Property

Property Fees (V07.24)

We offer legal advice and assistance in the sale and purchase of residential and commercial property, including land, garages, shops, and businesses at a very competitive fee.

For our client’s convenience and peace of mind we offer the following facilities:-

• Extended opening hours
• Weekend appointments, where available
• Prompt call before & after every key stage
• Competitive Fees
• E-mail and call return as soon as possible
• Information given in a clear and simple manner, minimising legal jargon
• Shariah compliant services
• Our conveyancing work is undertaken by dedicated and experienced solicitors and caseworkers

We are authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority so your transaction is always protected. All conveyancing matters are either dealt with or supervised by Mr Fida Chaudhary who is a director and solicitor in the firm and he has over 20 years of legal experience.

We normally work on a fixed fee basis in conveyancing matters. Our fees are dependent on the type of work undertaken and the circumstances of the case. Please see below our fees for more details.

*If the value of the property is more than £500,000 then our fee will be increased by £100.00 plus VAT at 20% per additional £100,000.00  increase in purchase price.

*For all conveyancing transactions (residential and commercial) we will charge an additional £100.00 plus VAT at 20% per additional Vendor/Purchaser/Landlord.

*If we are required to deal with a Rent Deposit Deed, Head Lease, Deed of Covenants we will charge additional £200.00 – £500.00 plus VAT at 20%.

* *If underlease is involved our fee will be additional £500.00 plus VAT at 20%.

Services included in our fee:

On a sale transaction, our fee given includes all attendances and correspondence with you from the opening of the file until the file is closed shortly after completion, dealing with estate agents (if any), issuing of contracts, dealing with enquiries raised by the buyers and their solicitors, dealing with any mortgage company and redeeming the mortgage upon completion, dealing with the transfer documents, replies to requisitions and effecting exchange/completion and all associated documentation.

On a purchase transaction, our fee includes all correspondence with you and all telephone calls and attendances with you during the transaction from the opening of the file until the file is closed, dealing with the sellers’ solicitors, raising enquiries, considering replies to enquiries, raising searches, checking search replies, providing you with copies of the searches and replies to enquiries and any comments on the same, arranging your signature with advice on the contract, transfer affecting exchange, dealing with post-exchange work, including pre-completion searches, dealing with completion, and dealing with land registration matters and advising you of registration.

*Our fees are based on the assumption that the transaction is standard transaction and falls within our anticipated time to be spent which is as follows: in Residential conveyancing: Freehold sale 3-4 hours, Freehold purchase 3-4 hours, transfer without consideration up to 2 hours, Leasehold sale 4-5 hours and Leasehold purchase 5-6 hours. In commercial transactions: assignment of Lease acting for the Seller 4-5 hours, acting for the Tenant for assignment and grant of new Lease 5-6 hours and acting for the Landlord for grant of new Lease 4-5 hours. Furthermore, we anticipate that there are no unforeseen matters arising including for example (but not limited to) a defect in title which requires remedying prior to completion or the preparation of additional documents ancillary to the main transaction. The transaction is concluded in a timely manner and no unforeseen complications arise. All parties to the transaction are co-operative and there is no unreasonable delay. No indemnity policies are required. The property is registered. We are not required to deal with Notice to Complete. If the work does not fall within the above assumption then any additional work will be charged on hourly rates stated below or in our Client Care Letter.

**Disbursements – Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process. There are certain disbursements which will be set out in the individual lease relating to the Property. Some of the disbursements which we anticipate will apply are set out separately below.

• HM Land Registry fee for Office Copies: £3.00 – £4.20 per document
• HM Land Registry fee for priority: £3.00
• HM Land Registry fee registration: This depends on the purchase price of your property. You can calculate the amount you will need to pay by using the link https://www.gov.uk/guidance/hm-land-registry-registration-services-fees
• Stamp Duty or Land Tax: This depends on the purchase price of your property. You can calculate 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 here.
• Anti-Money Laundering Check fee: £11- £18 per person

This list is not exhaustive and other disbursements may apply depending on the transaction, however we advise you on the specific fees upon instruction.

Services that are not included in our fee:

If a sale/purchase transaction does not complete following exchange of contracts, any additional work such as serving notice to complete is not included in our fee estimate and will be charged on an hourly basis as set out below.

Key Stages:

Conveyancing process for selling a property

1 – Instructions Stage

• We confirm instructions by letter setting out the terms of business and fixed fee costs.
• We carry out proof of identity checks and send out a fittings and contents form and property information form(s) for completion. If the property is leasehold, additional information will be required.

2 – Draft Contract and enquiries stage

• We obtain title deeds from deeds holder or official copies of the title register and any other documents required by The Land Registry and details of the amount outstanding on any existing mortgage.
• We prepare the draft contract and supporting contract documentation and send to the buyer’s solicitors.
• Buyer’s solicitors check the contract and supporting contract documentation and raise pre-contract enquiries.
• We will liaise with you to answer pre-contract enquiries.
• Buyer’s solicitors confirm they have acceptable results from their searches, are happy with the answers to pre-contract enquiries and are in receipt of a mortgage offer (if any).

3 – Preparing for exchange and completion stage

• Seller and buyer agree on a completion date and contracts are formally “exchanged” – meaning both parties are legally committed to the transaction.
• Both parties will sign the contract in readiness for exchange.
• We will obtain a settlement figure to repay the outstanding amount on any existing mortgage, if applicable.
• Buyer’s solicitor drafts a transfer deed and sends it to us for approval.
• We will check the transfer deed and send it to you for signature in readiness for completion.

4 – Exchange and Completion stage

• On exchange, the contracts will be dated and deposits will be, normally, held by the Seller’s solicitors as a stakeholder on behalf of the seller pending completion.
• On completion the seller must vacate the property at a time to be agreed and make arrangements to hand over the keys, usually through the estate agent.
• On completion, the buyer’s solicitor will send the proceeds of sale to us and we will arrange for the keys to be released to the buyer.
• We will then send the title deeds and transfer deed to the buyer’s solicitors together with an undertaking to use the proceeds of sale to discharge any existing mortgage.
• We will then pay the estate agent (if one was used), repay the amount owing to the existing mortgage lender (if applicable) and take payment for our legal fees.
• Once all the payments have been made all the remaining money from the sale will be transferred to the seller, usually by bank transfer on the day of completion.

Conveyancing process for buying a property:

1 – Instructions Stage

• We confirm instructions by letter setting out the terms of business and fixed fee costs.
• We carry out proof of identity checks and request proof of source of funds for the purchase.

2 – Draft Contract and enquiries stage

• We will contact the seller’s solicitors to obtain the contract pack.
• We check the contract pack, raise pre-contract enquiries and carry out the necessary searches.
• Seller’s solicitors and seller answer pre-contract enquiries and return these to us.
• We will review and report to the buyer on the contents of the contract pack, pre-contract enquiries and the result of the searches.

3 – Preparing for exchange and completion stage

• When you are happy to proceed, arrangements are made for the deposit to be paid to the us in readiness for exchange of contracts.
• Both parties agree on a completion date and contracts are formally “exchanged” – meaning both parties are legally committed to the transaction.
• We prepare a draft transfer deed and completion information form and send these to the seller’s solicitors for completion.
• Seller’s solicitor approves the draft transfer deed and a final copy is made. This may need to be signed by the buyer before being sent to the seller’s solicitor for signature by the seller in readiness for completion.
• We will prepare a completion statement and carry out pre-completion searches.

4 – Exchange and Completion stage

• On completion, the seller vacates the property by the agreed time and we send the proceeds of sale to the seller’s solicitors.
• Seller’s solicitors release the keys to the estate agent (if one was used) and sends the title deeds and transfer deed to us together with an undertaking to repay any existing mortgage.
• We send the stamp duty payable to HMRC, receive the title deeds, transfer deed and proof that the seller has paid the outstanding mortgage on the property.
• We register the property in your name at The Land Registry.
• You will receive a copy of the registered title from The Land Registry.

Timescale:

Every transaction will differ according to the extent of the chain, whether parties within the chain require a survey, and how quickly a survey and searches can be obtained.  On a freehold transaction, we would anticipate exchange of contracts on average, to be 10–12 weeks from receipt or issuing of contracts until exchange of contracts.  Your individual transaction may be more or less than this average.  Completion is usually 5–14 days after exchange.  On leasehold transactions, because of the involvement of management companies and landlords, an additional 2 weeks is required, giving an average of 12–14 weeks from receipt of contracts to exchange of contracts.

If any of the above work is undertaken on an hourly basis that our standard hourly rates are as follows:-