Fees

This section gives you more of an understanding of the fees you may be required to pay should you choose to instruct Hodgkinsons Solicitors. We want to provide you with all the necessary information you need to be able to make an informed choice about who your legal representatives will be.

Our Residential Conveyancing Department offer fixed fees based on the value of your property. Please see the table below which sets out our fee brackets for the Conveyancing services we provide.

You can obtain a free quote for your conveyancing in an efficient and timely manner by filling out our conveyancing proforma today.

What services are included in the displayed conveyancing Fees?

For a purchase in this fee we are: -

Obtaining contracts and details of the Seller’s title to the Property;
Conducting searches and raising enquiries;
Perusing replies to enquiries and searches and reporting to you;
Approving the Contract;
Obtaining details of your Mortgage and acting for your Lender;
Checking financial arrangements;
Exchanging contracts and arranging a completion date;
Drafting the transfer deed and raising requisitions;
Making pre-completion searches;
Attending completion;
Submitting SDLT Return to the Inland Revenue;
Dealing with the registration at HM Land Registry.

For a sale in this fee we are: -

Obtaining the title deeds and examining the same;
Obtaining property information and fixtures fittings and contents forms;
Preparing the contracts and contract package for submission to the Buyer’s Solicitors;
Dealing with enquiries raised by the Buyer’s Solicitors and replying to the same;
Attending you with the Contract for signature;
Exchanging Contracts and fixing a completion date;
Obtaining redemption figures from the mortgage Lender;
Approving the transfer and attending you with the engrossment for signature;
Dealing with requisitions on title;
Attending to the completion and accounting to you;
Generally acting throughout on your behalf.

You can also refer to our buying and selling guides.

How long will my conveyancing take?

It is impossible to say how long a transaction will take and until Contracts have been exchanged, we cannot give a definite moving date. However, most sale and purchase transactions take approximately 10 - 12 weeks to exchange of Contracts with completion usually approximately 2 weeks thereafter. This timescale takes into account 2 weeks for Client care, 3 weeks for communication, and 5 weeks for dealing with enquiries, searches, and mortgage offer(s).

On a purchase we then have to register the Property which can take any time depending on the Land Registry. This can take anywhere up to 6 months to 1 year however usually a registered freehold property will take around a month to register. Applications are however currently taking longer than expected due to delays at the Land Registry, taking on average 3 months for a registration to complete.

Our Team are always happy to give timescales on the anticipated completion of your matter but will do so on a bespoke basis as each transaction can be different and will potentially involve several parties and properties. For more information, read our blog.

Fixed fees for conveyancing

Property Value	Standard Purchase Fee	Standard Sale Fee	Re-mortgage	Transfer of Equity with No Mortgage	Transfer of Equity with Mortgage
£0 - £200,000.00	£710.00 + VAT (£142.00)	£695.00 + VAT (£139.00)	£450.00 + VAT (£90.00)	£450.00 + VAT (£90.00)	£550.00 + VAT (£110.00)
£200,000.00 - £300,000.00	£855.00 + VAT (£171.00)	£840.00 + VAT (£168.00)	£500.00 + VAT (£100.00)	£450.00 + VAT (£90.00)	£550.00 + VAT (£110.00
£300,000.00- £400,000.00	£940.00 + VAT (£188.00)	£925.00 + VAT (£185.00)	£550.00 + VAT (£110.00)	£450.00 + VAT (£90.00)	£550.00 + VAT (£110.00
£400,000.00- £500,000.00	£1,025.00 + VAT (£205.00)	£995.00 + VAT (£199.00)	£600.00 + VAT (£120.00)	£450.00 + VAT (£90.00)	£550.00 + VAT (£110.00
£500,000.00 +	Please enquire direct by calling 01754 897150.

The above fixed fees do not include the following administration fees payable to Hodgkinsons Solicitors however they will be included in your quote.

Sale and Purchase

Electronic Transfer Charges by Hodgkinsons for TT/CHAPS

£36.00 + VAT (£7.20)

Sale and Purchase

Electronic Transfer Charges by Hodgkinsons for FASTER PAYMENT

£25.00 + VAT (£5.00)

Sale and Purchase

Smart Searches

SINGLE - £3.00 + VAT (£0.60)

DOUBLE - £6.00 + VAT (£1.20)

BASIC INTERNATIONAL - £7.50 + VAT (£1.50)

ENHANCED INTERNATIONAL - £15.80 + VAT (£3.16)

Our fixed fees do not include the following disbursements however they will be included in your quote.

Disbursements are the fees that are paid to third parties such as the Land Registry, Councils, other Solicitors and other third parties.

Sale Only	Office Copies from the Land Registry (Title Documents)	£3.00 + VAT (£0.60) Each
Purchase Only	Mortgage Fee	£100.00 + VAT (£20.00)
Sale Only	Mortgage Fee	£50.00 + VAT
Purchase Only	Stamp Duty Land Tax	The amount of Stamp Duty Land Tax payable depends on the purchase price of a property. The standard payable amount of tax for each threshold is explained as follows: Properties up to £250,000.00 = No Stamp Duty due. The next £675,000.00 = 5% The next £575,000.00 = 10% The remaining amount £12% You can work out how much you will be required to pay at HMRC’s website.
Purchase Only	Searches *This is not an exact price as search prices vary depending on each matter due to local council charging different amounts for their searches and different matters may require a different selection of searches.	£300.00 (on account)
Purchase Only	Land Registry Priority Search (OS1)	£3.00 + VAT (£0.60)
Sale and Purchase	Leasehold Property	£250.00 + VAT (£50.00)
Sale and Purchase	Help to Buy Mortgage	£250.00 + VAT (£50.00)
Sale and Purchase	Help to Buy ISA	£50.00 + VAT (£10.00) per ISA
Sale and Purchase	New Build Fee	£250.00 + VAT (£50.00)
Sale and Purchase	Involvement with a Third Party	£250.00 + VAT (£50.00)
Purchase Only	Bankruptcy Searches (if purchasing with a mortgage)	£2.00 Per search + VAT (£0.40)
Sale and Purchase	Electronic Transfer Charges by the bank for TT/CHAPS	£8.00 + VAT (£1.60)
Sale and Purchase	Electronic Transfer Charges by the bank for FASTER PAYMENT	£1.00 + VAT (£0.20)

Land Registry Fees are also classed as a disbursement which will be included in your Conveyancing quote. The following table outlines these fees which do not incur VAT:

Land Registry Fees
Scale 1 Fees
Value or Amount	Apply by Post	Apply using the portal or Business Gateway, for transfers or surrenders which affect the whole of a registered title	Apply using the portal or Business Gateway, for registration of all leases and transfers or surrenders which affect part of a registered title	Voluntary first registration (reduced fee)
0 to £80,000	£45	£20	£45	£30
£80,001 to £100,000	£95	£40	£95	£70
£100,001 to £200,000	£230	£100	£230	£170
£200,001 to £500,000	£330	£150	£330	£250
£500,001 to £1,000,000	£655	£295	£655	£495
£1,000,001 and over	£1,105	£500	£1,105	£830
The Land Registry scale does not incur VAT.

Land Registry Fees
Scale 2 Fees
Value or Amount	Apply by Post	Apply using the portal or Business Gateway, for transfers of whole, charges of whole, transfers of charges and other applications of whole of registered titles	Apply using the portal or Business Gateway for registration of part and all other scale 2 applications that do not affect the whole of a registered title
0 to £100,000	£45	£20	£45
£100,001 to £200,000	£70	£30	£70
£200,001 to £500,000	£100	£45	£100
£500,001 to £1,000,000	£145	£65	£145
£1,000,001 and over	£305	£140	£305
The Land Registry scale does not incur VAT.

The above tables demonstrate our standard costs however these fees are subject to change due to several reasons such as the price of the property in question. Hodgkinsons Solicitors have the right to raise additional fees in addition to your fixed legal fees should one or more of these factors come to light. We have highlighted all the costs that are reasonably expected to be included in your quote, however there are several factors which may alter the quote during the course of a transaction such as the following:

Leasehold Matter Disbursements

Disbursements on leasehold matters are potential additional prices which are not already accounted for. These prices are near impossible to estimate and would be between £100.00 to £500.00 but can be more or less.

Indemnity Policies

Indemnity Policies may be needed on matters to address enquiries, however, the price often varies. We will advise the Client as and when these are needed to take authority on the cost. Again, prices vary between £20.00 to £400.00.

From the outset our aim is to provide you with all the necessary information regarding the fees and disbursements for your transaction, to ensure there are no hidden costs. In the unlikely event that unforeseen issues did arise on your transaction, which would result in any additional fees and/or disbursements being incurred, you will be contacted directly, and advised prior to incurring any further costs. However, assuming all information that you have provided is accurate, our cost estimate(s) should not be exceeded.

If you would like more information about the experience and qualifications of our Conveyancing Team who will carry out your work, please visit the personal profiles of:

Ben Neal - Director & Head of Commercial & Property - Solicitor
Helen Everitt - Conveyancing - Chartered Legal Executive
Emma Dewey - Conveyancing Executive
Cameron Hill - Residential Conveyancing Paralegal

All work carried out by trainees or other unqualified members of staff will be supervised by a senior/qualified Lawyer. The cost for unqualified members of staff does not include the cost of the senior member of staff reviewing the work before it is completed.

If you would like to speak to a member of our Conveyancing Team regarding a sale, purchase, re-mortgage, transfer of equity or another property matter, call 01754 897150 and they will be happy to assist. Whether your property is in the local area of Skegness or further afield we can help you. For more information and to fill out a contact form visit https://www.hodgkinsons.co.uk/commercial-and-property/residential-property.