The Cost of Buying Your Home
Buying a property involves one of the biggest financial transactions you will ever make. We will make sure that you’re aware of the costs involved before you get started.
How can we help you?
We will give you a fully inclusive estimate at the beginning of the process as to how much it will cost you, so you’ll have all of the information that you need to know in advance. If your purchase does not complete then the fee we charge will depend on the amount of work which we have carried out at the time the transaction falls through and we will discuss this with you at the time if this happens.
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- Catherine Lawrence
- Chartered Legal Executive
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- Richard Broadhead
- Head of Residential Property
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- Claire Martin
- Associate, Chartered Legal Executive
Your case will be handled by one of the Lawyers in our Residential Property team, whose details can be found above. Team Leader, Richard Broadhead, supervises the work of all of the Lawyers in the Residential Property Team. Please read each profile for information on an Individual’s experience.
When you are buying a property there are a number of costs involved, these are as follows:
Legal Fees
To give you an idea of the typical legal fees we charge you, between January 2024 and June 2024, our VAT inclusive fixed fees for a typical residential property purchase ranged from £1,243 for a simple transaction to around £3,594 for a more complex purchase. These figures may vary in cases with special complications.
Our average VAT inclusive fee was £1,846. Around 64% of our enquiries received a quote of between £1,400 and £2,000.
We are required by law to verify our client’s identity and also a number of other types of individual such as executors for example. We will charge £10 plus VAT (£12 in total) per individual / UK Company that we check. Where a company is located overseas the charge will be £35 plus VAT (£42 in total). More information on the types of individuals we are required to check can be found in our Terms of Business.
We will also charge you a VAT inclusive Bank Telegraphic Transfer fee (TT), per transfer, of £36. For a purchase transaction there will usually be at least one charge when we send your purchase money to the seller’s solicitor. If you are purchasing a new build property with the aid of the Help to Buy Scheme we will quote an additional fee to complete the necessary administration of the scheme.
Additional Costs
In addition to our legal fees you may also incur the costs shown in the table below. These additional costs are incurred by TSP when buying goods or services on your behalf. They are payable to third parties. We will pass these charges onto you, including VAT, where applicable. These costs assume that there is one property title. For Leasehold properties additional Land Registry Information searches may be required.
| Additional costs involved in your property purchase | Freehold | Leasehold | Including VAT | From | To |
| Search Pack (costs shown are for a property in the Tendring District | Yes | Yes | Yes | £417.40 | £417.40 |
| Land Registry Search Fee (Per Copy)* | Yes | Yes | Yes | £8.40 | £8.40 |
| Land Registry Registration Fee | Yes | Yes | N/A | £20 | £910 |
| Bankruptcy Search Fee (per person)* | Yes | Yes | Yes | £7.20 | £7.20 |
| Bank Transfer Fee (per transfer) | Yes | Yes | Yes | £6 | £6 |
| Notice of Transfer Fee | N/A | Yes | Yes | £30 | £400 |
| Notice of Charge Fee | N/A | Yes | Yes | £30 | £400 |
| Deed of Covenant Fee | N/A | Yes | Yes | £60 | £300 |
| Certificate of Compliance Fee | N/A | Yes | Yes | £0 | £300 |
For more information and advice on searches please see here. Please also see our Glossary page here.
* Please note that for Land Registry Information searches, such as official copies and bankruptcy searches, we will charge you the fee that the Land Registry charge TSP plus VAT. The Land Registry periodically increase their prices, with the next update due on 9 December 2024. The prices above are valid from 9 December 2024.
Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT)
SDLT is a tax charged on land and property transactions in England which is payable by you as the buyer. There is a similar tax in Wales known as Land Transaction Tax (LTT) and we can give you more specific advice on this if needed. As to SDLT, the amount you pay will depend on the price of the property you are buying and what type of buyer you are. Click here for more information on the level of SDLT that may be applicable to to your purchase and to calculate an initial estimate based on your circumstances.
However, we will include, within our initial estimate of costs, the estimated amount of SDLT that will be payable on your purchase. This figure will be calculated based on the information that you give us and may change if your circumstances change or if the rules governing payment levels change.
Further key information about your Residential Property purchase can be found below
Frequently Asked Questions
We have made the following key assumptions about your purchase.
- Your transaction is standard (excludes the administration of the Help to Buy Scheme and that no unforeseen matters or legal issues arise which must be resolved prior to exchange of contracts
- That you provide any documents that we request from you without any undue delays and that your transaction is completed in a timely manner
- That the property you are purchasing is registered at the Land Registry
- That, if purchasing a leasehold property, this is the assignment of an existing lease not the grant of a new one
- That all of the necessary building regulations or planning permission have been obtained
- That there are no other unusual problems or complications
- That you have only one mortgage and the remaining purchase funds are being provided by yourselves
- That all parties to the transaction are co-operative and there is no unreasonable delay from third parties providing documentation
If your purchase becomes more complex, for any reason, we may need to revise the quote that we have given you.
The following do not form part of our standard legal service and would typically increase the cost of our service. We will let you know about any additional costs as soon as they become apparent. These include
- The need to rectify unusual or onerous defects in the leasehold or freehold title
- The need to prepare any documents that are not part of the main transaction such as a statutory declaration for example or to undertake any work of a non-routine nature, a lease extension, for example.
- The need for an indemnity policy, and any associated disbursements, which may be required in some non-routine circumstances
If you require a transfer of equity, for example, in divorce proceedings a property may be transferred into one of the party’s names as part of the financial settlement, we will provide you with a separate quote for this work.
Our service does not include
- Advice on tax issues, we can refer you to an accountant if necessary
- Financial Advice, including the effect of a lifetime mortgage on your current circumstances or on your estate following death, and
- Negotiating price changes with the seller, this is taken care of by the estate agent.
We have listed the key stages that are included as standard in our legal fee here, this includes registration of your property at the Land Registry and completion and submission of your Stamp Duty Land Tax form.
How long it will take from your house offer being accepted until you can move into your house will depend on a number of factors. The average process can take up to 12 weeks. It can be quicker or it can be slower, depending on the parties in the chain and how many there are. For example, if you are a first time buyer, purchasing a new build property with a mortgage in principle already agreed, it could potentially only take four weeks. However, if you are buying a leasehold property that requires an extension of the lease (non-routine work for which additional charges would apply) this can take significantly longer, potentially between 3 and 6 months.
Additional Work
Occasionally, additional work of a non-routine nature may be required, such as:
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- Lease extension
- Attending to first registration
- Drafting a Deed of Postponement
- Drafting a Declaration of Trust
- Drafting a Statutory Declaration or Statement of Truth
If any of these are necessary, we’ll advise you of the costs separately.
Contact our Solicitors in Colchester or Clacton
We’re here to help. Get in touch or contact one of our offices: