Fees for Conveyancing   by Legalquotes

in Law    (submitted 2011-12-03)

Most online Fee for conveyancing calculators do a fairly good job of detailing all the average Fee for conveyancing that are to be expected however there are one or two sites out that that go out of their way to hid disbursements away in the small print to deliberately make their Fee for conveyancing seem cheaper than they really are.

Whatever the online conveyancing quote may say you must check the itemized breakdown of Fees for Conveyancing that will be set out clearly in your conveyancing solicitors initial client care letter (you will receive this at the start of the conveyancing process, before any Fee for conveyancing are requested or payable).

There is a number of standard conveyancing disbursements involved when selling a property and the disbursements in a sale will vary depending on whether the property is freehold or leasehold.

When your conveyancing solicitor prepares the pre contract package to send to the buyer's solicitor at the start of the transaction, they must include up to date official copies of the freehold Title Register and filed plan held at Land Registry (additional Fee for conveyancing of £16+VAT should be expected). This will prove that the seller owns the property and will also show details of any legal Charges or Notices registered against the title.

Occasionally the house seller does not have all the deeds in his possession, in which case he may be required to produce official copies of Transfers, Leases, Conveyances or any other deeds. Copies can be obtained from Land Registry (additional Fee for Conveyancing of £10 to £20+VAT should be expected depending on the type of deed that is required).

If you are selling through an estate agent, the agent will require their fees to be paid on completion of the house sale. The fees are usually a percentage of the sale price although this may vary. A selling fee agreement is signed by the property seller when the estate agent is instructed, agreeing to payment of their fees on completion. Conveyancing solicitors will usually settle the estate agent's fees out of the sale proceeds.

Home Information Packs (HiPs) were suspended by the new government at the end of May this year. However, the Energy Performance Certificate element of the HIPs pack remains a legal requirement and an EPC must be obtained within 28 days of the property being marketed. Expect additional Fee for conveyancing of around £40+VAT (alternatively you can let your estate agent organize your EPC or even shop around online for the cheapest deal).

This Fee for conveyancing relates to bank charges for the telegraphic transfer (TT) of funds. If you require the balance of the property sale proceeds to be paid to you by bank transfer then you will have to pay a TT fee. If you have a mortgage to redeem then another TT fee will need to be paid. Expect additional Fees for Conveyancing of around £35+VAT per Telegraphic Transfer).

For leasehold properties official copies of both the leasehold and freehold title must be produced and those relating to any intermediary landlords (additional Fee for conveyancing of £16+VAT should be expected for each).

If the property is leasehold the buyer will expect a Managing Agent's pack to be supplied and paid for by the seller. This pack contains information about the property, including service charges, ground rent, major works, company accounts information, etc. Expect additional Fee for conveyancing of around £200 - £280+VAT.

If a Notice of Assignment is required then the seller is generally required to pay the associated costs including the landlord's legal fees. Expect additional Fee for conveyancing of anywhere from £150 - £500+VAT.

Your conveyancing solicitor may ask you for an initial payment on account (which must be paid once you instruct them). This will cover the Fee for conveyancing and costs relating to the initial disbursements, e.g., Fees for Conveyancing for the Managing Agent's pack.

It is common practice for the conveyancing solicitor to take out their Fee for conveyancing and pay all other disbursements out of the sale proceeds on completion. This includes redeeming your mortgage (if you have one). Now that Home Information Packs have been abolished the disbursements and total Fee for conveyancing incurred by property sellers are a few hundred pounds less than they were before.

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