Please see below for details related to our fees for Residential Conveyancing, Probate and Debt Collection.
Residential Conveyancing
Our Fees
Our fees cover all legal work required to complete your residential property transaction — whether purchase, sale, mortgage, or re-mortgage — including registration at HM Land Registry and dealing with Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT), where applicable.
We act on a wide range of property transactions, including those under £1 million, though our typical work involves high-value or complex matters. Our fees vary depending on the nature of the transaction and may be charged as a fixed fee or based on hourly rates, depending on complexity and scope.
Fee Range by Property Value
Below is a guide to the likely legal fees (exclusive of VAT and disbursements), based on property value and complexity:
| Property Value | Type of Transaction | Likely Fee Range (excl. VAT) | Fee Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Up to £1M | Standard freehold or leasehold | £3,000 — £3,500 | Fixed or hourly |
| £1M — £2M | Freehold purchase, no mortgage | £3,500 — £4,500 | Fixed or hourly |
| £2M — £4M | Leasehold purchase with mortgage | £5,500 — £6,500 | Fixed or hourly |
| £4M — £7M | Complex or multiple-party matters | £6,500 — £10,000 | Fixed or hourly |
| £7M — £10M+ | High-value and bespoke matters | £10,000 — £30,000+ | Fixed or hourly |
All fees are exclusive of disbursements (see below) and VAT, which is charged at 20%.
We will provide a detailed and tailored fee quote before commencing work, and we will update you if your matter becomes more complex or time-intensive than originally anticipated.
Hourly Rates
When we charge based on time spent, our current hourly rates are:
- Principal solicitor: £430 + VAT per hour
- Associate Solicitor and CILEx Conveyancer/Associate: £350 + VAT per hour
Disbursements
Disbursements are third-party costs we pay on your behalf. These typically may include:
- RICS Registered Chartered Surveyors’ valuation fee for a property purchase or sale or a lease extension valuation or in the case of a probate sale by executors or personal representatives which will attract VAT. We cannot recommend any surveyors for legal reasons.
- Property and other search fees: approx. £500 + VAT
- HM Land Registry fees: £95 — £910 (depending on property value) (No VAT)
- Bank transfer fees: £15 — £30 (depending on domestic or cross border payments) (No VAT)
- Fee for registering a Notice of charge/transfer (leasehold only): which is entirely dependent on the amount specified in the lease and can vary from £20 — £400 + VAT
- Landlord’s/Managing Agents’ fee + VAT payable for the transfer of a lessee’s share or membership in the freehold company, depending on whether the freehold is a company limited by shares or guarantee.
We do not pay or receive referral fees.
Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT)
This depends on the purchase price of your property. We will usually provide you with an indicative SDLT calculation in our Client Engagement Letter. You can calculate the amount you will need to pay by using HMRC’s website or if the property is located in Wales by using the Welsh Revenue Authority’s website. We will assist you in the calculation of your SDLT.
Timing/urgency
The length of time between your offer being accepted and legal completion depends on a number of factors. If your purchase is urgent, it can be done within a one month. Usually, the purchase or sale of a property can take up to two months, sometimes longer. The average time is two to four months.
Transaction outline
The precise stages involved in the purchase of a residential freehold or leasehold property vary according to the circumstances.
The key stages are:
- As a regulated profession to formally identify you and undertake a full risk-based due-diligence to comply with the UK’s Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017 (as amended) (“The Money Laundering Regulations”) from your respective original documents listed below. We will make and retain certified true copies of your documents on our file and retain electronic copies.
- UK Passport or Resident Visa Card or Resident Permit to prove immigration status;
- UK driving Licence;
- UK National Insurance Number (if there is one);
- HM Revenue & Customs Unique Tax Reference Number;
- Two recently paid utility bills (within the last month) relating to your usual residential address, and/or two utility bills for your address;
- Your recent (within the last month) bank statement
- We will undertake an electronic Anti-money Laundering search on you and any connected parties to the transaction e.g., if there are joint purchasers or funders of the property
- where appropriate, a sanctions search with the UK Government in compliance with the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018
- take your instructions and give you initial advice
- send you our formal Client Engagement Letter and our Terms of Business setting out our fees and disbursements for your signature, dating and return which will complete the onboarding phase.
- undertake full risk-based due diligence on the source of the funds to be utilised in your purchase of a property and to check finances are in place to fund purchase and contact lender’s solicitors if they instruct their own panel solicitor. This may involve repeating the above steps in relation to any private funder, corporate or an individual.
- receive and advise on contract, the property information forms, the transfer deed (TR1) or a the lease in case of a new build property and any other relevant documents
- carry out property searches, company searches, bankruptcy searches, HM Land Registry priority search prior to completion
- obtain further planning documentation if required
- raise any necessary additional enquiries of seller’s solicitor/conveyancer
- give you advice on all documents and information received
- go through conditions of mortgage offer
- check the final contract to you for signature
- agree completion date (date from which you own the property)
- discuss buildings insurance requirements of your lender
- submit a full written report on title to the property to you for your perusal and consideration with all supporting documents referred to
- exchange contracts and notify you that this has happened and pay the initial deposit, which is usually 10% of the purchase price
- draft the transfer and arrange for your signature on the lender’s mortgage deed, any Licence to Assign or Deed of Covenant or any other completion documents
- advise you on joint ownership (tenancy-in-common or joint tenancy)
- carry out pre-completion HM Land Registry priority searches and bankruptcy searches if an individual or a liquidation search if a company
- arrange for all monies needed to be received from you and your lender
- complete purchase
- submit your online Stamp Duty Land Tax return
- pay the Stamp Duty Land Tax to HM Revenue & Customs
- submit your application for registration of title and the lender’s legal mortgage deed at HM Land Registry having ensured that any existing mortgage of the seller is fully redeemed
- Serve a notice of transfer/assignment and charge on the landlord/managing agents if the property is leasehold and deal with the transfer of any share or membership in the freehold company
- Send you and your lender official copies of your title to the property on completion of registration along with any title deeds and documents as per our mortgage instructions.
- deliver out VAT invoice and provide you with our financial statement to give you a final account of the monies received and disbursed in the course of your transaction.
Supplementary advice from fellow professionals such as Chartered Accountants, Specialist Tax Advisers or Financial Planners
We regularly work closely with carefully selected accountants, specialist tax advisers and/or financial planners because so much of what solicitors do for clients requires supplementary advice from fellow professionals. We can suggest the names of such expert professionals as may be necessary or relevant to your matter. They would charge for such advice and their professional fees will attract VAT.
Probate (Uncontested)
Probate is dealing with the financial affairs of someone who has died. Everything (money, property and possessions) owned by a person who has died is known as their estate.
Your probate legal costs/fees will depend on whether the deceased made a will or not, and whether your matter is relatively straightforward or complex. Please see the example of our costs/fees below.
Intestacy occurs where a person dies without leaving a valid will and is said to die ‘intestate’, as opposed to ‘testate’ if there is a will. The intestacy rules in England & Wales also apply where a person leaves a valid will but it does not distribute all their estate. This can happen for various reasons, for example, where all named beneficiaries have died. This is a ‘partial intestacy’ and can be an unexpected outcome. To avoid this situation, the person making the will, the ‘testator’, should always include substitute ‘beneficiaries’ (the people who benefit from an estate).
Obtaining a grant of representation and dealing with the administration of an estate can be complicated. It can range from a few months to over two years, depending on various factors. Timescales can vary significantly. While straightforward cases may conclude within six to nine months, more complex estates or disputes can significantly extend the timescale. We will ensure that we keep you informed and updated on the timescales applicable to your particular matter and make sure everything is done properly. Bromptons offer a complete estate administration service to deal with everything for you.
The estate may be made up of money, both cash and money in a bank or building society account, stocks and shares, ISAs, National Savings Bonds, pension, property and possessions. This could include money paid out on a life insurance policy. Significant tax changes have been announced in relation to pensions and inheritance tax and as a result, some individuals could face combined tax charges exceeding 67% when passing pensions to loved ones. This could also include a debt due or a money claim or compensation or damages or anything which has a monetary value which is due to the deceased.
Every estate is different, which is why we encourage you to contact us so we can provide you with an estimate outlining a range of potential fees to make sure that you get the right amount of support to meet your individual circumstances. We will update you regularly on your costs throughout the matter so you are kept informed and can stay in control throughout.
Our Team and Experience
Our probate services are delivered by a team with extensive experience in estate administration:
- Mohamed Azim Suleman is the Principal Solicitor with over 34 years of practice in private client and probate matters.
- Pragna Pandya is a qualified Legal Executive with significant experience in estate administration, and specialises in dealing with Wills & Probate
All work is supervised by the Principal Solicitor.
The Scope of the Work
The scope of the chargeable work we will undertake on behalf of the Executors, or the Personal Representatives and/or the Beneficiaries:
We will do the following:
- advise you in connection with obtaining the appropriate grant of representation to the estate;
- advise you in connection with the administration of the estate, including the legal, taxation and administrative matters.
We will not do the following:
- provide any advice in relation to foreign assets, however, we are able to co-ordinate advice with your professional advisers in other jurisdictions in relation to assets held abroad but only to the extent specifically agreed in writing between us (which may incur additional legal costs/fees and disbursements, in other words, you will be liable for the legal fees and disbursements of the foreign professional advisers in addition to any taxes equivalent to inheritance tax in England and Wales);
- provide advice in relation to dealing with actual claims (if any) made against the estate, or contentious matters in dealing with the administration of the estate — these would constitute an entirely separate matter and retainer and we would normally issue a separate client engagement letter in relation to dispute resolution with our terms of business. However, we are able to co-ordinate with other professional advisers on how this impacts the administration of the estate, but only to the extent specifically agreed in writing between us (which may incur additional legal costs/fees and disbursements).
Costs/Fees
The following is an illustrated example of our costs:
Our Fees
We want to be up front with our fees and in a bid to simplify this, please see below our estimated fees for probate matters:
| TYPE OF PROBATE | WORK INVOLVED | OUR FEES | ESTIMATED TIME SCALES |
|---|---|---|---|
| Simple |
A simple estate typically involves: – couple of assets and beneficiaries; |
We estimate our fees to be between £2,500 and £4,000 plus VAT plus third-party costs |
We estimate this stage to take between 6 weeks and 10 months.
Factors which may affect the time-scale are whether the estate valuations are provided to us, whether claiming exemption and reliefs is applicable, e.g.: Transferable Nil Rate Band from predeceased spouse, dealing with enquiries raised by HMRC. |
| Average |
——————————— An average estate typically involves: – Everything as above; |
We estimate our fees to be between £4,000 – £12,000 plus VAT plus third-party costs. |
We estimate this stage to take between 6 weeks and 1 year.
Factors which may affect the time-scale are when the property(ies) sell. |
| Complex |
——————————— A complex estate typically involves: – Everything as above; |
We estimate our fees to start from at least £15,000 plus VAT and third-party costs with no upper limit. |
We estimate this stage to take between 6 months and 2 years. Contentious probate matters will have an extended timescale because the estate cannot be administered and wound up until any dispute is concluded in court, or by alternative dispute resolution, e.g. Arbitration or Mediation.
Factors which may affect the time-scale are when the property(ies) sell. |
Disbursements
Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties. These typically include:
| Item | Amount | VAT |
| Probate fee | £300.00 | none |
| Office copies for the grant of probate (per copy) | £7.50 | none |
| Post in the local newspaper | £300.00 | none |
| Post in the London Gazette (Deceased estates notices) | £92.20 – £125.80 | 20% |
Total estimated disbursements: £699.70 – £773.30.
Factors That May Increase Costs
The following factors are likely to increase the cost of your matter:
- not having all of the paperwork available, or having missing or incorrect information that needs investigation and correction
- third parties not responding to our communications promptly
- dealing with unusual or complex assets or items (for example: fine art; timeshares; shares in private companies with pre-emption rights and share valuations having to be obtained; pursuing a claim to recover a monetary debt or other assets, etc.).
If and when any complications arise, we will inform you, discuss these with you and agree the fee for any additional work being carried out in advance of any additional work being undertaken in order to maintain costs transparency.
The price information above is a general indication of costs based on our experience. We estimate a fixed fee cost is likely to range between £8,000.00 and £15,000.00 plus VAT at 20% and disbursements for a straightforward grant of probate and administration of an estate, for estates in England and Wales, where:
- there is no more than one property in the sole name of the deceased
- there are no more than three bank accounts
- there are no debts (other than utility bills)
- there is a valid will appointing executors
- there is a single beneficiary
- there are no complications
Supplementary Advice from Fellow Professionals
We regularly work closely with other experienced professional accountants, specialist tax advisers and/or financial planners because so much of what solicitors do for clients requires supplementary advice from fellow professionals. We can suggest but not recommend the names of such expert professionals as may be necessary or relevant to your matter. They will charge for such advice and their professional fees will attract VAT. We can obtain fee estimates from these professionals upon request so that you can make informed decisions.
Debt Collection
(Up To £100,000.00) for businesses: we will charge fees as set out below for low value commercial debt recovery (i.e., business to business) work in relation to claims up to the value of £100,000.00 against debtors located within England and Wales.
If your claim exceeds £100,000.00, we will provide a written fee estimate on request.
Your legal costs will depend on whether your matter involves an undisputed debt claim because there are no factual or legal issues and the debt due is a matter of fact and law or where there is a dispute that the debt is due.
We cannot accurately estimate the costs involved in pursuing a disputed debt claim to conclusion at the outset because this depends on the particular facts of your case and how the debtor will respond to a formal demand of payment from us. The Civil Procedure Rules require you to make a formal demand on the debtor in the form of the Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims. Failure to do so could result in adverse costs consequences for you. Factors such as the available documents and the evidence in support of your claim or which the debtor will produce to dispute your claim, whether you will have to issue a claim in court, how long any negotiations will take. We will provide phased fee estimates for cases where the debt is disputed where we cannot sensibly provide an overall fee estimate which will be based on the time we spend on your matter.
We are better able to provide an overall fee estimate in relation to cases involving undisputed debt claims. The costs below are the average costs where the claim is for unpaid debts or invoices which are not disputed and enforcement action is not needed. We will provide you with a more accurate estimate when you formally instruct us. The anticipated costs for your particular case will depend, amongst other things:
- on the complexity and volume of documentation to review and the seniority of the solicitor or associate handling the matter;
- if the other party disputes your claim at any point, we will discuss the further work required and have a further discussion with you about the costs to be incurred (based on the circumstances of your case and the work anticipated to be required) and we will provide you with further estimates as described above.
We can pursue your undisputed debt claim in one of two ways:
- Issuing a debt claim at Court and seeking summary judgment or (if the debtor fails to respond to the claim) applying for a judgment at the first opportunity in default of the Defendant’s failure to file either an Acknowledgement of Service giving their intention to contest your claim or in default of filing their serving Defence;
- Serving a statutory demand and if the debt is still not paid within 21 days, issuing a winding-up petition if the debtor is a company or a petition for bankruptcy if the debtor is an individual in the bankruptcy Court. We will send a formal letter before claim or pre-action letter to the debtor.
We will agree an initial fee with you for reviewing all the documents and correspondence provided by you and writing an initial letter before action, demanding payment of the debt on your behalf. Depending on the amount of documentation which you provide and the complexity of the case, our fee is likely to be in the region of £3,000.00 to £5,000.00 (plus VAT and disbursements).
Issuing a court claim
If payment is not forthcoming, you may then wish to proceed with issuing Court proceedings to recover the debt. This will involve drafting a Claim Form and Particulars of Claim and, in straightforward undisputed debt claims, we would anticipate our fee for preparing this documentation will be in the region of £3,000.00 — £5,000.00 (plus VAT and disbursements).
There is a Court fee for issuing a claim, depending on the value of the claim (and whether the claim is issued on paper (as is our usual practice) or if it is suitable to issue online (via Money Claims Online, “MCOL”)).
It may also be that we need to involve Counsel (i.e., a barrister) in preparing the Court documentation (the Claim Form and/or the Particulars of Claim).
Further details of the Court fees and Counsel’s fees are set out below in the Disbursements section.
A defendant (the debtor) will have 14 days from receipt of the Claim Form and/or Particulars of Claim in which to respond by filing an Acknowledgement of Service or a Defence.
Default judgment
If the Defendant does not respond in time, you can request judgment for the claim debt in default.
If an Acknowledgement of Service is filed within 14 days of service of the Claim Form, the Defendant then has a further 14 days to file a Defence to the claim. If the Defendant then fails to file a Defence, you can also request that judgment can be entered in default.
Our average range of fees for: (i) applying to the Court to enter judgment in default against the debtor (where no Acknowledgment of Service or Defence is received); (ii) when judgement in default is received, writing to the other side to request payment; and (iii) if payment is not received within 14 days, providing you with advice on next steps and likely costs, are likely to be £2,000.00 to £4,000.00 (plus VAT).
Summary judgment
Even if the debtor does file an Acknowledgment of Service and/or Defence, the court may give summary judgment against a claimant on the whole of a claim, or on the whole of a defendant’s counterclaim, or on a particular issue if it considers that —
- that claimant has no real prospect of succeeding on the claim or issue; or
- that defendant has no real prospect of successfully defending the claim or issue; and
(b) there is no other compelling reason why the case or issue should be disposed of at a trial.
This would involve your issuing a formal Application Notice supported by written evidence by way of a witness statement and any exhibits and attending the Court for a hearing, for which we would instruct a junior Barrister. Our estimated average costs for: (i) preparing the application; (ii) instructing the Barrister; and (iii) attending a hearing of 1 hour are likely to be £3,000.00 — £5,000.00 plus VAT. In addition, there would be Barrister’s fees, of which we will obtain an estimate for you in advance.
General
Anyone wishing to proceed with a claim should note that:
- Interest and compensation may take the debt into a higher value banding, with a higher cost.
- The costs quoted above are not for matters where enforcement action, such as a court enforcement agent, is needed to collect your debt.
Statutory demands, winding-up petitions and bankruptcy petitions
Rather than issue Court proceedings, for an undisputed debt, often the most time and cost-effective step may be to serve a statutory demand on the debtor company or sole trader (providing the debt is over £750.00 where the debtor is a company, or over £5,000.00 where it is an individual/sole trader).
Depending on the circumstances, this can be served on the debtor either before or after a letter before action.
A statutory demand is not in itself a court process but is a formal demand for payment which must be taken seriously and can be used as a precursor to insolvency-based proceedings, such as a winding up petition against a company or bankruptcy proceedings against an individual/sole trader (see below).
It provides a period of 21 days after service for payment of the debt.
A statutory demand should only be used in circumstances in which it is entirely clear that the underlying debt is genuinely undisputed; for example, if the debt is admitted or if there is a judgment for it.
Our average range of costs for preparing a statutory demand are £2,000.00 — £3,000.00 (plus VAT and disbursements).
Winding-up proceedings
For a debtor company, if payment is not forthcoming after service of the statutory demand within the specified 21-day period and provided the debt is not subject to a genuine dispute or can be extinguished by a valid counterclaim by the debtor, it may be appropriate to present a winding-up petition against the company owing the debt. Winding-up petitions can also be used where the debt is based on a Court judgment which has not been set aside or appealed.
Our average range of costs for preparing, presenting, and serving a winding up petition are £3,000.00 — £6,000.00 (plus VAT and disbursements).
Once the petition has been presented, there are a series of prescribed steps to be taken (including, for example, formally advertising the presentation of the petition) and there will be a Court hearing.
If the petition is successful, the Court will issue a winding-up order at this hearing. Our average range of costs for taking such steps and preparing for that hearing (including instructing a junior Barrister to appear at the hearing) are £3,000.00 — £4,500.00 (plus VAT and disbursements).
Thereafter, the Court will put an Official Receiver in charge of the liquidation. They will start the process of gathering in and liquidating the company’s assets so that the proceeds can be used to pay the company’s debts. Other creditors can register their claims to money they are owed by the debtor company; accordingly, the level of realisation and repayment received from the liquidation process is often uncertain. If the winding up petition is disputed, we will provide further estimates for our costs for dealing with the matter.
Bankruptcy proceedings
If you have obtained a Court judgment that has not been set aside or appealed, or if a statutory demand has been validly served and not set aside, a bankruptcy petition can be presented against an individual or sole trader debtor.
Our average range of costs for preparing, presenting and serving a bankruptcy petition are £3,000.00 to £5,000.00 (plus VAT and disbursements). The procedure following presentation of a bankruptcy petition is similar to those to be taken after presentation of a Winding-Up petition and our range of costs for carrying out that work will be of the same order.
Disbursements
Please see below a non-exhaustive list of the disbursements you may need to pay:
Process server fees
We will usually instruct a process server to serve the statutory demand.
Likewise, a process server may be used to serve the Claim Form and Particulars of Claim and/or a Winding-up or bankruptcy petition.
Typically, and on each occasion, process server’s fees will be in the region of £200.00 — £400.00 plus VAT.
Court issue fees (no VAT is charged)
Counsel’s fees
Depending on the value of the debt (and whether it is disputed or not), we may wish to instruct Counsel (i.e. a Barrister) on your behalf (and with your approval) to assist with tasks such as drafting Court documents and conducting advocacy in the courtroom.
Counsel’s fees vary. However, we will always seek to ensure that Counsel’s fees are commensurate with the value you are seeking to recover, and we will obtain fee quotations in advance on your behalf.
Please note, VAT is payable on Counsel’s fees.
Insolvency proceedings fees
Winding-up petition: To commence insolvency proceedings against a debtor company by issuing a winding up petition, the following fees will apply:
- Court fee £343.00
- The HMCTS Petition Deposit is a sum of money, currently £2,600, that must be paid to the Insolvency Service when a creditor initiates a winding-up petition.
- If the debtor pays the debt and the petition is withdrawn or dismissed, the Insolvency Service may provide a refund of this fee after a period of time.
Bankruptcy petition: To commence insolvency proceedings against an individual / sole trader debtor by issuing a bankruptcy petition, the following fees will apply:
- Court fee £343.00
- Official Receiver’s deposit £1,500 petition deposit (for managing the bankruptcy)
- If the debtor pays the debt and the petition is withdrawn or dismissed, the Insolvency Service may provide a refund of this fee after a period of time.
Anticipated timescales
The period of time from receipt of instructions from you to receipt of payment from the other side depends on whether it is necessary to issue a claim and whether the other side pays promptly.
However, typical durations might be as follows:
- 1 month to 6 weeks if a letter before action is sent and the debtor makes payment shortly after receipt of this (including our time for taking instructions and drafting the letter before action).
- 3 to 6 months to obtain a judgment in your favour (through issuing and serving a claim, and subsequently applying for summary judgment/default judgment).
- If you opt to pursue the insolvency proceedings route following service of a statutory demand, it will typically take 3 to 4 months to obtain an order that the debtor company be wound up or the individual / sole trader debtor be made bankrupt.
Enforcement action
If you obtain a judgment in your favour after commencing Court proceedings, the judgment debtor will then have a short period (usually 14 days) within which to pay the debt. If they do not do so, you would be entitled to take enforcement action (e.g., through taking control of the debtor’s goods, applying for a charging order over the debtor’s assets, or applying for an attachment of earnings order).
If enforcement action is needed, further substantive work will be required (most likely, including applications to the Court) and the matter will take longer to resolve, resulting in increased costs (in respect of both our fees and further disbursements, including Court fees for any hearings and/or enforcement action). In these circumstances, wherever possible, we will provide you with further estimates of our fees and any anticipated disbursements.
Your Right to Cancel Our Services
Your have a ‘Right to Cancel’ the use of our services under the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013. You may download the cancellation form here.