Conveyancing

All conveyancing work will be carried out by Asimina (Semina) Koutiva, a qualified solicitor and equity partner, and Vipal Matwala, consultant solicitor.

Please click on the following link to view their Law Society profile:-
https://solicitors.lawsociety.org.uk/person/318574/asimina-koutiva
https://solicitors.lawsociety.org.uk/person/306964/vipal-matwala

Leasehold & Freehold Sale

Our fee assumes that:

• this is a standard transaction and that no unforeseen matters arise including for example (but not limited to) a defect in title which requires remedying prior to completion or the preparation of additional documents ancillary to the main transaction.
• the transaction is concluded in a timely manner and no unforeseen complication arise.
• all parties to the transaction are co-operative and there is no unreasonable delay from third parties providing documentation.
• no indemnity policies are required. Additional disbursements may apply if indemnity policies are required.

A broad outline of our work in selling a property is:

• Obtaining the deeds to your property from you, your existing Lender and Land Registry.
• Asking you to complete the relevant transaction forms which may include the following; Property Information Form and Fixtures and Fittings Questionnaire, which we will send to your buyers’ solicitors.  These forms are enclosed with this letter.
• Preparing the Contract for Sale.
• Sending the contract and details of your ownership of the property to the buyer’s solicitors.
• Taking your instructions on enquiries raised by the buyer’s solicitors and answering these on your behalf.
• When everyone is ready and the moving date has been agreed, exchanging contracts on the transaction.  THIS IS THE POINT AT WHICH YOU ARE COMMITTED TO MOVE.
• Approving the Transfer document, which will put the property in your buyer’s name and answering final enquiries raised by the buyer’s solicitors.
• Obtaining a statement from your existing Lender of the sum owing to them.
• On moving date/the day of completion, completing the Sale, and repaying your existing Lender.
• Preparing statements and sending you any balance that is due to you.

Disbursements

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as search fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process. There are certain disbursements which will be set out in the individual lease (if applicable) relating to the Property. The disbursements which we anticipate will apply are set out separately below. This list is not exhaustive and other disbursements may apply depending on the term of the lease. We will update you on the specific fees upon receipt and review of the lease from the seller’s solicitors.

Freehold Title Register and Plan – £6.00
Leasehold Title Register and Plan – £6.00
Copy Lease – £3.00
Management Pack (if leasehold) – This fee is provided by the freeholder or management company for the property and can be difficult to estimate. Often it is between £100.00 – £500.00
Telegraphic Transfer Fee (redeem any mortgage and transfer the net sale proceeds to you) – £36.00 per transfer including 20% VAT.
Online ID Check per person – £11.94 inclusive of 20% VAT and £15.40 for companies’ VAT inclusive.

These fees vary from property to property and can on occasion be significantly more than the ranges given above. We can give you an accurate figure once we have sight of your specific documents.

Leasehold & Freehold Purchase

Our fee assumes that:

• this is a standard transaction and that no unforeseen matters arise including for example (but not limited to) a defect in title which requires remedying prior to completion or the preparation of additional documents ancillary to the main transaction.
• this is the assignment of an existing lease and is not the grant of a new lease.
• the transaction is concluded in a timely manner and no unforeseen complication arise.
• all parties to the transaction are co-operative and there is no unreasonable delay from third parties providing documentation.
• no indemnity policies are required. Additional disbursements may apply if indemnity policies are required.

A broad outline of our work in purchasing is:-

• Obtaining information about the property from your seller’s solicitors.
• Checking that your seller owns the property and has the right to sell it to you.
• Carrying out searches.  My searches and enquiries will not reveal plans to develop any adjoining property and if you are concerned about this possibility you should contact the local planning authority who will normally be happy to arrange for you to call at their offices to inspect plans for the development of any adjoining land or buildings.
• Agreeing the terms of the contract for purchase.
• When everyone is ready and the moving date has been agreed, exchanging contracts on the transaction.  THIS IS THE POINT AT WHICH YOU ARE COMMITTED TO MOVE.
• Preparing the Transfer document that will put the new property in your name and making final searches.
• Obtaining the mortgage money from your new Lender (if applicable) and any balance we will need from you.
• Paying for your new house.
• Obtaining the Title Deeds of your property
• Completing and submitting Land Tax Form
• Registering your ownership of the property at the Land Registry, which will take a few weeks.  When registration has been completed we will send you a copy of your certificate of ownership.
• You will receive the deeds to your property.  We can store them for you [unless you have a mortgage in which case they will be lodged with your Lender].  They will however, let you keep any old deeds which are no longer required for conveyancing purposes but which might be of interest to you and if we receive any of these we will send them to you.
• These fees vary from property to property and can on occasion be significantly more than the ranges given above. We can give you an accurate figure once we have sight of your specific documents.

Disbursements

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as search fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process. There are certain disbursements which will be set out in the individual lease (if applicable) relating to the Property. The disbursements which we anticipate will apply are set out separately below. This list is not exhaustive and other disbursements may apply depending on the term of the lease. We will update you on the specific fees upon receipt and review of the lease from the seller’s solicitors.

Land Registration Fee

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/hm-land-registry-registration-services-fees

Stamp Duty Land Tax

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..

Searches

We will apply for the full suite of searches to include the following:

• Local
• Drainage and Water
• Environmental
• Plan
• Chancel

Pre-Completion Searches

• Bankruptcy Search – £2.00 per person
• Official Search of Priority – £3.00 per title
• Lawyer Checker – £14.40 including 20% VAT

Telegraphic Transfer Fee

ID Online Check

• £36.00 including 20% VAT for transferring the purchase funds to the Seller’s solicitors;
• £11.94 per person including 20% VAT for online ID Checks or £15.40 for companies – VAT inclusive

Anticipated Disbursements relating to leasehold properties

• Notice of Transfer fee – This fee if chargeable is set out in the lease. Often the fee is between £10.00 – £200.00
• Notice of Charge fee (if the property is to be mortgaged) – This fee is set out in the lease. Often the fee is between £10.00 – £200.00
• Deed of Covenant fee – This fee is provided by the management company for the property and can be difficult to estimate. Often it is between £10.00 – £500.00
• Certificate of Compliance fee – To be confirmed upon receipt of the lease, as can range between £10.00 – £500.00.

These fees vary from property to property and can on occasion be significantly more than the ranges given above. We can give you an accurate figure once we have sight of your specific documents.  You should also be aware that ground rent and service charge are likely to apply throughout your ownership of the property. We will confirm the ground rent and the anticipated service charge as soon as this we receive this information.

Timescales

The amount of time it will take from your offer being accepted until you can move in to or sell your property will depend on several factors. The average process takes between six to eight weeks.

It can be quicker or slower, depending on the parties in the chain. For example, if you are selling a freehold house to a cash Buyer it can take 4 weeks or even two weeks if both parties agree. However, if you are buying a leasehold property that requires an extension of the lease, this can take significantly longer, between 4 and 10 months. In such, a situation additional charges would apply.

Probate

We understand and sympathise with the difficult journey you are going through as losing a loved one can be overwhelming. We are here to help you through this difficult process.

Our Consultant Private Client solicitor, Adam Shute will carry out the work and Asimina (Semina) Koutiva, who is a solicitor and partner at S&S Legis, will be the person with overall responsibility.

Please click on the following link to view Adam’s Law Society profile:-
https://solicitors.lawsociety.org.uk/person/126042/adam-nicholas-shute

Applying for the grant, collecting, and distributing the assets

The fees in a probate matter can vary depending. For example, if there is one beneficiary and no property, costs will be at the lower end of the range as shown below. If there are multiple beneficiaries, a property and multiple bank accounts, costs will be at the higher end.

Depending on the complexity and individual circumstances involved, we charge on an hourly basis.

We anticipate that to administer an estate based on the example given below, it will take us between 15 and 25 hours work at £350.00 per hour. Total costs estimated at £5,250.00 to £8,750.00 (+VAT@20%).

We will handle the full process for you and this quote is for estates where:

• There is a valid will.
• There is no more than one property.
• There are no more than 2 bank or building society accounts.
• There are no other intangible assets.
• There are 2 beneficiaries.
• There are no disputes between beneficiaries on division of assets. If disputes arise this is likely to lead to an increase in costs.
• There is no inheritance tax payable and the executors do not need to submit a full account to HMRC.
• There are no claims made against the estate.
• All the assets are in the UK.

As part of our fee estimate, we will:

• Provide you with a dedicated and experienced probate solicitor to work on your matter.
• Identify the legally appointed executors or administrators and beneficiaries.
• Accurately identify the type of Probate application you will require.
• Obtain the relevant documents required to make the application.
• Complete the Probate Application and the relevant HMRC forms.
• Draft a legal oath for you to swear.
• Make the application to the Probate Court on your behalf.
• Obtain the Probate and securely send two copies to you.
• Collect and distribute all assets in the estate.

When will a fixed fee apply?

We can also charge a fixed fee, as shown below, on straightforward and simple matters where the number of hours spent is below 15.

Our legal fees for the Grant of administration only will be £2,600.00 plus VAT@20%.

If you in addition wish for us to administer the Estate, then the fee will be £1,600.00 plus VAT@20%.

Total fees for the above services only, £4,200.00 plus VAT as shown above.

Disbursements excluded from this estimate (for both options):

• Probate application fee of £155.00.
• Swearing of the oath, if applicable (£6.00 per executor).
• Land Registry Title Information Documents (£3.00 per document).
• Land Registry Bank Search Fee (£2.00 per name).
• Post in a local newspaper and London Gazette- Protects against unexpected claims from unknown creditors. (approximately £250.00).

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.

Inheritance Tax

It is difficult to ascertain the inheritance tax position without additional information and the advice of a specialist for more complex cases. Please see also the exclusion below.

You can follow the HMRC link here https://www.gov.uk/guidance/hmrc-tools-and-calculators#inheritance-tax-and-bereavement to calculate the Inheritance Tax due.

Potential additional costs

If there is no will or the estate consists of any share holdings (stocks and bonds) there is likely to be additional costs that could range significantly depending on the estate and how it is to be dealt with. We can give you a more accurate quote once we have more information
.
If any additional copies of the grant are required, they will cost £0.50 (1 per asset usually).

Dealing with the sale or transfer of any property in the estate is not included.

How long will this take?

On average, estates that fall within this range are dealt with within 3-12 months. Typically, obtaining the grant of probate takes 3-6 months. Collecting assets and distributing them follows, which can take between 4-12 months.

Exclusions

Our fee estimate does not include tax advice and any necessary valuations. These services require the involvement of a third party and the costs will be additional.