Cost of moving house...any ways to cut solicitors fees?

Lizbetty

We're just back from our estate agent's independent advisor who has confirmed we can get a mortgage for what we want (yay!) but also pointed out the costs of moving - which he estimates at £6700! :eek:

Now, I'm from Yorkshire, and so straight away I'm thinking that is not right..and can we do it cheaper!

The house we're selling is worth approx £160k. The house we want to buy is approx £190k. We will be using an agent who will charge 1.25% = VAT - my nerves couldn't cope with dealing with that side of things, so for us that's unavoidable. So that's £2400, minus £100 cashback for using their financial advisor. And there's stamp duty at 1% which would be £1900. So that's £4,200. There'll be mortgage set up fees which will depend on the products around when we are in a position to sell, but we're aiming at going as fee-free as possible and going for a slightly higher rate (on a flexible mortgage).

The fees he quoted us for the solicitors seem very steep indeed.. £1,100 to buy and £500 to sell?? We are getting a joint mortgage and the previous one was in my name (as is the house) but I'm not sure if that would make it more expensive?

I am guessing this is where we can make some savings? I hope so anyway..

Does anyone know how people are cutting their solicitors fees these days? I know there are online conveyancers although I'm also aware that the quality of these varies..and that's a bit scary.

I'm in slight shock as I never thought that solicitors fee would be this much.

We could do it but it would mean borrowing more than we anticipated.

All advice very welcomed!

TIA,
Lucy

GAH

£1600 to buy and sell doesn't sound to bad to be honest, does that include all disbursements as well.

Try calling round a few others and get some quotes.

As you said, you could use an online conveyancer which will save you money, but your not always guaranteed a great level of service.

Lizbetty

Yes, that's with all the searches and suchlike included. The agents have their own solicitors which I guess would be easier all round. I will have a look and see what comes up - I'd hate to get to the stage where we're in the middle of a crisis and need to contact the solicitors and wish I'd not penny-pinched mind you! It just seems a lot more money overall than I expected. I've moved house before as well! So you'd think I'd sort of know..

Horrible feeling, isn't it!

GAH

I Always think that a good solicitor is worth their weight in gold, and the best ones generally don't come cheap.

If the agent have reccomended this solicitor, it can be good and bad.
Good because they probably have a good relationship, but bad as there is probably a referall fee in it for the estate agent which the solicitor may add to their costs, but that should be noted if they are receiving a fee.

Def shop around

WestonDave

Not being funny, but if you are happy to spend £2400 for someone to do a job you could probably do for a lot less (market the house) to avoid the stress, you probably want to spend a decent amount on a good legal advisor because if that goes wrong it will be a lot more stressful.

Of the £1600 nearly £300 will be VAT, £200 will be a Land Registry registration fee on your new home plus other amounts paid out for searches etc, so the actual amount the solicitor is getting for the legal technical work is a lot less than the estate agent is getting for their part in the transaction.

You may find someone cheaper but be wary - getting a sale is only the start of the potential stress, and it will be the solicitor you will be phoning for a lot of reassurance etc.

Lizbetty

I've just tried this website recommended by the Observer and Guardian (apparently..) and more than halved that!

Wow. I'm off to do a bit more googling and see what reviews say about the solicitors that it brings up. Will report back!

Gonzo33

My solicitors (the ones I use regularly not my firm) would charge you this:

Freehold Sale Price :£160,000
Freehold Purchase Price :£190,000
On the above information, we expect our charges to be:-
Our fees on your purchase £600.00
Our fees on your sale £600.00
Electronic ID fee: this includes an administration fee for arranging the service on your purchase £5.00
Electronic ID fee: this includes an administration fee for arranging the service on your sale £5.00
Legal fee: Stamp Duty Land Tax Return on your purchase £50.00
Telegraphic Transfer fee: this includes an administration fee for arranging the service on your sale £35.00
Telegraphic Transfer: this includes an administration fee for arranging the service on your purchase £35.00
Track a Matter fee: this includes an administration fee for arranging the service on your purchase £5.00

OUR CHARGES£1,335.00

In addition, we will have to make a number of payments to government and others including (at present rates):

Bankruptcy Search fee on your purchase£2.00
Chancel Liability Search on your purchase£15.00
Environmental Search on your purchase£43.70
HomeBuyers Cost Cover: this is an optional service and includes IPT at 6% on your purchase£68.90
HomeSellers Cost Cover: this is an optional service and includes IPT at 6% on your sale£53.00
Land Registry fee on your purchase£200.00
Land Registry Search of Whole on your purchase£4.00
Local Authority Search on your purchase£94.71
Local search (Average) on your purchase*£130.00
Office Copy Entries on your sale£28.00
Stamp Duty on your purchase£1,900.00
Water Authority Search on your purchase£47.59
PAYMENTS TO OTHERS£2,586.90

SUMMARY

Our Charges:£1,335.00
Payments to others:£2,586.90
VAT:£307.20
TOTAL:£4,229.10

*The Local Search cost shown is an Average.A Full Estimate will give you the actual cost.

Lizbetty

You're quite right - I have only been off prozac for a year and so making sure we get someone we can rely on is a bit of a priority, otherwise I might end up back on it! It is so tempting to let the agents and advisor take control but it goes against my nature when it comes to saving money

But then it is quite a biggy, moving house. Not a great time to find out that there's a reason the solicitor is cheap!

I'll post my findings, I'm on a google-fest now! All recommendations very welcomed.

Gonzo33

Lucyeff wrote: »

I've just tried this website recommended by the Observer and Guardian (apparently..) and more than halved that!

Wow. I'm off to do a bit more googling and see what reviews say about the solicitors that it brings up. Will report back!

There was a thread about that website before. I can't remember the upshot of it though.

SailorSam

Lucyeff wrote: »

I've just tried this website recommended by the Observer and Guardian (apparently..) and more than halved that!

Wow. I'm off to do a bit more googling and see what reviews say about the solicitors that it brings up. Will report back!

I tried to click that link and i got a WOT warning, this site is unsafe,
I didn't go any further.

Lizbetty

I'm not sure why it won't let me click thanks at the mo' but thanks everyone!

The main reason we used their IFA was because DH is self employed and we needed ahem, slightly more flexible criteria. He has been trading a relatively short time and the books reflect that - we would struggle with a lot of lenders to remortgage, let alone increase it. We need a lender to take his most recent year's profit to calculate income, which some of them do luckily.

The IFA said that has access to every lender available - if he's independent, would he not be obliged to make sure he finds us the best deal? I thought IFA's were pretty much under the same umbrella in that respect? I am aware I could be wrong.. I'm just wondering how they differ? He does work for Legal And General, but we're definitely not needing any insurance so if he would usually make money from that side, he'll be disappointed unfortunately.