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First time buyer confused by solicitor final fees more than expected

lucie_sky81
lucie_sky81 Posts: 7 Forumite
in House buying, renting & selling
Hello, I really appreciate anyone who can help.

I have never purchased a property before so please be patient with me.

I will point out first it is a flat I have purchased so it is leased which I know makes things more long winded.

So my final statement from the solicitors is £600 more than originally quoted.
Extras are as follows, these are "de-embursments"

Notice of assignment fee payable to the management agents £125
Notice fee to the freehold £125
Retention held for notice fees £200
searches - Local environmental and drainage £187.40

Do this look right, I am a little upset they didn't pre-warn me about this knowing I am a first time buyer.

Thanks Lucie xx

Comments

  • pinkpiglit
    pinkpiglit Posts: 304 Forumite
    Name Dropper First Anniversary Combo Breaker First Post
    lucie_sky81 wrote: »
    Hello, I really appreciate anyone who can help.

    I have never purchased a property before so please be patient with me.

    I will point out first it is a flat I have purchased so it is leased which I know makes things more long winded.

    So my final statement from the solicitors is £600 more than originally quoted.
    Extras are as follows, these are "de-embursments"

    Notice of assignment fee payable to the management agents £125
    Notice fee to the freehold £125
    Retention held for notice fees £200
    searches - Local environmental and drainage £187.40

    Do this look right, I am a little upset they didn't pre-warn me about this knowing I am a first time buyer.

    Thanks Lucie xx


    Solicitor wouldn't have known about the £125 payment to the managing agents, nor the £125 notice fee to the freehold. That is specific to the property that you have bought.

    I would therefore assume the retention is related to the above (but I'm not sure).

    The search fee is the only one that I think could have been predicted.
  • cattie
    cattie Posts: 8,841 Forumite
    Name Dropper First Anniversary First Post
    It' common to have to pay a fee to the managing agents along with the freehold fee & as previous op mentions, solicitor wouldn't have known what the actual cost of these were at the outset. Not sure what the notice fee is for as I've never come across that.

    Often when buying a leasehold property & getting quotes from solicitors, they will state how much their legal fee is and stamp duty, but only mention + disbursements because they have no real idea of what the final cost of these will be. Also many people fail to take vat needing to be added into account, which makes the final outlay much higher than expected.
    The bigger the bargain, the better I feel.

    I should mention that there's only one of me, don't confuse me with others of the same name.
  • tykesi
    tykesi Posts: 2,061 Forumite
    Combo Breaker First Post
    lucie_sky81 wrote: »
    Do this look right, I am a little upset they didn't pre-warn me about this knowing I am a first time buyer.

    I appreciate it's frustrating but what would you have done even if you had known about them, pull out? That would have been daft as it would have cost you more in the long run.

    As above, the solicitors probably didn't know about the notice fees until they started the process, they should probably have informed you they were payable (out of courtesy) but there's probably some small print authorising them to go ahead in the contract you have with them.
  • aneary
    aneary Posts: 921 Forumite
    Other than the specific search (mine just mentions searches) all the above costs are including in my estimate, however and this is really really important. The EA also manages the building (4 flats) and recommended the solicitor assuming the solicitor has had dealings with other properties in the building they would have an idea of all costs.

    My total estimated bill comes to £1600 (£2000 with stamp duty), I was shocked but after a quick review with my mum (a solicitor but isn't insured to deal with property sales with mortgages) said there wasn't anything unreasonable in there.

    Other quotes were lower but didn't included everything my solicitor included and were also mainly online so I opted for the local one.
  • G_M
    G_M Posts: 51,977 Forumite
    Name Dropper First Anniversary First Post Combo Breaker
    Disbursements are things which the solicitor pays for themselves on your behalf. They are not charges made by the solicitor, they are made by others.

    The search fee is charged by the loacal authority, and similarly the Notices are fees charged by the freehlder & agent. Your solicitor cannot know what any specific freeholder (for example) will charge until they contact them.

    Most solicitors' initial estimates/quotes will show their own fees (ie the solicitor's) "plus disbursements". This is fine for comparing prices, as the disbursements will be the same whichever solicitor you use.

    Some quotes may list the disbursements (eg 'Notices') they anticipate, but inevitably without the precise amount, which they cannot know.

    The Retention is strange. Since they are now charging the specific amounts for the Notices, I fail to see why they also need to charge a retention.

    Are you sure the retention is not an amount you have already paid (in anticipation of Notice fees), and which is now being credited against the actual amounts?
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