Stamp Duty or Land Tax (on purchase)

This depends on the purchase price of your property. You can calculate the amount you will need to pay by using HMRC’s website or if the property is located in Wales by using the Welsh Revenue Authority’s website here..

How long will my house purchase or sale take?

How long it will take from the offer being accepted until you can move in or out of your house will depend on a number of factors. The average process takes between 4-6 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 6 weeks. However, if you are buying a leasehold property that requires an extension of the lease, this can take significantly longer, between 2 and 4 months. In such a situation additional charges would apply.

Stages of the process

The precise stages involved in the purchase or sale of a residential property vary according to the circumstances. The likely stages include:

• 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
• Give you advice on all documents and information received
• Go through conditions of mortgage offer with you.
• Draft Transfer
• Advise you on joint ownership
• Obtain pre-completion searches
• Send final contract to you for signature
• Agree completion date (date from which you own or sell 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
• Agree completion date (date from which you own or sell the property)

All work will be undertaken by:

Laura Everitt: Senior Property Solicitor and Head of Residential Conveyancing who qualified on 15.01.10

Shakeel Mir: Senior Property Solicitor who qualified on 01.10.90 and has over 25 years conveyancing experience

Guy Fernback: Senior Property Solicitor who qualified on 15.11.2000 and has 20 years conveyancing experience

Harry Tuke: Senior Property Solicitor who qualified on 01.09.09 and has 10 years conveyancing experience

Eve Cooke: Conveyancing Executive who has over 15 years conveyancing experience.

Joseph Lewis: Assistant Solicitor who qualified on 01.03.16 and has over 4 years conveyancing experience.

Sonia Balrai: Property Solicitor who qualified on 15.02.07 and has over 8 years conveyancing experience.

Dilpesh Shah: Property Solicitor who qualified on 02.07.12 and has over 8 years conveyancing experience.

Craig Tanner: Property Solicitor who qualified on 15.03.18 and has over 2 years conveyancing experience.

Kyle Perreaux: Conveyancing Executive and Associate member of CILEX who has over 2 years conveyancing experience.

Esther Ekpo: Property Solicitor who qualified on 02.09.19

Angi Gad: Property Solicitor who qualified on 16.03.20.

Ashley Ware: Property Solicitor who qualified on 02.11.15

Alina Walsh: Property Solicitor who qualified on 01.12.14

Vanessa Wake: Property Solicitor who qualified on 16.06.18

Hanah Wright: Property Solicitor who qualified on 02.10.06

Edward Glanville: Property Solicitor who qualified on 01.06.21

Arash Samuel Remasi: Property Solicitor who qualified on 15.05.08

Claudia Gallo: Property Solicitor who qualified on 15.07.19

Ebru Caglar: Property Solicitor who qualified on 01.03.18

Edward Glanville: Property Solicitor who qualified on 01.06.21

James Smallman: Property Solicitor who qualified on 15.02.99

Jay Quin: Property Solicitor who qualified on 01.09.23

Jonathan Dixon: Property Solicitor who qualified on 01.08.97

Nick Hutchings: Property Solicitor who qualified on 02.03.87

Gary Scott: Property Lawyer.

James Rattigan: Property Lawyer.

Carys Jennings: Property Lawyer.

Hedley Winter: Conveyancing Executive.

Ed Davies: Conveyancing Executive.

Isabel Middleton: Conveyancing Executive.

Lauren Ward: Conveyancing Executive.

Kate Kneller: Conveyancing Executive.

Kerry Allen: Conveyancing Executive.

Maxine Johnson: Conveyancing Executive.

Shauna-Kay Grant: Conveyancing Executive.

Laverne Townsend: Consultant Conveyancer.

Jennifer Page: Licensed Conveyancer

All staff members in the property department are supervised by the Head of Department, Laura Everitt. Laura Everitt herself is supervised by the Managing Partner, James Scozzi.

To view our key terms and conditions please click here.

Probate Fees

Please note that where you see a reference to VAT (government tax) the same is charged at 20% of the sum referred to.

We do not charge a percentage of the Estate, all our work is based on the number of hours spent on the matter at the applicable hourly rate.

We anticipate this will take between 10 and 40 hours, with some of the work being carried out by a Grade A Chartered Legal Executive (Meg Wilton – see Our Team page) or a Grade A Solicitor (Emma Piper or Michelle Hasson) at £270 per hour and some of the work being carried out by a Grade C Solicitor at £190 per hour (Danielle Syed – See Our Team page) depending on the complexity of the matter. Total costs estimated at £2,425.00 – £9,625 (+VAT).

The exact cost will depend on the individual circumstances of the matter. For example, if there is one beneficiary and no property, costs will be at the lower end of the range. If there are multiple beneficiaries, a property and multiple bank accounts, costs will be at the higher end.

We will handle the full process for you. This quote is for estates where:

• There is a valid will
• There is no more than one property
• There are no more than 6 bank or building society accounts
• There are no other intangible assets
• There are 1 – 5 beneficiaries
• There are no disputes between beneficiaries on division of assets. If disputes arise this is likely to lead to an increase in costs
• It is necessary to complete the inheritance tax account and application for grant of probate and obtaining grant of probate
• There are no claims made against the estate

The work includes sorting through documentation and writing to all relevant parties to obtain details of the assets and liabilities.

It is necessary to arrange the sale and encashment of the deceased’s assets and payment of liabilities

Estate accounts are prepared and the Estate distributed.

Disbursements will also apply in this matter included in this fee:

• Probate application fee of £155
• Copy of Grant of Probate £0.50 per copy
• £7 – 9 Swearing of the oath (per executor)

Additional disbursements may be applicable including:

• Bankruptcy-only Land Charges Department searches
• Post in The London Gazette – Protects against unexpected claims from unknown creditors.
• Post in a Local Newspaper – This also helps to protect against unexpected claims.

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as court fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.

How long will this take?

On average, estates that fall within this range are dealt with within 4 – 12 months.