Legal Fees

Legal fees are difficult to quantify as they are affected by a variety of factors. Typical activities generating charges are as follows.

Local authority searches – carried out before exchange of contract and not refundable once completed. Typical fees vary from £75 to £ 130.These searches identify plans for new roads and developments.
Land Registry search – typical cost £5 to £10.

Environmental searches – carried out before exchange of contracts and not refundable once completed.They check for a history of flooding, mining subsidence, radon gas and so on. A typical fee would be £39.
Electronic transfer fees for transferring funds on completion. A typical fee would be £30 plus VAT
Bankruptcy searches – carried out before exchange of contracts and not refundable once completed.These are carried out to ensure that the buyer is not an undischarged bankrupt and typically cost £5 to £10.

Land Registry fees – payable after completion of the sale to register the property in the new owner’s name. The fees range from £40 for a property sold for £50,000 or less to £700 for a property sold for more than £lm.
Solicitor’s/conveyancer’s fee – paid on completion to cover the legal work carried out during the purchase process. If the sale does not complete, some solicitors will reduce their charge, particularly if they are asked to carry out another purchase. Many solicitors now charge a flat fee, regardless of the property value.
Title indemnity fees – the title indemnity is required where the title cannot be fully guaranteed. It protects the lender and owner from ownership claims made by others. The fee is typically 0.10% of the property value.