Professional Regulations

Property

Conveyancing fees on a purchase

Our fees cover all of the work required to complete the purchase of your new home, including dealing with registration at the Land Registry and dealing with the payment of Stamp Duty Land Tax (Stamp Duty) if the property is in England, or Land Transaction Tax (Land Tax) if the property you wish to buy is in Wales.

Our fees and disbursements

• Legal fees vary between £695 and £1995 plus VAT at 20% depending upon the type and value of the property
• Electronic money transfer fee £39 plus VAT at 20%

• Electronic ID verification fee £35 plus VAT at 20%
• Fee for acting for your lender if you are obtaining a mortgage £175 plus VAT at 20%
• Anti-Money Laundering Checks £85 plus VAT at 20%
• Fee for completion the Stamp Duty Land Tax Return Form £95 plus VAT at 20%
• Photocopying, Postage and Petty costs £80 plus VAT at 20%
• Digital Onboarding Administration Fee £10 plus VAT at 20%
• Archive fee £75 plus VAT at 20%
• Subtotal £1313 – £2613 plus VAT at 20% (£262.20 – £522.60)

Further fees may be charged depending upon the circumstances of the case and in the interests of openness and transparency we set out a list here

Disbursements

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as HM Land Registry fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.

• Search fees £280-£325 plus VAT at 20%
• HM Land Registry fee £20 upwards depending upon the value of the property) exact fees can be found here

Anticipated Additional Disbursements on the Purchase of a Leasehold Residential Property

If you are buying a leasehold property we will charge a fee of £145 plus VAT at 20% towards the additional work.

In addition, leasehold properties attract additional disbursements levied by third parties. Common one are:

• Notice of Transfer fee – This fee if chargeable is set out in the lease. Often the fee is between £50 – £200 plus VAT at 20%.
• Notice of Charge fee (if the property is to be mortgaged) – This fee is set out in the lease. Often the fee is between £50 – £200 plus VAT at 20 %.
• Deed of Covenant fee – This fee is provided by the management company for the property and can be difficult to estimate. Often it is between £50 – £300 plus VAT at 20%.
• Certificate of Compliance fee – To be confirmed upon receipt of the lease, as can range between £50 – £300 plus VAT at 20%.

These fees vary from property to property and can on occasion be significantly more than the ranges given above. We can give you an accurate figure once we have sight of your specific documents.

You should also be aware that ground rent and service charge are likely to apply throughout your ownership of the property. We will confirm the ground rent and the anticipated service charge as soon as this we receive this information.

Stamp Duty Land Tax or Land Transaction Tax

This depends on the purchase price of your property. 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.

How long will my house purchase take?

How long it will take from your offer being accepted until you can move into your house will depend on a number of factors. The average process takes between 8 and twelve weeks for a straightforward transaction but can be significantly longer on more complex transactions, for example when there is a defect in a lease, or leasehold or shared ownership matters when further third parties are involved. A recent investigation showed that the average time for a matter to reach completion is 179 days. We complete the vast majority of our transactions well within that period.

It can be quicker or slower, depending on the parties in the chain. For example, if you are a first time buyer, purchasing a new build property with a mortgage in principle, it could take six weeks. However, if you are buying a leasehold property that requires an extension of the lease, this can take significantly longer, between four and twelve months. In such, a situation additional charges would apply. 

To Note

Our fee assumes that:

• this is a standard transaction and that no unforeseen matters arise including for example (but not limited to) a defect in title which requires remedying prior to completion or the preparation of additional documents ancillary to the main transaction
• this is the assignment of an existing lease and is not the grant of a new lease
• the transaction is concluded in a timely manner and no unforeseen complication arise
• all parties to the transaction are co-operative and there is no unreasonable delay from third parties providing documentation
• no indemnity policies are required. Additional disbursements may apply if indemnity policies are required.

Conveyancing Costs for Sales

Our fees cover all of the work required to complete the sale of your home, including dealing with the buyer’s solicitors and your lender.

Our fees and disbursements

• Legal fee between £695 and £1995 plus Vat at 20% depending upon the type and value of the property
• Electronic money transfer fee £39 plus VAT at 20%
• Electronic ID verification fee £35 plus VAT at 20%
• Fee for acting for your lender if you are redeeming a mortgage £175 plus VAT at 20%
• Anti-Money Laundering Checks £85 plus VAT at 20%
• Photocopying, Postage and Petty costs £50 plus VAT at 20%
• Digital Onboarding Administration Fee £10 plus VAT at 20%
• Archive fee £75 plus VAT at 20%
• Subtotal £1184 – £2484 plus VAT at 20% (£236.80 – £496.80)

Further fees may be charged depending upon the circumstances of the case and in the interests of openness and transparency we set out a list here

Disbursements

• HM Land Registry documents fee (estimated) £8 – £50 depending on the number required

Estimated total £8 – £50

If the property is leasehold there will be an additional fee of £175 plus VAT at 20% to deal with the additional work involved. In addition where a property is leasehold or shared ownership we are likely to have to pay disbursements to third parties. There can include (but are not limited to):

Obtaining management information (estimated) £50 – £750 plus VAT at 20%

Obtaining approval freeholder via a licence to assign (estimated) £250 – £1000 plus VAT at 20%

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as HM Land Registry fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.

Stages of the Sale Process

The precise stages involved in the sale of a residential property vary according to the circumstances. However, below we have suggested some key stages on a standard transaction:

• Take your instructions and give you initial advice
• Liaise with your estate agent and obtain your memorandum of sale
• Send you the documentation required to complete the sale of your property (including the Law Society protocol forms (Sellers Property Information form, Fixtures and Fittings, etc.)
• Draft the contract for the buyers’ solicitors
• Deal with any enquiries (questions relating to your property sale, which we can help you answer)
• On leasehold properties obtain information from your management company, managing agents and/or freeholder on service charges, ground rent, insurance and potential major works
• Obtain your redemption statement from your lender (if selling with a mortgage)
• Send the final contract and transfer deed to you for signature
• Agree on completion date (the date from which you own the property)
• Obtain your authority to exchange contracts and notify you when this has happened, at which point you will be contractually bound to complete the sale
• Complete the sale and contact you on the day of completion to confirm completion has taken place, and pay any balance due back to you
• Redeem your mortgage (if applicable)

How long will my property sale take?

How long it will take from an offer being accepted until you can sell your house will depend on a number of factors. The average process takes between eight to twelve weeks but is normally longer on leasehold or shared ownership sales due to the involvement of third parties. A recent investigation showed that the average time for a matter to reach completion is 179 days. We complete the vast majority of our transactions well within that period.

It can be quicker or slower, depending on the parties in the chain. For example, if you are selling a leasehold property that requires an extension of the lease, this can take significantly longer, between four and eight months. In such, a situation additional charges would apply.

To Note

Our fee assumes that:

• this is a standard transaction and that no unforeseen matters arise including for example (but not limited to) a defect in title which requires remedying prior to completion or the preparation of additional documents ancillary to the main transaction
• this is the assignment of an existing lease and is not the grant of a new lease
• the transaction is concluded in a timely manner and no unforeseen complication arise
• all parties to the transaction are co-operative and there is no unreasonable delay from third parties providing documentation
• no indemnity policies are required. Additional disbursements may apply if indemnity policies are required.

TRANSACTION OUTLINE

We set out below flow charts which detail the key stages of a sale and purchase transaction. Precise stages may vary according to the circumstances of each individual case. You can refer to them throughout the transaction as a guide.

• Sales Flowchart
• Purchase Flowchart

CONVEYANCING COSTS FOR REMORTGAGE

Our Legal Fees cover all of the work required to complete the legal advice required to mortgage or re-mortgage your property.

Legal Fees and Disbursements

Legal Fees are the amount you will be required to pay for all of the work performed by us in actioning your instructions, from commencement of your case to conclusion. VAT will be payable on our fees and some disbursements, currently 20% and we will clearly confirm which disbursements carry VAT in our formal quotation or as we advise you to incur them.

• Our average standard legal fees for residential re-mortgage is £695 – £1100 plus VAT at 20% depending upon the type of property and the amount that you are looking to borrow..
• For leasehold properties fees will be more due the complexities involved. An additional levy of £175 plus VAT at 20% will be charged but may be more dependent on the value of the property and complexity of mortgage position and we will clearly confirm these in our formal quotation.
• Electronic money transfer fee £39 plus VAT at 20%
• Electronic ID verification fee £35 plus VAT at 20%
• Fee for acting for your lender if you are redeeming a mortgage £175 plus VAT at 20%
• Anti-Money Laundering Checks £85 plus VAT at 20%
• Photocopying, Postage and Petty costs £50 plus VAT at 20%
• Digital Onboarding Administration Fee £10 plus VAT at 20%
• Archive fee £75 plus VAT at 20%

If at any stage our fees change, we will notify you and discuss the reason for any changes. This will typically occur if you change your instructions or your case involves an unforeseen complexity.

Our Fee Assumes That:

1. This is a standard transaction and that no unforeseen matters arise.
2. The transaction is concluded in a timely manner and no unforeseen complications arise.
3. All parties to the transaction are co-operative and there is no unreasonable delay from third parties providing documentation.

Disbursements

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as Land Registry fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smooth process.

You will be provided with a full list of disbursements in our formal quotation. If you need to incur any further disbursements during your case, you will be notified in advance of the reason and the amount.

The following disbursements and other costs may apply in your matter.

• Company Search Fee (per search) £50 plus VAT at 20%
• Land Registry Priority Search (per title) £7.00
• Land Registry Office Copy and Title Plan (per Title) £7.00
• Bankruptcy Search (per name) – £6.00
• Standard Property Search Pack (if required by the lender) £see below
• Land Registry fees. Click the link for more details of land registry fees payable.

Search Fees

Search fees vary from case to case depending on the local authority. We will advise you which searches you need for your transaction and the cost of each search. Typically, an insurance policy can be arranged to meet any such requirement. If the lender is happy for an insurance policy to be put in place, we can help you obtain that

• No Search Indemnity Policy (if accepted by the lender) – on review of your case and dependent on property. The fee is usually around £80 plus VAT at 20%.

However, if the lender insists on specific local searches being carried out, our average fee for a standard property search pack is £280 – 325 plus VAT at 20%.

We will advise the fees that are relevant to your matter when we have the details of your property.

How long will my mortgage or remortgage transaction take?

The average mortgage or re-mortgage will take between 4 – 6 weeks on our receipt of the mortgage offer, it can be considerably longer for leasehold properties.

Stages of the Process

The precise stages involved in the mortgage or remortgage of a residential property vary according to the circumstances.

We have set out the key stages of a standard transaction: –

• Taking your instructions and giving you initial advice.
• Undertaking regulatory checks.
• Advising upon the mortgage offer and its conditions.
• Giving you advice on all documents and information received.
• Advising you on joint or shared ownership.
• Sending final mortgage deed to you for signature.
• Discharging any existing charge or charges
• Registering the New Charge on the property

Other Factors

Other Factors to consider which may affect your legal fees: –

• Multiple owners.
• Multiple lenders
• Shared ownership scheme.
• Mortgaging where there is a help to buy scheme, and whether it is an equity loan or ISA.
• Mortgaging property under right to buy.
• Transfers of Ownership
• Other unusual or complex matters

These fees vary from property to property and can on occasion, be significantly more than the ranges given above. We can give you an accurate figure once we have sight of your specific documents.

Aborted Cases

If the transaction should go abortive, then depending on what stage you are at will depend on how much you will be charged. Please note that any disbursements paid we will be unable to claim back.

PROBATE

Our fees are charged on an hourly rate which is currently £340 plus VAT per hour. VAT is currently 20%. The exact cost will depend on the individual circumstances and the time we need to spend on the matter

If you require us to apply for a Grant of Probate only, then we would expect the work to take between 4-8 hours and our fees to be between £1,500 – £2,500 plus VAT at 20% (or £1,800 – £3,000 plus VAT at 20% in total).

If we are required to act on the administration of the estate (including closure of bank accounts, encashing investments and shares, distributing the estate and transferring property to beneficiaries (property sales are dealt with by the firm’s property department and quoted for separately), then the time taken to deal with these matter could vary significantly depending on the size of the estate, the number of assets, and the number of beneficiaries we will need to contact. A typical estate should take between 10-20 hours to administer, which means the fee will range from £3,400 – £7,000 plus VAT at 20% (or £4,000-£8,000 plus VAT at 20% in total).

A more complex case can take between 30-50 hours and could cost between £10,000- £17,000 plus VAT at 20% (or £12,000 – £20,000 plus VAT at 20% in total).

There are examples of the sort of circumstances where it will take longer to administer an estate:

• Where the original will cannot be located, or there is a dispute over the validity of the Will or disagreements in general between executors and/or beneficiaries.
• Where the deceased owned a property which has never been registered at the land registry
• Where the deceased had shareholdings, but the share certificates cannot be located
• Where the Will creates a complex trust which needs to be set up and overseen
• Where there are overseas assets or the deceased was not of UK domicile

Disbursements included in this fee (where applicable VAT is included at 20%):

• Probate application fee of £300 (plus £16 for each additional copy of the Grant)
• Bankruptcy-only Land Charges Department searches (£6 per beneficiary)
• £80 – £95 excluding VAT of 20% – Post in The London Gazette – Protects against unexpected claims from unknown creditors.
• £30 – £100 excluding VAT of 20% – Post in a Local Newspaper – This also helps to protect against unexpected claims.

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as court fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.

How long will this take?

On average, it can take between six to twelve months to obtain probate, and a further three to nine months to administer the estate depending on the circumstances.

Further information on the steps involved in obtaining probate can be found in our blog here.

LITIGATION AND DEBT RECOVERY

For the purposes of commencing legal proceedings for the recovery of an unpaid invoice, we would charge £1500 (exclusive of VAT at the current rate of 20%).

There would also be additional disbursements including a court fee which will range in value from £35.00 to £455.00 for an unpaid invoice of £10,000 or less, or for any unpaid invoice in excess of £10,000 the court fee will be calculated at 5% of the value of your claim.

There will be no VAT payable on the court fee.

Please note the above costs are calculated on the assumption legal proceedings conclude by entering Judgment in Default against the Defendant for the unpaid amount. In the event your Invoice is disputed or further action is required to enforce your Judgment then further costs would be payable in accordance with our hourly rates as provided in our client care letter. We always advise our clients that litigation should be a last resort. However in the event proceedings become necessary to recover sums due and owing to you, we at Alexander JLO would be more than happy to assist.

EMPLOYMENT

Our pricing for bringing and defending claims for unfair or wrongful dismissal

Simple case: £5,000 (excluding VAT, charged at 20%)

Medium complexity case: £8,000 (excluding VAT, charged at 20%)

High complexity case: £10,000 to £25,000(excluding VAT, charged at 20%)

We charge based on an hourly rate which varies depending on the member of staff dealing with your matter. Our lowest hourly rate is £250 plus VAT at 20% and our highest hourly rate is £425 plus VAT at 20%. The seniority of the members of staff dealing with your case will depend on its complexity. We will discuss this with you when you instruct us.

Factors that could make a case more complex:

• If it is necessary to make or defend applications to amend claims or to provide further information about an existing claim
• Defending claims that are brought by litigants in person
• Making or defending a costs application
• Complex preliminary issues such as whether the claimant is disabled (if this is not agreed by the parties)
• The number of witnesses and documents
• If it is an automatic unfair dismissal claim e.g. if you are dismissed after blowing the whistle on your employer
• Allegations of discrimination which are linked to the dismissal

There will be an additional charge for attending a Tribunal Hearing with Counsel of £1,000 per day (plus VAT, charged at 20%). Generally, we would allow 1-5 days depending on the complexity of your case.

Disbursements

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as court fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.

Counsel’s fees estimated between £2,500 to £5,000 per day excluding VAT, charged at 20% (depending on experience of the advocate) for attending a Tribunal Hearing (including preparation)

Key stages

The fees set out above cover all of the work in relation to the following key stages of a claim:

• Taking your initial instructions, reviewing the papers and advising you on merits and likely compensation (this is likely to be revisited throughout the matter and subject to change)
• Entering into pre-claim conciliation where this is mandatory to explore whether a settlement can be reached;
• Preparing claim or response
• Reviewing and advising on claim or response from other party
• Exploring settlement and negotiating settlement throughout the process
• preparing or considering a schedule of loss
• Preparing for (and attending) a Preliminary Hearing
• Exchanging documents with the other party and agreeing a bundle of documents
• Taking witness statements, drafting statements and agreeing their content with witnesses
• preparing bundle of documents
• Reviewing and advising on the other party’s witness statements
• agreeing a list of issues, a chronology and/or cast list
• Preparation and attendance at Final Hearing, including instructions to Counsel

The stages set out above are an indication and if some of stages above are not required, the fee will be reduced. You may wish to handle the claim yourself and only have our advice in relation to some of the stages. This can also be arranged on your individual needs.

How long will my matter take?

The time that it takes from taking your initial instructions to the final resolution of your matter depends largely on the stage at which your case is resolved. If a settlement is reached during pre-claim conciliation, your case is likely to take 8 weeks. If your claim proceeds to a Final Hearing, your case is likely to take up to 52 weeks. This is just an estimate and we will of course be able to give you a more accurate timescale once we have more information and as the matter progresses.

COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE

We want to give you the best possible service. However, if at any point you become unhappy or concerned about the service we have provided then you should inform us immediately, so that we can do our best to resolve the problem. In the first instance it may be helpful to contact the person who is working on your case to discuss your concerns and we will do our best to resolve any issues at this stage. If you would like to make a formal complaint, then you can read our full complaints procedure as set out below. Making a complaint will not affect how we handle your case.

Our complaints procedure

If you have a complaint, contact us with the details. What will happen next?

We will send you a letter acknowledging your complaint; we may ask you to confirm or explain the details set out. We will also let you know the name of the person who will be dealing with your complaint. You can expect to receive our letter within 7 days of us receiving your complaint.

We will record your complaint in our central register.

We will then start to investigate your complaint. This will normally involve the following steps:

• Peter Johnson as the partner who handles complaints on behalf of this firm will open a complaints file.
• He will ask the member or members of staff who acted for you to reply to Mr Johnson with his or her own response to your complaint.
• Mr Johnson will then consider and examine the staff member’s reply and the information on your file.
• Mr Johnson will then write to you with his initial views and set out his proposals for dealing with your complaint. He will do so no later than 8 weeks from the date on which your original complaint was received.  If you are still unhappy, then Mr Johnson will invite you to meet him and discuss and hopefully resolve your complaint or to enter into further discussion either on the telephone or by email/letter.
• If you are willing to meet with Mr Johnson then he will arrange for a meeting to take place at a time and place convenient to you both. Within 7 days of any meeting Mr Johnson will write to you to confirm what took place and any solutions he has agreed with you.

At this stage, or if you do not want to meet with Mr Johnson and if you are still not satisfied, you can write to us again. We will then arrange to review our decision. This will happen in one of the following ways, subject to your agreement:

• Another partner of the firm will review Mr Johnson’s decision within 10 days; or
• We will within 10 days ask another local firm of solicitors to review your complaint. We will let you know how long this process will take; or
• We will invite you to agree to independent mediation within 10 days. We will let you know how long this process will take.

If we are unable to settle your complaint using our internal complaints process, you then have a right to complain to the Legal Ombudsman. You will have six months from the date of our final letter in which to complain to the Legal Ombudsman who can be contacted on 0300 555 0333 or via its website at: www.legalombudsman.org.u

Alternative complaints bodies (such as Small Claims Mediation) exist which are competent to deal with complaints about legal services should you and we wish to use such a scheme. You can let us know as we reach the end of our internal complaints process whether you do or do not agree to use this scheme. The Solicitors Regulation Authority can help you if you are concerned about our behaviour. This could be for things like dishonesty, taking or losing your money or treating you unfairly because of your age, a disability or other characteristic. You can raise your concerns with the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

What do to if we cannot resolve your complaint

The Legal Ombudsman can help you if we are unable to resolve your complaint ourselves. They will look at your complaint independently and it will not affect how we handle your case. Before accepting a complaint for investigation, the Legal Ombudsman will check that you have tried to resolve your complaint with us first. If you have, then you can take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman:

A complaint to the Legal Ombudsman must be made:

• Within six months of receiving our final response to your complaint; and
• No more than one year from the date of the act or omission being complained about; or
• No more than one year from the date when you should reasonably have known that there was cause for complaint.

If you would like more information about the Legal Ombudsman, please contact the.: www.legalombudsman.org.uk or call: 0300 555 0333 between 9am to 5pm or email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk. Their address is

Legal Ombudsman
PO Box 6167
Slough
SL1 0EH

What to do if you are unhappy with our behaviour The Solicitors Regulation Authority can help if you are concerned about our behaviour.  This could be for things like dishonesty, taking or losing your money or treating you unfairly because of your age, a disability or other characteristic. Visit their website to see how you can raise your concerns with the Solicitors Regulation Authority