Best Conveyancer for First Time Buyer

Benzene

Dear All,

I tried to find some answers but couldnt so I thought I will start a new thread here.

I am a first time buyer going to buy a leasehold property in Manchester.

Any suggestions who should I select for conveyancing? I am based in Chester (CH2) so the best quotes I am getting so far from Local Solicitor is £1050.

Any help will be really appreciated!!

beccabee_2

Seems rather expensive, are they mistakenly incluing Stamp Duty?

Benzene

No... stamp duty is not included as the house is only £118000.

nomoneytoday

Please don't choose based solely on price.. Ask around your friends and family for their good experiences

pollyzanna

Hillyer McKeown based in Chester

I've PM'd (private message) you their contact details - I wasn't sure if I was allowed to post that sort of information on here.

They are excellent - we've used them a few times.

PS I think the last time we used them, (for an auction that we were outbid on) we paid (£400+vat) to go through the sellers pack which took them about 3 hours! They said the other costs would have been around £400+vat for everything else

Richard_Webster

best quotes I am getting so far from Local Solicitor is £1050.

You really need to break it down further. I know the Land Registry fee for your price is £200 so Fees + Bank Transfer Fee + VAT + Searches = £850.

The cost of searches will vary according to which ones each solicitor routinely does and also according to area and whether extra searches, e.g. mining need to be done.

If you were cash buyer in Portsmouth and only had the local search done then it could be as low as £54. If you were buying in Waltham Forest and had a mortgage and Envirosearch, Plan Search, Drainage Search and Insurance in lieu of Chancel Search then it would be more like £435!

So quoting a bare figure like £1,050 doesn't give anyone a sensible basis to make a comparison. In the examples I have given the Portsmouth case would be a little above average for a leasehold property - around £660 + VAT for professional fees and bank transfer. If the same £1,050 was in Waltham Forest then the equivalent figure for fees and bank transfer would be around £345 + VAT.

Please let us have a breakdown so we can look at it. Also make sure you read any terms and conditions etc to check there are no hidden extras because there are all kinds of ways of making a top line figure look lower than it will turn out to be in practice!

By the way, even though you are not paying SDLT if the solicitors have quoted for competing the SDLT form don't assume as many do that this doesn't apply to you - the form still has to be completed even though Stamp Duty is not payable!

Benzene

Many Thanks Richard.

The property (leasehold, for £122k) in discussion is in Trafford, Manchester (M32).

The breakdown is:

Legal fee: £425 + VAT
Additional legal fee for leasehold property: £150 + VAT
Bank transfer: £30 + VAT
Landregistry: £200
Trafford council land/ LOCAL search charges: £76
Water drainage: £50

Total: £1052

Is this sound reasonable? The main advantage I can see that the solicitor is local to me. May be I am a nervous first-time buyer who is willing to pay HIGHER PRICE or looking for a place to go when something goes wrong.:eek::eek:

:o

Richard_Webster

It is not that unreasonable. Is it a house or a flat - certainly good value if it is a flat. If a long leasehold house then the extra £150 is a bit high, but even so, overall the figures are reasonable especially if there are no extras e.g. for completing the SDLT form.

Benzene

Many thanks Richard!

Yes it is a house. Built in 1905. It is having 893 years remaining on lease. Probably I will go for the current solicitor in discussion as the firm is very local to me and it is having some good recommendations and reviews as well.

Many thanks to everyone for support!! :money: