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A beautiful quaint Cotswold country That

Leasehold purchases

Our fees

Some transactions are inevitably more straightforward than others.  So that our charges fairly reflect the complexity of a matter, we charge according to the time needed to be spent by our professional staff to undertake each matter. 

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Our current hourly rates are:

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  • £250 for partners,

  • £225 for senior solicitors

  • £205 for solicitors

  • £180 for conveyancing assistants

  • £135 for trainee solicitors.

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The majority of our residential conveyancing transactions are undertaken by senior solicitor Joanna Leslie and/or her conveyancing assistant Lisa Jenkins. Joanna has been undertaking residential conveyancing work since 1998 and Lisa since 2006.

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Typical fees

We are always happy to provides quotes of our charges for particular transactions, but our typical charges for purchase of a leasehold residential property which does not present unusual difficulties is around £1,200 + VAT.  If the property is a new-build, the fee is likely to be around £1,200 + VAT.  In either case, where funds are remitted by telegraphic transfer/CHAPS (which is usually the case), there is an additional charge of £24 + VAT. 

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​​Disbursements

Disbursements are expenses which we have to pay to others to enable your transaction to proceed. The actual disbursements payable will depend upon the property.  Typical disbursements on a purchase may include:​

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  • Local Authority Search fee  - £60 - £400 + VAT depending upon the local authority involved.- those in London tend to be the most expensive.

  • Environmental Search fee - £49 + VAT

  • Chancel Check Search fee - £20 + VAT

  • Drainage Search fee - £41.80 + VAT

  • Land Registry Search fee - £3 + VAT

  • Land Charge Search fee - £2 per name + VAT

  • Land Registry fee - £40 - £910 depending upon the purchase price

  • Stamp Duty Land Tax - depends on the purchase price of your property and your particular circumstances but HMRC have a useful calculator.

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How long will my house purchase take?

How long it will take from your offer being accepted until you can move in to your house will depend on a number of factors. The average process takes between X-X weeks. 


It can be quicker or slower, depending on the parties in the chain. For example, if you are a first time buyer, purchasing a new build property with a mortgage in principle, it could take X weeks. However, if you are buying a leasehold property that requires an extension of the lease, this can take significantly longer, between X and X months. In such, a situation additional charges would apply.


Stages of the process - purchase

The precise stages involved in the purchase of a residential property will vary according to the circumstances. However, the following are typical key stages that are included in our fee estimates above: 

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  • Take your instructions and give you initial advice

  • Check finances are in place to fund purchase and contact lender's solicitors if needed

  • Receive and advise on contract documents

  • Carry out searches

  • Obtain further planning documentation if required

  • Make any necessary enquiries of seller's solicitor and draft the transfer deed

  • Give you advice on all documents and information received

  • Go through conditions of mortgage offer with you

  • Send final documents to you for signature

  • Agree completion date (date from which you own the property)

  • Exchange contracts and notify you that this has happened

  • Arrange for all monies needed to be received from lender and you

  • Complete purchase

  • Deal with payment of Stamp Duty/Land Tax

  • Deal with application for registration at Land Registry

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Overall, a typical purchase takes around 6 weeks, but much will depend upon who is acting for the seller.  If the seller instructs a firm that delegates much of its conveyancing work to junior staff, this may well delay progress.  It will generally be in both parties interests for the seller to instruct a traditional firm with a strong reputation rather than a volume conveyancing practice.

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