Conveyancers split their fees into two sections:

• Legal fees: This is the basic charge for the work they do
• Disbursements: These are charges for the third parties who conduct searches and surveys

• Surveys: Sometimes surveys discover unforeseen problems which may need to be resolved before the process can continue
• Chains: A chain is a sequence of buyers and sellers each waiting on someone else to buy their existing property before they can buy the one they want. If a property chain is long, it’s likely that there will be a hold-up further down the line
• Mortgage applications: Sometimes bank might take longer than normal to approve a mortgage application as it investigates the buyer’s finances

The length of the process varies between every case. The average time can be around six to eight weeks to completion, however this depends on multiple factors including how complex the transaction is and the length of the property chain attached.

There are numerous elements that will affect your conveyancing fees in comparison to others:

• The value of a property: Some conveyancers take the price of your property into account and charge a percentage based on this
• The tenure of the property: Whether it is on a leasehold or freehold can affect the price of conveyancing due to the different legalities and paperwork associated with each
• Disbursements: Every sale or purchase will require different surveys and searches, which will be reflected in your fees
• Legal fees: The basic fee a conveyancer charges will differ from business to business, ranging from £300 to £2,400 depending on whether you’re buying, selling or both

There are many different type of disbursements that may be necessary when buying or selling property:

• Bankruptcy search: Your solicitor will check all named parties listed on the mortgage application to ensure that no-one has been declared bankrupt (£2 to £4)
• Drainage search: This will vary based on different water companies, and will make sure that the property is connected to a fresh water supply and to sewerage systems (£30 to £40)
• Environmental search: An environmental search looks at factors such as subsidence and ground contamination (£30 to £35)
• Land registration fee: This is based on the value of your property (£40 to £910)
• Land registry office copies: Your solicitor will complete searches to make sure the seller is the legal owner. This price is for one transaction (£4 to £8)
• Local authority searches: This can be based on the borough that the property is in or the postcode. These searches determine factors like planning applications (£100 to £200)
• Telegraphic transfer fee: This is the charge incurred by the bank to send the money to the seller (£25 to £45)

On average, money is spent in three stages when buying property or land:

1. Starting the transaction: You’ll be asked by your conveyancer to put up some money to pay for searches and surveys at the property you’re looking to purchase
2. The deposit: When it’s time to exchange contracts, you’ll be required to pay 10% of the purchase price. Once the contracts have been exchanged, you are then legally bound to complete the purchase on the day of completion
3. Completion: On the day of completion you’ll be required to put up the rest of the funds. As this needs to be sent through your bank, it can take some time to go through. Normally, you are able to collect the keys to your new property after midday once the process has been completed