Prices

OUR FEE CHARGES

We set out below pricing information in relation to the work we do helping people buy, sell and mortgage houses, administer the estates of people who have died and recover debts.

All of the fees noted below are exclusive of valued added tax (“VAT”), which will be added at the prevailing rate.

The prices below are indicative only.  Before proceeding with work for you, we will provide you with a quote which may differ from the prices below. 

 

Residential property

We generally charge fixed fees for buying and selling residential property (not including farms).  The fee charged depends on the purchase/sale price of the property.  The table below sets out our pricing for purchases and sales of properties up to £500,000.00.  For purchases and sales of properties in excess of that value, additional time costs will apply.

Purchase / Sale price

Sales

Purchases

£0 - £75,000

£945 plus VAT

£995 plus VAT

£75,001 - £150,000

£995 plus VAT

£1,045 plus VAT

£150,001 - £250,000

£1,095 plus VAT

£1,145 plus VAT

 

Re-mortgages are charged at £750.00 plus VAT for properties whose market value is up to £500,000.00.  For properties in excess of that value, these will be charged at 0.5% of the property value.

These prices do not include the costs of searches nor Land Registry fees, which will be charged in addition.

Stamp Duty Land Tax or Land Transaction Tax may also apply when you purchase a property.

Where a property is Leasehold, an additional £250.00 plus VAT is chargeable for the additional work involved.

A telegraphic transfer fee of £30.00 plus VAT is applicable to each transfer of funds.

We provide a “start to finish” service, including advising on title issues, dealing with the mortgage lender (if any), registering title at the Land Registry and dealing with Stamp Duty Land Tax / Land Transaction Tax returns.  Your matter will be dealt with throughout by the same person and you will be given direct contact details for them.  Any Partner dealing with your matter will have at least 20 years’ experience and our Associate Solicitors each have between 5 and 10 years’ experience.

If the property value is more than £500,000.00 or if your other requirements make it necessary, we may charge additional fees on the basis of time spent. 

 

Obtaining a grant of probate and administering the estate of someone who has died

We have a team of experts who can help you navigate the difficult process of administering someone’s estate from obtaining the grant of probate on your behalf to collecting and distributing the assets to the beneficiaries. We provide a “start to finish” service, including advising on the terms of the will (if relevant), dealing with all inheritance tax returns and claims for relief from inheritance tax, dealing with income tax or capital gains tax during the administration (or asking an accountant to do so), dealing with the Probate Registry, and arranging distributions of monies and dealing with estate accounts.

We charge a fixed fee of 2% of the gross probate value of the estate but with a minimum fee of £2,500 plus VAT and disbursements. The following are not included in our fixed fee:

  • Property sale (if applicable).
  • Advice on any change in legislation during the course of the administration of  the estate.
  • Deed of Variations for the beneficiaries.
  • Any investigations by HMRC into the deceased’s lifetime tax affairs or into the information and values contained in the Inheritance Tax Account submitted.
  • Trusts, including where the deceased was a beneficiary.
  • Trusts set up by the deceased under the will.
  • Personal taxation of estate beneficiaries.
  •  Any claims on the estate i.e. pursuant to the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependents) Act 1975 or otherwise

We and our colleagues in other departments can, of course, assist with any of these aspects, if required.

In some cases we may charge for the work on the basis of time spent. The work will either be carried out by a partner, who will have at least 10 years’ experience in the field, and/or by an assistant or associate solicitor or legal executive, who will range in experience from newly-qualified to 20 years’ experience.  A majority of the solicitors in our estate administration team also hold the full Diploma issued by the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners.  Our partner rates for this work are £240 plus VAT per hour; an assistant or associate solicitor’s time would be at least £180 plus VAT per hour. 

 

Debt recovery (up to £100,000)

The work will be carried out by a partner who has in excess of 20 years’ experience specialising in commercial dispute resolution, acting for large and small businesses as well as individuals.  For court work her hourly rate is £200 plus VAT (the court approved rate).  She may be assisted by either a more junior solicitor or by a trainee/paralegal, whose hourly rates are between £100 and £150 per hour, plus VAT.

We charge for debt recovery work (prior to the issue of proceedings) on the basis of a percentage of the debt recovered.  The percentage will range between 5% and 15% depending on the size of the debt.

We provide a “start to finish” service, including advising you on your position, engaging with the debtor / their advisers, to try and persuade them to settle, acting in mediations and if necessary, taking legal proceedings on your behalf.  Our aim is always to persuade debtors to settle quickly – but it may take longer if mediation or legal proceedings are necessary. 

 

COMPLAINTS INFORMATION

We work very hard to give you the best possible service. However, if at any point you become unhappy or concerned about the service we have provided then you should inform us immediately, so that we can do our best to resolve the problem.

In the first instance it may be helpful to contact the person who is working on your case to discuss your concerns and we will do our best to resolve any issues at this stage. If you would like to make a formal complaint, please contact Myles Davies who is a partner with the practice.  Making a complaint will not affect how we handle your case.

The Solicitors Regulation Authority can help you if you are concerned about our behaviour. This could be for things like dishonesty, taking or losing your money or treating you unfairly because of your age, a disability or other characteristic.

Contact details

Visit: www.sra.org.uk

Call: 0370 606 2555 inside the UK

Opening hours: 08.00 to 18.00, Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday; 09.30 to 18.00, Tuesday

Solicitors Regulation Authority, The Cube, 199 Wharfside Street, Birmingham, B1 1RN

What do to if we cannot resolve your complaint

The Legal Ombudsman can help you if we are unable to resolve your complaint ourselves. They will look at your complaint independently and it will not affect how we handle your case.

Before accepting a complaint for investigation, the Legal Ombudsman will check that you have tried to resolve your complaint with us first. If you have, then you must take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman:

  • within six months of receiving a final response to your complaint; and

  • no more than six years from the date of act/omission; or

  • no more than three years from when you should reasonably have known there was cause for complaint.

    If you would like more information about the Legal Ombudsman, please contact them.

    Contact details

    Visit: www.legalombudsman.org.uk

    Call: 0300 555 0333 between 9am to 5pm.

    Email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk

    Legal Ombudsman PO Box 6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ