When you are looking to buy a property, it is recommended for most people that you instruct a solicitor to act for you. Conveyancing solicitors will normally carry out all of the administrative and legal work that is required for the buying of a house to go through.
Although you do not legally need to use a property solicitor to buy a house, it is generally recommended to do so and most mortgage lenders will insist on this unless you have the training and authority to do it yourself. Using a conveyancing solicitor can reduce the chance of problems throughout the process and help it to run as seamlessly and quickly as possible.
What are the average solicitors fees for buying a house?
When it comes to paying solicitor fees when you are buying a house, the amount that you will be paying can vary. Generally speaking, the amount that you will pay in solicitor’s fees will rise as the value of the property increases.
As it stands, the cost of solicitor’s fees will normally range from £500 to £1,500, with the average cost being around £960.
How much stamp duty will I pay?
When you are considering how much money you should expect to pay, another important aspect that you should think about is stamp duty. Stamp duty is a land tax that is payable on the buying of any property, and it must be paid from your own funds (as opposed to taken from a mortgage that has been taken out).
Your conveyancing solicitor will be responsible for transferring the money for your stamp duty when the sale of the property goes through.
The amount of stamp duty that you will pay depends on the value of the property that you are buying and your circumstances. If you are a first time buyer or own a second property the stamp duty land tax will alter, also for those buying in Wales the Land Tax duty is completely different to the English stamp duty.
- If the property costs between £125,000 and £250,000, you will be required to pay 2% of the value of the property
- If the property costs between £250,000 and £925,000, you will be required to pay 5% of the value of the property
- If the property costs between £925,000 and £1.5 million, you will be required to pay 10% of the value of the property
- If the property costs over £1.5 million, you will be required to pay 12% of the value of the property
What are conveyancing disbursements?
During the process of buying a house, your conveyancing solicitor will be required to pay some third parties for their services. These include outgoings such as paying for searches and stamp duty and should be clearly set out by your property solicitor when they quote you for the work that they will carry out for you. The quote should include both the disbursement charges and the amount that the property solicitor will charge you for the work that they will be doing themselves.
If this is not the case, you should ask the solicitor for their disbursement charges before you accept their quote.
Additional fees
Assuming that you have instructed a property solicitor, your disbursement charges will all be dealt with by your solicitor. Some of the disbursement fees that might be charged for include:
Arrangement Fees
Arrangement fees – or completion fees – are costs that are charged by a lender to cover the administration of organising the loan. You should check the terms of your loan to find out whether arrangement fees are due to be paid when you submit your mortgage application, or whether it can be tied in with the loan that is your mortgage.
Land Registry fees
Land Registry fees are charged by the HM Land Registry for the transfer of the ownership of a property into your name. The cost of the Land Registry fees varies according to the value of the property and whether it is a new build property or not.
The conveyancing solicitor will also need to carry out a land registry search to check that all of the details that they have been given are correct.
Valuation fee
If you are taking out a mortgage to pay for your property, your mortgage lender will also charge you a valuation fee. When they lend you the money to buy a property, the mortgage company must be sure that the property is worth the money that they are lending you in case you do not manage to pay them back and they need to repossess the house to get their money back.
The mortgage company will, therefore, carry out its own valuation of the property regardless of the amount of the offer that you have made and what you are actually going to pay for it.
Property deeds
Property deeds are legal documents that state who the legal owners of a property are. They also provide other details such as any notices or legal charges that there are against the property and any restrictions linked to it. When you are buying a property, your solicitor will need to download official copies of these documents. This cost is covered by the Property Deeds fee.
Telegraphic transfer fees
Telegraphic Transfer fees relate to the costs that are charged to move the money between the buyers and sellers of a property. Before contracts are exchanged between parties, the deposit money must be transferred – or all of it if you are making a cash purchase.
This process is done through CHAPS (Clearing House Automated Payment System) enabling it to be carried out in one step. This does, of course, incur a fee and this is covered in the Telegraphic Transfer fees.
It is also important to note that if you have taken out a mortgage, there will be other fees to pay.
Referral fees
In some cases, solicitors work alongside estate agents who recommend them to handle property sales. Some solicitors pay to be recommended by the estate agent, and this cost is known as a ‘Referral fee’. This is a fee that the Solicitor pays to the Referrer not you, but this value should be clearly identified by the solicitor in their quote.
Speak to one of our experts
If you are considering buying a house, it is important that you instruct a conveyancing solicitor with experience, knowledge, and who you can trust. Here at Waldron’s our expert team is always on hand to answer any questions and work towards a smooth and speedy purchase of your property. Also at Waldrons we offer a no sale no fee so if your sale or purchase falls through you will only pay the disbursements and no legal fees
Contact Waldrons solicitors
Here at Waldrons our team of expert solicitors are on hand to speak to you, get in touch today!
Last reviewed on 11/07/23 by Abigail Gray who is an Associate Solicitor