Research has shown that the anxiety of moving house or buying property is one of the most stressful events that can occur throughout your life, in addition to divorce and bereavement. Organising everything before your move, as well as dealing with complexities of the legal process can prove to be very testing.
Specialists in residential and commercial property matters.
Highly competitive fixed fees
Law Society Quality Accredited
At Iris Law Firm, we hope to guide you through the process, providing safe, sound, reliable advice from the start of your transaction, through to final registration of your home with HM Land Registry.
Given the stress involved, have you ever wondered why in some firms, a conveyancing transaction is not handled by the same person from beginning to end? So have we. Therefore, at Iris Law Firm, we can assure you that your transaction will be dealt with by the same person from the outset, right through to completion, allowing you to rest easy in the knowledge that you will receive very high standards of customer care and quality advice by someone who is fully familiar with your case, and helping you avoid the telephonic abyss often experienced by those who instruct high volume conveyer belt conveyancing firms.
We are one of a privileged number of firms who have been awarded the Conveyancing Quality Scheme Award by the Law Society of England and Wales, in recognition of our adherence to proper protocols, efficient case management, excellent standards of customer care, and being able to provide peace of mind to our clients that their transactions are being dealt with by properly experienced and qualified people.
We are recommended by estate agents throughout the region whom we enjoy working partnerships with, as well as with national conveyancing specialists Move with Us.
The teams within these organisations are committed to the delivery of first rate conveyancing legal services to property buyers, sellers and investors. All solicitors on their panel have achieved the Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS) accreditation awarded by the Law Society and are regulated by the SRA.
The Basis of Our Charges and What is Included
Our fees detailed below are based upon your case being handled or supervised by a fully qualified solicitor and partner, with at least 7 years experience. Our fees quoted here assume the transaction is within the realms of a standard transaction, with no unforeseen matters arising or legal complexities presenting themselves following our instruction. Working on that basis, Included in our fees are all of the most common stages of a residential conveyancing transaction:
Stages of the Residential Conveyancing Process – PURCHASE
Stage 1 – Purchase
You will make an offer to the seller, via the estate agent. Upon acceptance of that offer, and our formal instruction by you, we will contact the seller’s solicitor to obtain the draft contract and related documentation.
We will make any necessary pre-contract enquiries with the seller’s solicitors.
We will then receive a copy of the draft contract; fixtures, fittings and contents form; a property information form and, where relevant, copies of previous title deeds for us to check and approve.
We will then put your ‘searches’ in place, which is a process whereby we seek specialist registered information regarding the property you wish to buy. We will:
- Obtain Local Authority Searches
- Make any necessary enquiries to the seller’s solicitors including raising queries regarding disputes, boundaries, planning constraints and permissions, rights of way, restrictive covenants, guarantees or insurance policies, services, and the checking of any relevant list of contents included in the sale
- Conduct any other necessary searches such as water or coal mining
If the property you are buying is a new build then we may need to make further checks.
The Contract will then be negotiated and agreed and preferred completion dates are discussed.
You will now need a formal mortgage offer (not just an agreement in principle).
Stage 2 – Purchase
You will need to pay your deposit monies, and sign your contracts.
Contracts are ‘exchanged’ – it is this process alone which legally binds you and the seller to complete the transaction.
A transfer document will be produced and sent to the seller’s solicitors.
Upon agreement of the transfer document both you and the seller will need to sign it.
We will then arrange the signing of the mortgage documentation and request your mortgage funds (if applicable). If you are a cash buyer then you will need to arrange the payment of the purchase monies to us so we can send them to the seller’s solicitors.
We will carry out final searches and enquiries.
You must pay Land registry fess and stamp duty prior to completion.
Stage 3 – Completion and beyond….
Completion day – we transfer the balance of the purchase monies to the seller’s solicitor.
When they confirm receipt, the property is legally yours.
You will then get the keys to your new home as the estate agent or the builder will permit the keys to be released.
We will tie up any final administration issues, including payment of any Stamp Duty, Estate Agent’s Fees and registration of your new ownership with HM Land Registry.
Stages of the Residential Conveyancing Process – SALE
If you are selling your property, then the process is reversed.
Stage 1 – Sale
You will receive an offer for your property from the buyer and, once accepted, we will be formally instructed by you, possibly via the Estate Agent directly.
We will prepare the draft contracts and related documentation and send these to the buyer’s solicitors.
At this time, the buyer’s solicitors will be putting their searches in place and organising their mortgage offer.
Once the buyer’s solicitor has received the draft contract and related documentation, they may raise some enquiries with us regarding your property and request further information or documentation. We will contact you if this occurs, and then respond to the buyer’s solicitor in due course.
If you have a current mortgage on the property you are selling, we will seek a redemption figure from your current mortgage lender.
Stage 2 – Sale
Once the contracts are approved, we will meet with you have them signed.
Contracts are ‘exchanged’ – it is this process alone which legally binds you and the buyer to complete the transaction.
We will be sent a transfer document by the buyer’s solicitor.
Upon agreement of the transfer document both you and the buyer will need to sign it.
The buyer will organise their purchase monies and provide them to their solicitors.
Stage 3 – Completion and beyond….
Completion day – the buyer’s solicitor will transfer the purchase monies into our client bank account.
You are now no longer the legal owner of the property and we will authorise the release of the keys to your buyer.
We will then transfer the balance due to you directly to you.
We will redeem the balance of any outstanding mortgage on the property.
You will then get the keys to your new home as the estate agent or the builder will permit the keys to be released.
We will tie up any final administration issues.
Timescales
The national average timescale for a conveyancing transaction is 18 weeks, however, at Iris Law Firm we aim to work as efficiently as possible to try and ensure your transaction is completed within 8 -10 weeks, on average. Whilst the conveyancing process is multi-party and we cannot control it entirely, our dedication to efficiency and client satisfaction enables us to secure completions much quicker than the national average timescale in most cases.
Commercial Transactions
In commercial property transactions, the process is very similar.
Costs
Our basic fees for undertaking conveyancing transactions are as follows:
SALE
| Value of Property | Legal Fees | VAT | Office Copies | CHAPS Fee | Total |
| £0-500,000 | £500.00 | £100.00 | £12.00 | £36.00 | £648.00 |
| £500,001 – £1,000,000 | £600.00 | £120.00 | £12.00 | £36.00 | £768.00 |
PURCHASE
| Value of Property | Legal Fees | VAT | Office Copies | CHAPS Fee | Total |
| £0-500,000 | £500.00 | £100.00 | £12.00 | £36.00 | £648.00 |
| £500,001 – £1,000,000 | £600.00 | £120.00 | £12.00 | £36.00 | £768.00 |
TRANSFER OF EQUITY/REMORTGAGE
| Legal Fees | VAT | Office Copies | CHAPS Fee | Total |
| £300.00 | £60.00 | £12.00 | £36.00 | £408.00 |
These costs are fixed fee and include all work necessary from the commencement of your matter up to and including legal completion on your sale, purchase or transfer, and post-completion legal requirements, such as registration of your ownership with HM Land Registry, if applicable.
Some additional fees may also be applicable depending upon the circumstances of the transactions including, for example:
- Bank charges: £30 – £40 plus VAT
- Mortgage Redemption and/or New Mortgage fee: £150.00 plus VAT
- Stamp Duty Land Tax return: £75 plus VAT
- Leasehold supplement: £150.00 plus VAT
- File Storage Fee: £35.00 plus VAT
Third party disbursements will also be payable and are not included in the above legal costs. What is payable will depending on your particular circumstances, but generally include search fees, HM Land Registry fees, Stamp Duty, and Estate Agents fees. We will advise you as to the costs of these as soon as possible during your transaction. We will usually take payment from you and then pay the 3rd party directly.
You can check the relevant thresholds and rates here:
For more information on HM Land Registry Fees and stamp Duty, please visit www.tax.service.gov.uk/calculate-stamp-duty-land-tax/#/intro or www.gov.uk/guidance/hm-land-registry-registration-services-fees#scale-1-fees
A more detailed quote can be provided on request, in relation to your particular transaction.
We work with a number of leading estate agents and introducers throughout England and Wales. The companies support us in marketing our services, providing case tracking and update platforms, collecting initial payments and (in purchase transactions) ordering searches and sales progression. This support is a valuable support for us and in return we pay variable referrals fees to these companies, which is dependent on the level of support they provide us with. The average fee paid is between £100 and £324.00. This is a fee paid by ourselves and is not an additional cost to you.
Avoid the faceless world of online conveyancers, give yourself and advantage in the process, and get your solicitor in place in readiness for your move.
Contact us to obtain further information or obtain a competitive quote.