We will always provide an estimate of our legal fees for the remortgaging of a residential property, including disbursements, before we start work for you.
Key Stages
When you are remortgaging a property, the key stages of the transaction are set out below. We will:
- Set you up as a client on our systems, take instructions from you, and agree a scope of work for your transaction which will be set out in a client care letter to you
- Review the title deeds to your property and provide advice as necessary
- Liaise with your new mortgage lender to ensure compliance with their policies and procedures, including submitting any property searches they may require
- Review the mortgage documentation and provide advice to you on the terms
- Report to the new mortgage lender as required
- Complete the remortgage
- Take care of all post-completion matters, including applying to the Land Registry to register the new mortgage and the discharge of the old mortgage, and notifying you and your mortgage lender once this has been completed
You should be aware of the services that we will not carry out for you:
- We do not advise on the value of the property
- We will not physically inspect your property
- We will not provide any advice on any tax implications of the transaction beyond basic advice on SDLT
- We will not provide any planning or building regulations compliance advice
- We will not provide any advice in respect of any environmental liability at the property
This list is not exhaustive, and we will let you know of anything else we will not be able to provide advice to you on.
Our Fees
Our fees are based on the value of the property, although there will be additional fees payable dependent on the transaction we are being asked to advise on. Below is a list of the fees we will charge on your remortgage.
Base Fee
| Value of Property | Fee | 20% VAT | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 – £500,000 | £1,400 – £1,500 | £280 – £300 | £1,680 – £1,800 |
| £500,001 – £1,000,000 | £1,600 – £1,700 | £320 – £340 | £1,920 – £2,040 |
| £1,000,001 – £1,500,000 | £1,800 – £2,000 | £360 – £400 | £2,160 – £2,400 |
| £1,500,001 – £2,000,000 | £2,100 – £2,500 | £420 – £500 | £2,520 – £3,000 |
| Above £2,000,000 | On Request |
Likely Disbursements
A ‘disbursement’ is expenditure incurred in order to progress your matter. Search Fees and Land Registry fees are examples of disbursements. We endeavour to inform you in advance of the disbursements you should expect to pay during your matter and why they are necessary; if this changes we will let you know and explain why. Disbursements are billed at cost and once paid to the relevant third party, are usually non-refundable .
| Disbursement | Fee | +20% VAT | Total | Information |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Searches | Variable | Variable | Variable | The searches will depend on the nature and location of the property, as well as your mortgage lender’s requirements. We will advise you of the cost before submitting the searches but they typically fall in the £200 – £400 range (£240 – £480 inc. 20% VAT). |
| Land Registry Fee | Variable | Exempt | Variable | The fee payable to the Land Registry for registration of the transfer and mortgage is dependent on the value of the property. You can use the Land Registry Fee Scale to check how much this will be. |
| Expedited Postage | £8.75 – £10.00 | £1.75 – £2.00 | £10.50 – £12.00 | Used when a faster or trackable delivery service is needed |
Factors that may increase costs
Your matter may attract additional fees in the range of £200 to £750 (£240 to £900 inc. 20% VAT). For example, when your matter involves an auction property, help or right to buy or shared ownership. This is not an exhaustive list and you will be advised when further fees apply, how much they are and why.
Here are some further examples of situations that can arise during a property matter that will require additional work and therefore, increase our fees:
- If there is a defect in your title that requires remediation before completion.
- If a trust deed is required in respect of ownership of the property
- If your mortgage lender instructs their own solicitors rather than instructs this firm to act for them as well as you
- If your mortgage lender has more complex requirements that require additional work on our part
Abortive Fees
If your matter unfortunately aborts, fees will still be payable for the work we have done. It does not matter who is at fault or the reasons that led to the termination. For example, if your mortgage offer is unexpectedly withdrawn or altered making remortgaging your property untenable, you will still be charged for all the work we have carried out up to this point.
Timescales
How long it takes to complete your remortgage is difficult to anticipate and is typically dependent on a variety of factors that may not always be within our control. Here is a list of factors that impact on how quickly a transaction takes to proceed:
- Whether the property is freehold or leasehold. Freehold transactions tend to be faster to complete. For leasehold properties, there is more title due diligence required, and it may take some time for landlords or management companies to provide a management sales pack
- If your lender requires searches to be undertaken and how quickly the searches come back. Many of the desktop searches come back very quickly. There are however some searches like a local search that can take some time to come back depending on the local authority responsible for supplying it
- How efficient the other parties involved in the transaction are. Rest assured that we will progress your matter as quickly and efficiently as possible, but we have noticed in some matters that other parties involved (mortgage lenders, management companies) tend not to move as quickly
- How complex your property’s title is, and whether any additional work is required as a result
Typically remortgages can take between six to ten weeks to complete from first instruction.
What are your next steps?
Please get in touch with us. We look forward to helping you.
