We provide a high quality, tailored residential conveyancing service for our clients.
This document sets out our typical charges for the purchase of a freehold residential property, some information on what other costs you might expect to incur in making such a purchase and a summary of the process involved.
The charges and other costs set out in this document will also apply if you re-mortgage a freehold residential property.
We set out below our typical charges for the purchase of a freehold residential property, including dealing with registration at the Land Registry and dealing with the payment of Stamp Duty Land Tax (Stamp Duty) if the property is in England, or Land Transaction Tax (Land Tax) if the property is in Wales.
The charges described are based on the following assumptions.
If a transaction is not in line with the assumptions set out above, we will advise our clients of any additional charges.
For a more detailed, tailored quotation, please speak to your Simkins contact.
Our fee for the legal work involved in purchasing a freehold residential property is calculated at 0.5% of the purchase price of the property, subject to a minimum charge of £3,000.00. If the property is a new-build, our minimum charge is £4,500.
This includes our fee for acting on behalf of any mortgage lender.
Disbursements are costs that are payable to third parties, such as Land Registry fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on our clients’ behalf. Disbursements are charged in addition to our conveyancing fee.
The normal disbursements for the purchase of a freehold residential property are as follows:
In addition to our conveyancing fees and disbursements, we make charges for electronic bank transfers, photocopying, printing and faxes.
Money transfers on completion of a purchase will be effected by way of priority payment and we impose a minimum charge for each purchase of £35.00 for photocopying, printing and faxes.
VAT is charged at 20% on our conveyancing fee, all disbursements (except Land Registry fees) and our other charges.
Our fees are payable upon completion. If a transaction does not complete, we shall charge our reasonable time costs up to and including the date upon which the transaction aborts, subject to a cap of the conveyancing fee otherwise payable upon completion. We will also charge any and all other disbursements and other charges incurred up to the date upon which the transaction aborts.
We reserve the right to ask for money on account of our fees before starting work.
If a client purchases a property worth £1m, typically our total fees will be as follows:
Conveyancing fee - £5,000.00
Search fees - £500.00
Electronic money transfer fee – completion of purchase - £40.00
Electronic money transfer fee – payment of Stamp Duty/Land Tax - £5.00
Photocopying, printing and faxes - £35.00
Sub-total: £5,580.00
VAT @ 20%- £1,116.00
Land Registry fee (no VAT) - £270.00
Total fees payable to Simkins LLP: £6,966.00
Purchases of land in England and Wales are subject to Stamp Duty or Land Tax. The tax payable depends on the purchase price of the property.
Clients can calculate the amount they will need to pay by using HMRC's website or, if the property is located in Wales, by using the Welsh Government’s website. Links to those websites are given here:
Stamp duty: https://www.tax.service.gov.uk/calculate-stamp-duty-land-tax/#/intro
Land tax: https://beta.gov.wales/land-transaction-tax-calculator
How long it will take from an offer being accepted until the purchaser can move into the property will depend on a number of factors. The average process takes between four to eight weeks.
It can be quicker or slower, depending on the parties in the chain. For example, a purchase for first time buyers purchasing a new-build property with a mortgage agreed in principle could take only four weeks.
The precise stages involved in the purchase of a residential property vary according to the circumstances. However, the basic steps are set out below:
We will keep our clients updated as to progress on a regular basis.