Residential Conveyancing
We offer reasonable charges compared with our competitors and a 10% discount for first time buyers or if you are doing a linked sale and purchase – please telephone us on 01296 424681 and ask for an estimate and also please see our prices below.
How much is all this going to cost?
Legal Fees for purchase of Residential Property
(Freehold or leasehold)
Introduction
Legal Fees
Legal Fees are the amount you will be required to pay for all of the work performed by us in actioning your instructions, from commencement of your case to conclusion.
You can find full details of how we calculate our conveyancing charges below. For a specific quote, please call and ask for Adrian Wright on 01296 424 681 or email us by using the contact form.
Please note that until you formally instruct us we will only retain any data supplied to us below so that we can recognise you if you contact us again and we will not retain it for more than 6 months. For details please see our full data protection policy.
Our charges are made up of:
- our fees for the legal work;
- ‘disbursements’ – disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to other people, such as Land Registry fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process; and
- Stamp Duty Land Tax (see below).
Where VAT is referred to below, please note that this will be charged at the applicable rate, currently set at 20%.
Our fees depend upon the value of the property you are buying and are listed below:
Freehold Purchase
Our average standard legal fee for a residential freehold property purchase is from £750.00 – £2,300 + VAT (£900 – £2,760 Inc. VAT) for properties up to the value of 1 million. Please see our fee scale below:
| Property purchase value | Average fees | Total |
|---|---|---|
| £0 – £249.999 | £750+VAT to £1,050+VAT | £900 – £1,260 inc. VAT |
| £250,000 – £499,000 | £800+VAT to £1,350+VAT | £960 – £1,620 inc. VAT |
| £500,000 – £749,000 | £900+VAT to £1,650+VAT | £1,080 – £1,980 inc. VAT |
| £750,000 – £1 million | £1,000+VAT to £2,300+VAT | £1,200 – £2,760 inc. VAT |
For properties over £1 million, please call us for a quote, as any final quote will depend on the value and location of the property and the complexity of the transaction. We would warn you that there are some charges made by others which we will not be able to ascertain until we are instructed and make the necessary enquiries. We will inform you as soon as possible once we know these additional charges. For example, the obtaining of a management pack from the freeholder when selling a leasehold property.
Please note that for any purchase of residential property that is above the value or £1 million, or for any commercial property quotation, you will need to phone our office to discuss.
Additional charges on a residential purchase
| Bank Transfers (CHAPS) each (including bank charges and administration fees) | £25 + VAT | £30 inc. VAT |
| For any Property that is Leasehold (Rather than Freehold) | £300 – £2,500 + VAT | £360 – £3,000 inc. VAT |
| For any Property that is Shared Ownership | £475 + VAT | £570 inc. VAT |
| For any Property if the estate/buildings are managed. | £250 + VAT | £300 inc. VAT |
| Acting for a Lender of any new mortgage | £200 + VAT | £240 inc. VAT |
| Help to Buy ISA (each) | £50 + VAT | £60 inc. VAT |
| Lifetime ISA (each) | £150 + VAT | £180 inc. VAT |
We are required by our regulator to undertake Client Due Diligence (CDD) which is made of up KYC (Know Your Client) and AML (Anti Money Laundering) details of which are contained within our terms of engagement which will be sent to you when instructing us. The firm undertakes no charge when it comes to this.
The value and location of the property and any complexities of the purchase will dictate the final fee charged within this range.
Stamp Duty Land Tax
- Stamp Duty Land Tax (Stamp Duty*) applies to most property purchase transactions. We will advise you of the stamp duty applicable to your matter and you can visit the HMRC website for more information.
- VAT will be payable on our fees and some disbursements and we will clearly confirm which disbursements carry VAT in our formal quotation or as we advise you to incur them.
If at any stage our fees change, we will notify you and discuss the reason for any changes. This would typically occur if you change your instructions or your case involves an unforeseen complexity.
Our average fees assume that:
- This is a standard transaction and that no unforeseen matters arise including for example (but not limited to) a defect in title which requires remedying prior to completion or the preparation of additional documents ancillary to the main transaction.
- For Leasehold matters this is the assignment of an existing lease and is not the grant of a new lease.
- The transaction is concluded in a timely manner and no unforeseen complication arise.
- All parties to the transaction are co-operative and there is no unreasonable delay from third parties providing documentation.
- No indemnity policies are required. Additional disbursements may apply if indemnity policies are required.
Disbursements and Other Costs
Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as Land Registry fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.
You will be provided with a full list of disbursements in our formal quotation. If you need to incur any further disbursements during your case, you will be notified in advance of the reason and the amount.
Typical disbursements and other costs that may apply in you matter will include: –
- HM Land Registry fee. The fees chargeable by the land registry can be found on the Government’s website.
- Land Registry Priority Search fees (per title) £3.00 + VAT (£3.60 Inc. VAT)
- Bankruptcy search fees per borrower of £2.00 + VAT (£2.40 Inc. VAT)
- Lawyer checker £12 + VAT (£14.40 Inc. VAT)
Typical Property Search Fees
Search fees vary from case to case depending on the local authority. We will advise you which searches you need for your transaction and the cost of each search. Our average fee for a standard property search pack is £250 – £450 + VAT (£300 – £540 Inc. VAT).
Typical local searches include:
- Local land charges search;
- Enquiries of the local authority;
- Environment search;
- Planning Search;
- Chancel repair liability indemnity; and
- Water and Drainage search
Other official local searches may be required by your lender and your conveyancer will use their local knowledge to confirm which local searches you will need. A standard local authority search will reveal whether any legal restrictions or obligations affect the property. These include tree preservation orders, smoke control orders, flood searches as well as the property’s planning and building enforcement history. This will also reveal if the property is built on or near land that was affected by mining and can include a search for mine shafts and subsidence. We will advise you which searches you need for your transaction and the cost of each search.
When dealing with the purchase of leasehold properties it is quite common to have to enter into a Deed of Covenant with the Landlord or the Management Company as well as serving notice of the transaction on the landlord. This can result in increased charges payable to the management company or managing agents. As an example
These can include:
- Notice of Transfer fee – This fee if chargeable is set out in the lease or set by the Freeholders. Often the fee is between £50 and £200 + VAT (£60 – £240 Inc. VAT)
- Notice of Charge fee (if the property is to be mortgaged) – This fee is set out in the lease or set by the Freeholders. Often the fee is between Often the fee is between £50 and £200 + VAT (£60 – £240 Inc. VAT)
- Deed of Covenant fee – This fee is provided by the management company for the property and can be difficult to estimate. Often it is between Often the fee is between £50 and £300 + VAT (£60 – £360 Inc. VAT)
- Certificate of Compliance fee – To be confirmed upon receipt of the lease, as can range between Often the fee is between £50 and £300 + VAT (£60 – £360 Inc. VAT)
These fees are set by the management company / freeholder and can vary from property to property. They can, on occasion, be significantly more than the ranges given above and VAT may be charged. We can give you an accurate figure once we have sight of your specific documents.
You should also be aware that ground rent and service charge are likely to apply throughout your ownership of the property.
If you are simply re-mortgaging then we do not anticipate you incurring any disbursements except for Notice of Charge.
Stamp Duty Land Tax (on purchase)
This amount payable depends on the purchase price of your property. You can calculate the amount you will need to pay by using HMRC’s website.
How long will my property purchase take?
How long it will take from your offer being accepted to completion will depend on a number of factors Those factors include:
- The chain (other parties)
- Deposit finance
- Mortgage finance
- Surveys
- Enquiries and the responses
- Searches
The national average for a home move from inception (after accepted) to completion is about 12 weeks.
It can be quicker or slower, depending on the factors in your matter. For example, if you are a first-time buyer, purchasing a new build property with a mortgage in principle and the transaction goes smoothly it could take as little as 6-7 weeks. However, if you are buying a leasehold property that requires an extension of the lease, this can take significantly longer, between 5 and 6 months. In such a situation, additional charges would apply.
Stages of the Process
The precise stages involved in the purchase of a residential property vary according to the circumstances. We have set out the key stages of a standard transaction: –
- Taking your instructions and giving you initial advice.
- Undertaking regulatory checks.
- Checking that finances are in place to fund the purchase and contact lender’s solicitors if needed.
- Receiving and advising on contract documents.
- Carrying out and advising on searches.
- Obtaining of further planning documentation, if required.
- Making any necessary enquiries of seller’s solicitor.
- Giving you advice on all documents and information received.
- For Leasehold properties – obtaining and advising on the Management Pack, thee Lease and identifying transfer fees.
- Advising you on joint or shared ownership.
- Going through conditions of any mortgage offer if appropriate.
- Sending final contract to you for signature.
- Agreeing completion date (date from which you own the property).
- Exchanging contracts and notifying you that this has happened.
- Arranging for all monies needed to be received from your lender (if applicable) and you.
- Completing the purchase and notifying the relevant parties.
- Dealing with payment of Stamp Duty/Land Tax.
- Dealing with the application for registration at Land Registry.
Other Factors
Other Factors to consider which may affect your Legal Fees and disbursements are:
- Value and location of the property.
- First-time buyer.
- New build.
- First registration of title.
- Islamic mortgage.
- In purchase cases, whether primary residence, buy to let or second/holiday home.
- Multiple owners.
- Shared ownership scheme.
- Using a help to buy scheme, and whether it is an equity loan or ISA.
- Purchase under right to buy.
- Purchase at auction.
- Property has been repossessed.
These fees vary from property to property and can on occasion, be significantly more than the ranges given above. We can give you an accurate figure once we have sight of your specific documents.
When you purchase a leasehold property, you should also be aware that ground rent and service charge are likely to apply throughout your ownership of the property. We will confirm the ground rent and the anticipated service charge as soon as we receive this information.
Additional professional work is not covered by our above fees, examples of which include:
- Defective Title*
- Deed of Easement*
- Deed of Variation*
- Statutory Declaration*
- Indemnity Insurances*
- Planning Issues*
- Building regulation Issues*
- Excessive chasing required*
- Abortive matters (work and disbursements that cannot be used for a subsequent matter)*
- Lease extension/variation costs*
* You will need to be provided with a tailored quote for the above additional work.
What is the method of communication?
We use:
- Telephone
- Letters
- Face to face meetings
Our service is tailor-made so we adapt the methods according to client’s needs.
You can find details of how to get in touch via our Contact Us page.
Legal Fees for sale of Residential Property
(Freehold or leasehold)
Introduction
Our Legal Fees cover all of the work required to complete the sale of your home.
Our illustrative fees below would cover all of the work required to complete the sale of a residential property.
Legal Fees
Legal Fees are the amount you will be required to pay for all of the work performed by us in actioning your instructions, from commencement of your case to conclusion.
You can find full details of how we calculate our conveyancing charges below. For a specific quote, please call Adrian Wright on 01296 424681 or email us by using the contact form.
Please note that until you formally instruct us we will only retain any data supplied to us below so that we can recognise you if you contact us again and we will not retain it for more than 6 months. For details please see our full data protection policy.
Our charges are made up of:
- our fees for the legal work;
- ‘disbursements’ – disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to other people, such as Land Registry copy deeds. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process; and
Where VAT is referred to below, please note that this will be charged at the applicable rate, currently set at 20%.
Our fees depend upon the value of the property you are Selling and are listed below:
Our average standard legal fee for a residential freehold property sale is £700.00 – £2,000.00 + VAT (£840 – £2,400 inc. VAT)
For properties over £1 million, please call us for a quote, as any final quote will depend on the value and location of the property and the complexity of the transaction. We would warn you that there are some charges made by others which we will not be able to ascertain until we are instructed and make the necessary enquiries. We will inform you as soon as possible once we know these additional charges. For example, the obtaining of a management pack from the freeholder when selling a leasehold property.
Our average standard legal fee for a residential freehold property sale is £700.00 – £2,150.00 + VAT (£840 – £2,580 inc. VAT)
| Property sale value | Average fees | Total |
|---|---|---|
| £0 – £249.999 | £700+VAT to £1,100+VAT | £840 – £1,320 inc. VAT |
| £250,000 – £499,000 | £800+VAT to £1,250+VAT | £960 – £1,500 inc. VAT |
| £500,000 – £749,000 | £900+VAT to £1,550+VAT | £1,080 – £1,860 inc. VAT |
| £750,000 – £1 million | £1,000+VAT to £2,150+VAT | £1,200 – £2,580 inc. VAT |
| Bank Transfers (CHAPS) each (including bank charges and administration fees) | £25 + VAT | £30 inc. VAT |
| For any Property that is Leasehold (Rather than Freehold) | £300 – £2,500 + VAT | £360 – £3,000 inc. VAT |
| For any Property that is Shared Ownership | £475 + VAT | £570 inc. VAT |
| For any Property if the estate/buildings are managed. | £250 + VAT | £300 inc. VAT |
| Redemption of an existing mortgage (each) | £75 + VAT | £90 inc. VAT |
Please note that for any purchase or sale of residential property that is above the value or £1 million, or for any commercial property quotation, you will need to phone our office to discuss.
We are required by our regulator to undertake Client Due Diligence (CDD) which is made of up KYC (Know Your Client) and AML (Anti Money Laundering) details of which are contained within our terms of engagement which will be sent to you when instructing us. There is no charge for this.
Below, we detail what services are covered in our standard fee.
- VAT will be payable on our fees and some disbursements and we will clearly confirm which disbursements carry VAT in our formal quotation or as we advise you to incur them.
If at any stage our fees change, we will notify you and discuss the reason for any changes. This would typically occur if you change your instructions or your case involves an unforeseen complexity.
Our average fees assume that:
- The transaction is concluded in a timely manner and no unforeseen complication arise.
- All parties to the transaction are co-operative and there is no unreasonable delay from third parties providing documentation.
- For Leasehold matters this is the assignment of an existing lease and is not the grant of a new lease.
- No indemnity policies are required. Additional disbursements may apply if indemnity policies are required.
Disbursements and Other Costs
Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as Land Registry fees for copy deeds. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.
You will be provided with a full list of disbursements in our formal quotation. If you need to incur any further disbursements during your case, you will be notified in advance of the reason and the amount.
The following disbursements and other costs may apply in your matter.
- Office copies of title deeds £3 plus VAT (£3.60 including VAT) per deed
If your property is leasehold, the following additional costs may arise:
These can include:
- Certificate of Compliance fee – To be confirmed upon receipt of the lease, as can range between Often the fee is between £50 and £300 + VAT (£60 – £360 Inc. VAT)
- Leasehold Management Pack – This fee is chargeable when selling a leasehold property. Often the fee is between £150 and £400 + VAT (£180 – £480 Inc. VAT)
These fees are set by the management company / freeholder and can vary from property to property. They can, on occasion, be significantly more than the ranges given above and VAT may be charged. We can give you an accurate figure once we have sight of your specific documents.
Other costs to consider
If you have a mortgage on the property or have incurred an estate agent’s fee money, we would also typically need to pay the money owed directly to your lender and agent as needed from the sale money we receive for you.
How long will my property sale take?
How long it will take from your acceptance of an offer to the final sale of your property will depend on a number of factors.
- The average process for a residential freehold property is between 4 – 8 weeks.
- The average process for a residential leasehold property is between 4 – 10 weeks.
It can be quicker or slower, depending on a number of factors and we will notify you if we believe your transaction may take longer than average or if something occurs in your case to extend the transaction time.
If you are selling a leasehold property that requires an extension of the lease, this can take longer. In such a situation, additional charges would apply and we will notify you of the additional charges and time estimate when we, or the buyers, solicitors have engaged the landlord to discuss the extension.
Stages of the Process
The precise stages involved vary according to the circumstances. However typically in a property sale we need to do the following and have set out the key stages of a standard transaction:
- Take your instructions and give you initial advice
- Receive and advise on sale contract documents where applicable
- Prepare and Issue contracts and associated documents to the buyers
- Assist you with any enquiries raised by the buyers
- Send final contract to you for signature
- Agree completion date (date from which you own the property)
- Exchange contracts and notify you that this has happened
- Complete the transaction
- Repayment of existing mortgages
- Arranging for all monies needed to be received from your buyer and distributing those monies.
Other Factors
Other Factors to consider which may affect your Legal Fees: –
- Value of the property.
- Whether the property being sold is your primary residence, buy to let or second/holiday home.
- Multiple owners.
- Shared ownership scheme.
- Leasehold property
- Trusts
These fees vary from property to property and can on occasion, be significantly more than the ranges given above. We can give you an accurate figure once we have sight of your specific documents.
Additional professional work is not covered by our above fees, examples of which include:
- Defective Title*
- Deed of Easement*
- Deed of Variation*
- Statutory Declaration*
- Indemnity Insurances*
- Planning Issues*
- Building regulation Issues*
- Excessive chasing required*
- Abortive matters* (work and disbursements that cannot be used for a subsequent matter)
- Lease extension costs*
* You will need to be provided with a tailored quote for the above additional work.
What is the method of communication?
We use:
- Telephone
- Letters
- Face to face meetings
Our service is tailor-made so we adapt the methods according to client’s needs.
Legal fees for mortgage / remortgage residential property
Introduction
Our Legal Fees cover all of the work required to complete the sale of your home.
Our illustrative fees below would cover all of the work required to complete the sale of a residential property.
Legal Fees
Legal Fees are the amount you will be required to pay for all of the work performed by us in actioning your instructions, from commencement of your case to conclusion.
You can find full details of how we calculate our conveyancing charges below. For a specific quote, please call Adrian Wright on 01296 424681 or email us by using the contact form.
Please note that until you formally instruct us we will only retain any data supplied to us below so that we can recognise you if you contact us again and we will not retain it for more than 6 months. For details please see our full data protection policy.
Our average standard legal fee for a residential mortgage / re-mortgage is £700.00 – £1,000.00 plus VAT (£840.00 – £1,200.00 Inc. VAT)
- For purchases using a corporate vehicle there is a supplemental fee of £400.00 plus VAT (£480.00 Inc. VAT) due to Companies House registration requirements and additional documents required for lending purposes
- We are required by our regulator to undertake Client Due Diligence (CDD) which is made of up KYC (Know Your Client) and AML (Anti Money Laundering) details of which are contained within our terms of engagement which will be sent to you when instructing us. There is no charge for this.
Below we detail what services are covered in our standard fee.
- We will charge the sum of £25.00 plus VAT (£30.00 inc. VAT) for electronic money transfers ( Bank Charges and administration costs).
- VAT will be payable on our fees and some disbursements and we will clearly confirm which disbursements carry VAT in our formal quotation or as we advise you to incur them.
Where VAT is referred to below, please note that this will be charged at the applicable rate, currently set at 20%.
If at any stage our fees change, we will notify you and discuss the reason for any changes. This would typically occur if you change your instructions or your case involves an unforeseen complexity.
Our fee assumes that:
- this is a standard transaction and that no unforeseen matters arise.
- the transaction is concluded in a timely manner and no unforeseen complications arise.
- all parties to the transaction are co-operative and there is no unreasonable delay from any parties providing documentation.
Disbursements and Other Costs
Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as Land Registry fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.
You will be provided with a full list of disbursements in our formal quotation. If you need to incur any further disbursements during your case, you will be notified in advance of the reason and the amount.
Typical disbursements and other costs that may apply in you matter will include: –
- HM Land Registry fee. The fees chargeable by the land registry can be found on the HMRC website.
- Land Registry Priority Search fees (per title) £3.00 + VAT (£3.60 Inc. VAT)
- Bankruptcy search fees £2.00 + VAT (£2.40 Inc. VAT)
Typical Property Search Fees
Search fees vary from case to case depending on the local authority. We will advise you which searches you need for your transaction and the cost of each search. Our average fee for a standard property search pack is £250 – £450 + VAT (£300 – £540 Inc. VAT).
Typical local searches include:
- Local land charges search;
- Enquiries of the local authority;
- Environment search;
- Planning Search;
- Chancel repair liability indemnity; and
- Water and Drainage search
Other official local searches may be required by your lender and your conveyancer will use their local knowledge to confirm which local searches you will need. A standard local authority search will reveal whether any legal restrictions or obligations affect the property. These include tree preservation orders, smoke control orders, flood searches as well as the property’s planning and building enforcement history. This will also reveal if the property is built on or near land that was affected by mining and can include a search for mine shafts and subsidence. We will advise you which searches you need for your transaction and the cost of each search.
* Your lender may agree to waive the requirement for searches and proceed with a search indemnity policy which would cost substantially less than the searches. We can obtain a cost once we have details of your transaction and instructions from the lender.
When dealing with leasehold properties it is quite common to have to serve notice of the transaction on the landlord and management company. This can result in increased charges payable to the Landlord or management company or managing agents. As an example these can include:
- Notice of Charge fee– This fee is set out in the lease or set by the Freeholders. Often the fee is between Often the fee is between £50 and £200 + VAT (£60 – £240 Inc. VAT)
- Certificate of Compliance fee – To be confirmed upon receipt of the lease, as can range between Often the fee is between £50 and £300 + VAT (£60 – £360 Inc. VAT)
- Leasehold Management Pack – This fee is chargeable when selling a leasehold property. Often the fee is between £150 and £400 + VAT (£180 – £480 Inc. VAT)
These fees are set by the management company / freeholder and can vary from property to property. They can, on occasion, be significantly more than the ranges given above and VAT may be charged. We can give you an accurate figure once we have sight of your specific documents.
How long will my matter take?
The average mortgage or re-mortgage will take between 6-8 weeks.
It can be quicker or slower, depending on a number of factors and we will notify you if we believe your transaction may take longer than average or if something occurs in your case to extend the transaction time we will inform you. Matters that can typically delay a transaction include delays in searches, issues with a mortgage offer or issues raised in a survey.
Stages of the Process
The precise stages involved in the mortgage application/re-mortgage of a residential property vary according to the circumstances.
We have set out the key stages of a standard transaction: –
- Taking your instructions and giving you initial advice.
- Undertaking regulatory checks.
- Advising the mortgage offer and its conditions.
- Giving you advice on all documents and information received.
- Sending final mortgage deed to you for signature.
- Setting a completion date and requesting funds from the lender
- Completing the mortgage/re-mortgage
- Discharging any existing charge or charges
- Registering the Charge on the property.
Other Factors
Other Factors to consider which may affect your legal fees:
- Multiple owners.
- Shared ownership scheme.
- Mortgaging where there is a help to buy scheme, and whether it is an equity loan or ISA.
- Mortgaging property that is subject to Right to Buy discount repayment.
These fees vary from property to property and can, on occasion, be significantly more than the ranges given above. We can give you an accurate figure once we have sight of your specific documents.
You should also be aware that ground rent and service charge are likely to apply throughout your ownership of the property. We will confirm the ground rent and the anticipated service charge as soon as we receive this information.
Additional professional work is not covered by our above fees, examples of which include:
- Defective Title*
- Changes to ownership*
- Deed of Easement*
- Deed of Variation*
- Statutory Declaration*
- Indemnity Insurances*
- Planning Issues*
- Building regulation Issues*
- Excessive chasing required*
- Abortive matters* (work and disbursements that cannot be used for a subsequent matter)
- Lease extension/variation costs*
*You will need to be provided with a tailored quote for the above additional work.
What is the method of communication?
We use:
- Telephone
- Letters
- Face to face meetings
Our service is tailor-made so we adapt the methods according to client’s needs.
You can find details of how to get in touch via our Contact Us page.
Fee Earners
Your conveyancing transactions ( as above) will be handled by a trusted member of our experienced conveyancing team. We have a number of qualified lawyers in the team as well as experienced paralegals specialised in this area of law. Once we know who will be handling your case for you we will introduce you to them and provide you with full details of their background and qualifications. The Fee Earner with conduct would either be Paula Tedder, Adrian Wright or Fiona Annan.
Full details of the experience and qualifications of our team are available on our website under “our team”, including the types of work normally undertaken.
Regardless of who is working on your case the matter will be supervised by Paula Tedder, a Principal in the firm and Head of CQS.
If you are the seller…
The earlier you contact us the quicker the sale process will take. Working through what is known as the “Law Society’s Transaction scheme”, we will collect and prepare the property information which the buyer’s solicitor will need, obtain your deeds from your mortgage lender and prepare a draft contract.
If you are the buyer…
When you have found your new home or property and agreed the price, that is when you should come to us. Once instructed we can then start sorting the legal stuff out for you as soon as possible – including carrying out “local searches” and making “pre-contract enquiries”. If you need a mortgage, Wilkins Solicitors LLP is a Panel Solicitor for most building societies and banks. This means that we will normally be able to act for the lender as well as you, which minimises costs and helps to make the process as quick as possible. You will need a written offer of finance from your mortgage lender prior to exchanging contracts and may need the money for a deposit especially if you are a first time buyer. We will check that all the conditions in the offer are satisfied before you are committed.
The mortgage lender will carry out a valuation of the property. A standard valuation is not a survey – it is merely a valuation report for the lender’s benefit. However, different types of survey are available, and we can discuss these with you and advise you of which one will suit your individual circumstances.
If you are buying jointly with a spouse or partner we can also advise you on how you might like to own the property between you for example by using what the lawyers call “a joint tenancy” or “a tenancy in common” as well as about “co-habitation agreements”. We can advise you on all these matters and draw up the agreements if you decide you would like one.
As well as helping you to sort out the financing and how you would like to own the property, we will look at the information provided by the seller, help you to interpret technical documentation and advise you of any potential issues.
What about if you just want to let or let out your property?
Whether you are a Landlord or a Tenant we can advise you an all aspects of this including advice on or drafting Assured Shorthold Tenancies, Possession Proceedings and the Rent Deposit scheme.
What else can we help with at Wilkins Solicitors LLP?
As well as the more usual private house sales and purchases, Wilkins Solicitors LLP can also assist you with all other legal aspects of residential property, including:
- Residential Leases and Tenancies
- Rights of Way and Covenant Issues
- Land Sales
- Shared Ownership Properties
- The “Help to Buy” ISA scheme for First Time Buyers
- Purchasing your home under the “Right to Buy”.
To find out how we can help with the sale or purchase of your home, call us on 01296 424681 or complete our enquiry form.
Where can you come and see us for advice
Please note that although we mainly see clients at our Aylesbury offices, we can provide a solicitor to see you at home if you live in Buckingham, Milton Keynes or the surrounding villages. If you wish this to be arranged, please contact us on 01296 424681.
We can also arrange home visits around Aylesbury if you are unable to come into the office because you have a disability.