CONVEYANCING

STAGES IN THE CONVEYANCING PROCESS
  • A sale and purchase of property/land falls into three phases:
  • Up to exchange of contracts
  • Exchange of contracts to completion
  • Post-completion

Up to exchange of contracts

This stage includes:

  • Taking instructions to act for seller or buyer.
  • Organising the financial aspects of the transaction.
  • Drafting/approving the contract of sale.
  • Checking that the seller has title to the property
  • Carrying out various searches and enquiries to enable the buyer to discover:
    1.  the physical state of the property 
    2. third party rights affecting the property/land; and
    3. other matters which may influence a buyer’s decision whether or not to buy, e.g., whether there are disputes with the neighbours or whether there are plans for new roads in the area.
  • The exchange of contracts. Until this occurs either party may withdraw from the transaction without any liability to the other side.  Once contracts have been exchanged, both sides are legally bound to complete, i.e., to perform the contract – the buyer by paying the agreed price and the seller by transferring the agreed property.

Exchange of contracts to completion

This stage includes:

  • Preparing the document necessary to transfer the property.  This will be Land Registry transfer (registered title), or deed of conveyance (unregistered title).  If the buyer is buying with the aid of a mortgage, the mortgage documentation will also have been prepared.
  • Conducting certain pre-completion searches to check that there are no new third-party rights/incumbrances.
  • Ensuring that the finance is in place
  • Completion by payment of the price and the execution and handing over of the transfer/conveyance plus various other documents.  This is the performance of the contract, e.g., the equivalent of the delivery of the goods under a sale of goods contract.

Post completion

To validate the transaction and ensure that the buyer gets legal title to the estate purchased, you must do the following steps:

  • Stamp the transfer/conveyance.
  • Registration – either registration of the dealing if the title was already registered or first registration if the title was previously an unregistered title.
STAGES IN A FREEHOLD CONVEYANCING TRANSACTION

Acting for the seller

  • Taking instructions 
  • Investigate title and prepare draft contract
  • If protocol is followed, supply buyer with fixtures, fitting and contents form and property information form
  • Deduce title
  • Negotiation of exchanges to the draft contract
  • Receipt of approved draft contract 
  • Exchange of contracts
  • Deduce title if not done pre-exchange of contracts
  • Approve purchase deed
  • Preparation for completion
  • Completion
  • Post-completion matters

Acting for the Buyer

  • Taking instructions
  • Organize survey and finance and await draft contract
  • Make local and special searches
  • Check what is supplied and make any further enquiries as necessary
  • Investigate title
  • Negotiation of changes to the draft contract 
  • Approve draft contract
  • Exchange of contracts 
  • Investigate title
  • Prepare purchase deed
  • Preparation for completion 
  • Completion 
  • Post-completion matters
HOW LONG DOES A CONVEYANCING PROCESS TAKE?

Freehold transactions

It usually takes 4 to 6 weeks to exchange contracts from the date when the Buyer’s solicitors receive the initial contract pack of documents from the Seller’s solicitors.  The sale pack includes the property information form and fittings and contents form.  If you are the Seller, the longer you take to return the completed forms to us the more likelihood there will be delay in the sale process.

Leasehold transactions

It usually takes 6 to 8 weeks to exchange contracts as there are additional enquiries to raise with the Freeholder/Managing Agents in addition to examining the lease.

Delays

Delays can arise where adverse/late search results are received, planning, and building regulations have not been complied with by the Seller, a delay in obtaining a mortgage or replies to enquiries are not satisfactorily dealt with or the rest of the chain is not ready.  These timings are a rough estimate, and you can contact your solicitor regarding your transaction(s).

PRICING INFORMATION

In accordance with the SRA Transparency Rules, we have set out below an average of the conveyancing costs we charge.

The fees listed are for a conveyancing transaction which does not have any legal or complex issues.  Our fees cover all the work required to complete your sale, purchase, or re-mortgage.

For a purchase we shall complete the Stamp Duty Transaction Return based on the information you provide and deal with the registration of your purchase with HM Land Registry.

What will incur increase costs?

The following list which is non exhaustive will incur increased costs:

  • A sale or purchase with a share of freehold
  • Any unusual circumstances such as length of the lease, planning or building regulations issues, listed building, estate management schemes or defective title. 
  • Expediting the transaction
  • New builds
  • Lease extension, deed of variation or other legal deed 
  • The price is over £1m
  • Unregistered land 
  • Help to Buy Scheme or Help to Buy Isa
  • Auction sale or purchase 

Freehold Sales/Purchase    

  • Up to £225,000 from £700.00 Plus VAT                                     
  • £225,001-£300,000 from £800.00 Plus VAT                                      
  • £300,001-£500,000 from £900.00 Plus VAT                                     
  • £500,001-£600,000 from £1000.00 Plus VAT                                    
  • £600,001-£700,000 from £1,200.00 Plus VAT                                  
  • £700,001-£800,000 from £1,500.00 Plus VAT        
  • £800,001-£900,000 from £1,600.00 Plus VAT         
  • £900,001-£1,000,000 from £1,700.00 Plus VAT                             
  • £1,000,001+ from £1,800.00 Plus VAT       

VAT

VAT will be charged at the current prevailing rate which is 20%.

Disbursements 

  • Bank transfer fee £40.00 plus VAT 
  • Title documents are charged at the same rate as we are charged by the Land Registry .

No additional fees for acting for a mortgage lender in the redemption of first legal charge.

Leasehold Sales/Purchases

  • Up to £225,000 from £90.00 Plus VAT                                          
  • £225,001-£300,000 from £1000.00 Plus VAT                 
  • £300,001-£500,000 from £1,100.00 Plus VAT               
  • £500,001-£600,000 from £1,200.00 Plus VAT                
  • £600,001-£700,000 from £1,300.00Plus VAT
  • £700,001-£800,000 from £1,500.00 Plus VAT
  • £800,001-£900,000 from £1,800.00 Plus VAT
  • £900,001-£1,000,000 from £1,900.00 Plus VAT
  • £1,000,001+ from £2,000.00 Plus VAT

Disbursements/Other charges 

  • Bank Transfer fee – £40.00 plus VAT
  • For a Leasehold purchase, a Notice of Transfer/Mortgage will have to be sent to the Freeholder and the Management Company and they have their fees
  • For a leasehold sale, the Freeholder or Management Company will be required to provide information and they will have their own charges which you will be liable for.
  • The title documents and Land Registry fees are charged by the Land Registry 
  • We undertake the searches below and we charge you the same fees as we are charged by the search provider.  VAT is added to the search costs:
    1. Environmental search – £90.00 approx   
    2. Local Authority search – £200.00 approx  
    3. Drainage search – £60.00 approx 
    4. Chancel insurance – £12.12 approx 
    5. Plan Search – £30.00 approx  
    6. Lawyer checker to verify the other law firm’s bank account – £15.00 plus VAT approx
  • Stamp Duty Land Tax
    1. From 1 April 2016 there is an additional 3% stamp duty for an additional property and if you proceed to instruct us, we shall send you a questionnaire to assist us in telling you whether your purchase is liable for an additional 3%.
    2. From 1 April 2021 there is an additional 2% for non-UK residents.  You can use the HMRC online calculator which is https://www.tax.service.gov.uk/calculate-stamp-duty-land-tax/#/intro
  • Source of funds checks

We are required to verify the funds used for a transaction.  We use an agent, Armalytix, to conduct a check on a client’s bank account or accounts to ensure the money used in the transaction is legitimate.  This is the legal requirement for professional services firms to help combat financial crime.  Armalytix is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and provides financial report services to professional services firms across the UK.  The Armalytix fee is £15.00 plus VAT approx for each report, and we shall charge back to you the fee they charge us.

  • Mortgage related charges

If you are obtaining a mortgage, it is likely that your lender will ask us to act on its behalf as well as acting for you.  Mortgage lenders pass on the cost for acting on their behalf to the borrower. The fees for acting for your mortgage lender are payable by you.  You shall be charged the amount recommended by your mortgage lender in your mortgage offer subject to a minimum of £250.00 plus VAT. If your mortgage lender instructs another solicitors or conveyancers an additional fee will be charged subject to a minimum of £250.00 plus VAT as we shall be required to deal with their enquiries and provide them with a copy of your file.

Some lenders provide us with their mortgage offer via a platform called LMS, and LMS charge a fee of £15.00 plus VAT per matter.  If your proposed lender uses LMS, the LMS fee will be passed on to you.

If you are using a Help to Buy ISA to fund your purchase there will be a fee of £50.00 plus VAT to deal with the administration required by help to buy.

  • Gifted funds

If funds are being provided by way of a gift from a family member, then we charge £200.00 plus VAT to verify the identity and source of funds for the gifted deposit. 

If there is more than one gift, then the fee is £200.00 plus VAT for each person providing the gift.  The person providing the gift will be required to verify the source of funds via Armalytix.

VAT 

VAT will be charged at the current prevailing rate which at present is 20%.

Other useful information 

Unlike some other firms, we do not charge for photocopying, arranging indemnity insurance and completing your Stamp duty Land Tax form.  We only charge you the same disbursement costs that we are charged for searches. 

We do not receive or pay any referral fees.

Please feel free to call our office on 020 8463 9100 for further details or clarification of our charges.

OUR CONVEYANCING SOLICITOR
  • Francis Eigbefoh

Francis is a Director and the Head of the Conveyancing Department at Francis Solicitors Limited.

He graduated in LLB (Hons) degree from the University of London in 1988. He obtained a master’s degree in business law from City of London Polytechnic, which became the London Guildhall University in 1992, which subsequently merged with the University of North London to form the London Metropolitan University in 2002.

Francis then did his Legal Practice Course (LPC) at the University of Westminster in 2004 and qualified as a solicitor in 2006.
Since he qualified as a solicitor, he became a partner at Francis Macfoy Solicitors and then left that practice and formed Francis Solicitors in October 2011.

He has a varied range of clients and his specialisms amongst others include Employment, Immigration, Residential and Commercial Conveyancing which he has been undertaking since 2006.