FIXED FEES EXPLAINED

OUR SALE FEES

In to legal fees, by law, a number of payments are required to government and others on your behalf. These 'extra payments' are known as 'disbursement'. An explanation of each 'extra payment' is contained below.

VAT ON OUR CHARGES

VAT is a tax on the purchase of goods and services and is currently 17.5%. This will be charged on Solicitors fees and will be included on some other expenditure.

TITLE SEARCH FEES

This is our estimate of the cost of searches in either the Registry of Deeds or Land Registry to clarify for the purchaser what mortgages or other debts are registered against your property and have to be cleared on completion.

DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENT (Property Certificate)

The Department of Environment currently charge £30.00 for their certificate revealing the current state of the planning, road, sewers and water issues.

LOCAL COUNCIL (Property Certificate)

The local councils charge £60.00 for their certificate revealing the current state of building control and public health issues but some councils charge more for these certificates.

STATUTORY CHARGES

Statutory Charges are searches undertaken to determine if any government notices exist which would indicate that a government body (e.g. Department of the Environment) has an interest in a property that is being sold.

BANKRUPTCY/ENFORCEMENT OF JUDGEMENT SEARCHES

Bankruptcy and Court Judgement searches against you for the purchaser's comfort cost between £25.00 and £55.00, depending on whether there are one or more sellers.

MORTGAGE REDEMPTION CHARGE

If you have an existing mortgage on the property you are selling, you Solicitor has to obtain you title deeds on loan from your lender, obtain statements from your lender detailing the amount due to clear the loan, remit funds to the lender on completion day, arrange for the lender to execute a release of its mortgage, and then register this release in the land registers to clear the title for your purchaser. This work is not required if you have paid off your mortgage, had your title cleared and own the property outright. If you have a mortgage, the charges for this work are £25.00 + VAT.

MORTGAGE RELEASE FEES

The registration fees to register the release of your lenders mortgage will either be £4.00 or nil, depending on whether the title to the property you are selling is registry of deeds or land registry.