Conveyancing Solicitors

Whether you are moving home, buying your first property or selling an investment, we will guide you through the conveyancing process from offer through to completion. We can advise on both freehold and leasehold transactions and will keep you updated in plain English as the matter progresses.

Buy to let purchases and sales often come with additional considerations, particularly around timescales, lender requirements and ensuring the title works for your longer-term plans. We support landlords and investors with clear advice and a steady, efficient process from start to finish.

If you are adding or removing someone from a property title, or changing how a property is owned, we can advise and handle the transfer of equity. This is commonly needed following changes in relationships, family arrangements, or where a property is being gifted or reorganised for planning purposes.

Most transactions take between 12 and 14 weeks to complete, however no two conveyances are the same. Once we have a good understanding of your transaction, we will provide you with a more accurate estimate on timescales.

You also need to be aware that many of the key stages in the conveyancing process are reliant on third parties such as the other side’s conveyancer, mortgage companies and surveyors to name just a few. We will manage these processes on your behalf and keep you up to date as we progress through your matter.

To help you understand likely costs at an early stage, you can use our conveyancing calculator to obtain an accurate, no obligation costing for your requirements. Please note that our fees may be charged on a fixed fee or time served basis depending on the services required, and in many instances there are additional third-party fees which are also chargeable.

Costs will depend on the nature of the transaction and any additional work required, such as leasehold documentation, new build requirements, or auction deadlines. We will always explain your likely fee basis and any third-party costs as early as possible, so you can make informed decisions.

Third-party costs may include items such as searches, Land Registry fees, bank transfer fees, managing agent fees, Stamp Duty Land Tax in England, or Land Transaction Tax in Wales, depending on the type and value of the transaction.

At the start of your matter, it is helpful to have your identification documents ready, together with details of the property, your estate agent, your mortgage lender or broker, and any deadlines you are working towards.

If you are buying, we may need information about your deposit, including whether any part of it is being gifted. If you are selling, it is useful to gather documents relating to planning permissions, building regulations, guarantees, certificates, leasehold information, or works carried out at the property. Do not worry if you do not have everything at the outset. We will let you know what is needed and when.

There are several costs involved in the conveyancing process. Alongside our professional fees there are search fees, registration fees and, depending on the type and value of your transaction, Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) in England and Land Transaction Tax (LTT) in Wales.

The quickest and simplest way to get a precise quote for your transaction is to use our free online quote builder. Powered by Pali LTD, the quote builder provides an accurate quote in minutes, with a full breakdown of costs provided in PDF form. The quote builder is completely free to use, you can generate quotes for Sale & Purchase, Sale Only, Purchase Only and Remortgage transactions. There are no hidden extras and there is no obligation to proceed. It is simply a really easy way to get a price for your conveyancing solicitor.

In terms of when fees are due, we require £400 at the start of the process to cover the cost of your searches. Prior to exchange we will request that you transfer your deposit to us and just prior to the completion date we ask you to provide any additional purchase funds and monies to cover legal costs, Stamp Duty Land Tax or Land Transaction Tax, and disbursements.

With freehold purchases, you own the property and the land on which the property is built. With leasehold purchases, you own the property for a fixed period but not the land it is built on.

Most flats and apartments are sold as leasehold. With leasehold purchases you will likely be liable for some form of annual ground rent and potentially management fees for the management of any shared areas.

Leasehold transactions often involve additional information from a landlord, freeholder or managing agent. This can affect both costs and timescales, and we will explain what is needed for your particular transaction.

Before we can act for you, we need to confirm your identity as part of our anti-money laundering procedures. This is the same for all conveyancers.

To confirm your identity, we will send you an email which will contain a link to complete an electronic identity check. This will require either a valid passport or driving licence. If you do not hold a valid passport or driving licence, please contact our File Opening team, who will be able to assist you.

A survey is an expert inspection completed by a surveyor who will visit the property and prepare a report on it. It is really important to undertake a survey of any property you intend to purchase as once contracts are exchanged you are committed to buying the property and may have no comeback should you discover issues down the line.

A survey can highlight areas of concern. The surveyor may also recommend that you undertake additional specialist reports or, in some instances, can give you a guide for the cost of undertaking works.

You will need a minimum of a valuation report to satisfy your lender that the property is of the same value as detailed in their mortgage offer.

There are three levels of survey available:

Level one: Valuation report

This is essentially your lender checking that the property value matches the value detailed in their mortgage offer.

Level two: Home buyer report

This is a much more in-depth survey which will highlight any issues with the property and will usually include photographs detailing any issue the surveyor has found.

Level three: Full building survey

This is a full structural survey of the property and is the most thorough survey available. It will provide you with a comprehensive analysis of the property’s structure and condition.

Not at all, we simply need to complete some additional paperwork, and confirm your parent’s, or whoever is supplying the deposit, identity, address details and source of funds. Parental deposits are commonplace in the current mortgage and property markets.

Your lender may also have specific requirements around gifted deposits, so it is helpful to tell us as early as possible if someone else is contributing towards your purchase.

As part of the process, we will request the mortgage monies from your lender on your behalf, we will then transfer these funds to the other side solicitor on the day of completion.

Exchange, or exchange of contracts, is when you become legally bound to purchase the property. The process is undertaken via a series of phone calls between the buyer and the seller’s solicitors.

At this stage we will also pay over your deposit and fix the date for completion. Up to exchange, dates can be changed and either party can withdraw without legal liability. After exchange, there are penalties, and you may lose your deposit if you do not go ahead. Upon exchange, buildings insurance will usually become your responsibility if you are buying a freehold property. We will explain what applies to your transaction.

Completion is moving day. On the completion day we organise the transfer of funds to the seller’s solicitor. You are then able to collect the keys, usually about 2pm, and you take over responsibility for council tax and utilities.

Typically, the time gap between exchange and completion is quite short, often only a week to 10 days. However, should all parties agree, then it can be much longer or shorter.

If this is how you want the transaction to proceed and all parties agree, then yes, we will arrange that for you.

Should you want your sale and purchase to complete on different days, we can look to negotiate this with the other parties.

On Exchange of Contracts, a completion date will have been agreed, you should only book your removal firm once we have exchanged contracts. Up until this time the completion date can change.

Upon completion. Completion is the final stage in the process. On the completion day we organise the transfer of funds to the seller’s solicitor. You are then able to collect the keys – usually about 2pm.

Up until Exchange there is no legal obligation to proceed with the transaction, however you will incur costs for any work we have done on your behalf.

After exchange, there are penalties, and you will lose your deposit if you do not go ahead.

If searches or enquiries reveal an issue, we will explain what has been found, why it matters, and what options may be available. Depending on the issue, we may need to ask further questions, request documents, report to your lender, discuss indemnity insurance, or agree wording with the other side’s solicitor.

Not every issue prevents a transaction from proceeding, but it is important that you understand the position before exchange.

Yes. We deal with new builds, auctions, sales of part, first registrations, rights of long user, boundary issues, easements and other specialist transactions.

These matters can involve extra documents, shorter deadlines, or more detailed title checks. Where your transaction has particular requirements, we will explain the likely steps and what we need from you at an early stage.