus VAT of £10 totalling £60 per Guarantor
• LMS fee (depending on Lender) - £10.00 plus VAT of £2 totalling £12

If any work involved falls outside of the fixed fee, this work would be charged at our hourly rate of £250 plus VAT.

Disbursements

In addition to our fees, there are a number of disbursements which are usually incurred in this area of work. These are costs relating to your matter that are paid to third parties and will differ depending on each transaction. Typical disbursements include:

Land Registry Fees

Fees are payable for:

• copy of the registered title and the plan
• other relevant copy deeds
• searches to check the buyer or borrower is not bankrupt
• to protect buyers and mortgagees (lenders) from when the purchase is completed until the registration of the new owner or lender and for the application to register the new owner or lender
• registration application fees – these vary according to the value of the property or amount borrowed and whether the property is already registered or if it is first registration application.  We deal with applications through the Land Registry portal where possible to keep land registration fees to a minimum. Information about fees can be found on the Land Registry website.

Leasehold Property Notice Fees

If the property you are buying is leasehold there are often notice fees payable to the landlord. For flats, there may be fees for information, dealing with Deeds of Covenant or transfer of shares payable to the landlord and/or Management Company. There may be a Certificate of Compliance fee.  Such fees vary quite widely and cannot be confirmed until we have information from the deeds and/or the fee is confirmed by the person or Company to whom the fees are to be paid.

Searches

When buying or mortgaging a property searches are required to gather more information about the property, for example, relating to road maintenance, planning and building regulations, drainage, mining and other environmental and flooding risks.

Insurance Policies

You will be advised if any policies are required on your matter which are to cover numerous risks where there is missing title information or documentation, there is an insolvency risk, to protect against chancel fee claims, or there is a breach of a covenant

Bank Transfers

CHAPS payments charged at £15 per transfer are used to transfer funds on your purchase completion date to the seller’s Conveyancer and to redeem a mortgage. If you request that the balance of sale proceeds is sent to you via CHAPS, the £15 fee will be payable. Alternatively, money can be sent to you via a Same Day Faster Payment for £3.50 or without charge via BACS which takes between two and three working days to process.

Electronic Anti Money Laundering Checks

If required the current cost is £8.50 per name.

Stamp Duty Land Tax

This is often payable on residential property purchases but will depend on various factors including:

• value of the property
• the amount of rent if a new lease
• if you are a first- time buyer
• whether you own or have owned either alone or with anyone else another property
• if you have inherited a property or are a beneficiary under a certain type of Trust which owns a property

Timescales

It is not possible to give an estimated timescale for when a transaction will complete as there are a number of factors that will determine this. On average a residential conveyancing transaction takes between eight and twelve weeks. We will discuss completion dates and realistic timescales with you throughout your matter to keep you fully informed of progress and any potential delays.

You can check the amount you will need to pay by using HMRC’s website or if the property is located in Wales by using the Welsh Revenue Authority’s website. Please note that Stamp Duty Land Tax rates may change so although we will provide our estimate on the information given by you we always check and confirm with you the amount of Stamp Duty Land Tax as at the date of your purchase.

Administration of estates

All of our Partners are able to deal with administration of estates. Our Trainee Solicitor also assists on these matters as part of her training contract, which she commenced in September 2021. Fleur, who has over 20 years post qualification experience in this area is the overall supervisor of this area of work.

Every estate is different and we will be able to advise you on what work is required and provide an estimate of costs when we have the particular details of your case.

How our Estate Administration charges are calculated

For estates with no inheritance tax to pay which do not require an IHT400 to be completed we can offer a fixed fee service of £750 plus VAT of £150 totalling £900 to obtain the grant of probate only.

For all other matters, charges for work will be either at our Full Hourly Charging Rate plus VAT OR at our Lower Hourly Charging Rate plus the Value Element plus VAT, whichever is higher in any particular case.

Full Hourly Charging rates:

Solicitors:                                                                                                                                     £250.00 plus VAT

Non-qualified staff:                                                                                                                    £195.00 plus VAT

Lower Hourly Charging rates:

Solicitors:                                                                                                                                    £200.00 plus VAT

Non-qualified staff:                                                                                                                   £150.00 plus VAT

Value Element:

Where one or more of our Solicitors are acting also as Executor(s)/Trustee(s) either alone or with another person the value element will be 1.5% of the value of the gross estate less the value of the residence, and 0.75% of the value of the residence.
Where one or more of our Solicitors are not acting also as Executor(s)/Trustee(s) the value element will be 1.0% of the value of the gross estate less the value of the residence, and 0.5% of the value of the residence.

Travel Time Charging rates:

Travel time for visits out of the office will be charged at the set fee of £25.00 plus VAT of £5.00, totalling £30.00 per visit, if within the Rochdale boundary. If outside the Rochdale boundary the travel time will be charged at hourly rates as follows:-

Solicitors:                                                                                                                                £150.00 plus VAT

Non-qualified Staff                                                                                                                £100.00 plus VAT

Mileage is also charged at £0.45 per mile plus VAT and any parking fees.

Average costs for estates where there is a valid uncontested Will and no more than two Executors (who are not partners in this firm) take between ten and fifteen hours work with costs likely to be in the range of £2,250 to £5,000 plus VAT (currently 20%) and disbursements (as set out above) for ascertaining the value of assts and liabilities of the estate, applying for the Grant, collecting and distributing the assets, assuming:

• there is no Inheritance Tax payable or full Inheritance Tax form required or foreign assets or beneficiaries living abroad;
• there is a property worth up to £200,000 with other assets of up to £75,000 (as mentioned above conveyancing costs would be charged separately);
• up to three beneficiaries;
• up to two banks with various accounts and three other asset holders, for example, a life insurance company, the registrar of a public company where shares are owned and a personal pension provider;
• payment of the funeral director’s bill is required from a bank account in advance of a grant of representation (but assuming we do not arrange the funeral);
• debts are due to the house utility providers and the local authority for Care Support charges assuming the deceased lived at home with some care assistance;
• correspondence with the Department for Work & Pensions to ensure all benefits due to the estate are paid and any monies overpaid are refunded;
• correspondence with HM Revenue & Customs concerning tax issues up to the date of death and providing tax forms (if required) to beneficiaries for their share of any taxed income during the administration period;
• no complicating factors arise including no significant delay in disposal of the property, disputes between beneficiaries or claims against the estate.

Disbursements

Typical disbursements include:

• Probate Registry fee (for estates of £5,000 or over) - £300.00
• Office copies of the Grant of Probate (per copy) £1.50
• Statutory Notices in local Newspapers and in the London Gazette – total likely range between £180.00 and £350.00 including VAT
• Bankruptcy Search fees (per beneficiary name) - £2.00
• Certainty Will Register Search – £114.00 including VAT (may vary)

Timescales

It is impossible to say how long an estate will take to administer as it will depend on what the assets are and whether or not a Grant of Probate is required. At present, the Probate Registry advise that a Grant will be received within eight weeks of making the application, but this is not always the case. On average it takes between six to twelve months to administer an estate where a Grant is required. It is usually a much quicker process if a Grant if not required.

Please contact our team to get a personalised quote.