Legal fees and disbursements

Chris91

I am buying a property for £230,000 (freehold) and have been quoted £1,372 by a solicitor for legal fees and disbursements. This includes searches and VAT.

Can anyone tell me if this is reasonable please.

Thanks

timefortea

That's very similar to the price I've been quoted to buy a £140,000 house. I think it's reasonable. The breakdown the solicitor sent me showed that the fee for the solicitor's services plus VAT is £666 (seriously), everything else is searches, registrations, etc.

G_M

Need tto see the full break-down of the quote. What it includes and what it excludes.

Bear in mind that price is not the only factor you should cconsider when selecting a conveyancer - moneysaving is not just about the base price.

Tom99

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Email 3 or 4 local solicitors for a quote but make sure you are comparing like with like as there are a number of extra services and disbursements. For example:[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]
[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Solicitors work:[/FONT]

• [FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]The purchase[/FONT]
• [FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]The work on your mortgage[/FONT]
• [FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Filing the stamp duty return[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]
[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Disbursements:[/FONT]

• [FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]CHAPs fee[/FONT]
• [FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]SD Land Reg fee[/FONT]
• [FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Local Authority search fee[/FONT]
• [FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Environmental search fee[/FONT]
• [FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Water/Drainage search fee[/FONT]
• [FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Chancel search fee[/FONT]
• [FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]Title and credit search fees[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]
[/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]If all of the above and VAT are included in the £1,372 that does not sound too expensive.[/FONT]