PURCHASE OF A LEASEHOLD RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY
We no longer undertake this work except reluctantly for existing clients and only if we think it appropriate. The complexity of the work means that the legal costs generally charged by the legal profession are unprofitable unless done on a large scale. There is no requirement to publish costs information for existing clients who should ask about our fees when first contacting us about these matters.

SELLING YOUR EXISTING FREEHOLD HOUSE
We never offer a fixed fee and do not make use of an online calculator for our costs.
Our fees cover all of the work required to complete the sale of your new home, including dealing with discharge of your mortgage and payment of estate agent's fees. You will notice and perhaps be surprised that your estate agent's fees will invariably be much higher than your solicitor's costs. As the case progresses you will wonder why this is so.

Legal fees for the legal work we do
These will depend on the price of the house, the time taken and the complexity of the matter but we normally charge between £450 and £700 plus VAT (currently at 20%). In addition it is necessary to pay a number of fees to government and other organisations as follows:

Disbursements
Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as Land Registry search fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process but may ask you to pay us money on account before we do so.

Electronic money transfer fees @ £12.00 plus VAT each payable to our bank (exactly what our bank charges us) for each payment made (usually one or two).

Search fees
Search Fees depend on the searches which we carry out on your behalf and how much the relevant organisation charges for the search results. The basic searches for a sale relate to obtaining documents about your property, usually from the Land Registry. They usually cost about £12.00 for registered land. These fees are subject to VAT but sometimes only as to part of the fee.
Estimated total for our legal work for registered land including basic searches and VAT at current rates is between £570 and £860. You will take payment for our costs from the proceeds of sale.

How long will my house sale take?
How long it will take from finding a buyer until you can move in to your house will depend on a number of factors. The average process takes between 6 - 8 weeks but it can be less or more.
It can be quicker or slower, depending on the parties in the chain. For example, if your buyer needs to sell their property you just have to wait for as long as it takes. If the matter is delayed for a long time additional charges may apply as they would if the work is done as a matter of urgency meaning that we have to give it special priority.

Stages of the process
The precise stages involved in the purchase of a residential property vary according to the circumstances. However, below we have suggested some key stages that you may wish to include:

- Take your instructions and give you initial advice - Prepare and advise on contract documents
- Carry out searches - Obtain further documentation if required
- Answer any necessary enquiries made by the buyer's solicitor
- Give you advice on all documents and information received - Send final contract to you for signature - Agree completion date (date from which you must vacate the property) - Exchange contracts and notify you that this has happened - Complete purchase - Arrange for all monies needed to be received from you

NB if the house you are selling is not already registered at the Land Registry there will be much extra work in checking the extra documents we receive and satisfying the buyer's solicitor about the land involved. We estimate that the extra work involved will cost at least £160 plus VAT. It is impossible to advise about this without more information but we are happy to do so when we know the full facts.

As an illustrative example, the cost for doing the legal work in selling a freehold property at the price of £300,000 will be £600 including VAT. The basic disbursements will be about £30 plus VAT. The total might therefore be about £640. It is impossible to advise about this without more information but we are happy to do so when we know the full facts.