What are the conveyancing costs in Southend on Sea?
The conveyancing costs are broken into two sections: the fixed fee you pay your solicitor, and the conveyancing disbursements (known as third-party costs). Here is a transparent breakdown of both costs for property transactions in your area.
1. Solicitor Legal Fees
At SAM Conveyancing, our fixed legal fees remain consistent nationwide, regardless of your property's location. We provide a guaranteed fixed fee for standard residential conveyancing based on your property's purchase price, its tenure (freehold or leasehold), and whether your transaction involves a mortgage or utilises affordable housing schemes such as shared ownership. Below are the current fixed conveyancing fees for a standard freehold valued at £250,000.
- Sale or Purchase: £748 INC VAT INC VAT (plus an additional £60 INC VAT if purchasing with a mortgage).
- Transfer of Equity: £399 INC VAT INC VAT
- Help to Buy Loan Repayment: £333 INC VAT INC VAT
- Shared Ownership Staircasing: £748 INC VAT INC VAT
- Remortgage: £399 INC VAT INC VAT
- Lease Extension: £720 INC VAT INC VAT
2. Conveyancing Disbursements (Third-Party Costs)
Disbursements are fixed third-party fees paid to external bodies (like local councils and HM Land Registry) to complete your legal paperwork. These costs shouldn't vary too much from solicitor to solicitor.
- Property Purchase Tax (SDLT / LTT): Calculated dynamically based on your purchase price, your buyer status (such as a first-time buyer), and whether the property is located in England or Wales.
- HM Land Registry Fee: Ranges from £20.00 to £1,105.00, scale-calculated dynamically based on your property’s purchase price and whether it is an existing registered property or a new build.
- Conveyancing Search Bundle: £325 INC VAT (Includes Local Authority, Water & Drainage & Environmental)
- Online ID Fee: Ranges from £15 to £48 and avoids having to send personal documents in the post or visit our office in order to prove your ID.
- Mortgage Portal Fee: The cost to download your mortgage offer and communicate with your lender. It is £12 if your mortgage lender uses the Lender Exchange portal, or £45 INC VAT if they use the LMS Portal.
Conveyancing search costs and turnaround for Southend on Sea
Search Provider | Cost | Turnaround Time |
|---|---|---|
Search Provider Southend-on-Sea Borough Council This is the local authority search, which is mandatory if you are obtaining a mortgage. | Cost £125.00 INC any VAT | Turnaround Time 5 to 7 Working Days |
Search Provider Anglian Water This is the Water & Drainage Search, which is mandatory if you are obtaining a mortgage. | Cost £83.40 INC VAT | Turnaround Time 1 to 2 working days |
Southend on Sea Specific Searches |
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Why choose SAM Conveyancing Solicitors in Southend on Sea?
We are a hand-selected panel of SRA-regulated solicitors who deliver to you the high standards we expect, and you'll have a member of the SAM team to guide you through the process from start to finish. Just 1 person you know by name can email or call directly and get your question answered on the same day (normally instantly).
Doing it our way, we've helped over 56,000 clients and gained all the experience from the different transactions. From pressurising agents to complex legal enquiries, and even overcoming issues with your mortgage lender. Our strap line is Property Challenges Solved because that is simply what we do, day in, day out.
Get in contact today and see from the very first call why we are the best conveyancing solicitors for a property transaction in Southend on Sea.
Expert Tip: Check your Chancel Liability search
Certain parishes in and around Southend on Sea still carry historic Chancel Repair Liabilities. Even if not immediately obvious on the title deeds, your conveyancer must conduct a specific Chancel Search to ensure you aren't legally bound to fund repairs to the local parish church roof.
You can find this information in a specific Chancel Repair search purchased during the conveyancing process.
Partner & Conveyancing Solicitor
We're first-time-buyer friendly
86% of our purchase clients are First-Time Buyers, so we are hyper-attuned to what you need when buying your first home.
- We take the time to explain the process
- We offer tips on timescales
- We keep it real, never overpromising
Our Conveyancing Services
We can help with all of your conveyancing needs; simple to complex, and always affordable.
- Purchase
- Sale
- Transfer
- Remortgage
- Help to Buy Repayment
- Help to Buy Sale or Transfer
- Auction Sale or Purchase
- Shared Ownership Sale & Purchase
- Shared Ownership Staircasing
- Lease Extension
- Purchase of Freehold
- New Builds & Off-plan Purchases
- First Time Buyers
- Second Homes
- Buy to Let landlords
Fixed quote for our legal costs plus a budget-friendly breakdown of third-party disbursements.
Your sale or purchase is protected by our no sale, no fee guarantee.
Our panel solicitors are pre-approved to work with 99% of mortgage lenders in England & Wales.
Panel solicitors accredited by the Conveyancing Quality Scheme; regulated by the SRA.
Residential Conveyancing Solicitors in and around Southend on Sea
Our Southend on Sea conveyancing solicitors can help you with your conveyance locally or in any of the surrounding areas, including Rochford, Hadleigh, Hawkwell, Rayleigh, Great Wakering, Ongar and Paglesham.
We have many offices throughout England and Wales, so you can find a solicitor near you.
- Tintern Avenue, Amersham on the Hill, Southend on Sea, Essex, SS0 9QH
- 36 Claremont Road, Westcliff-on-sea, Essex, SS0 7DZ
- Top Floor Flat, 7 Devereux Road, Southend on Sea, Essex, SS1 1DR
- Hamlet Ct Rd, Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, SS0 7LN
- Eastwood Rd N, Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, SS9 4LS
- Beaumont Court (apartments) – off Bexter Avenue, Southend On Sea.
Developed by haart.
Southend on Sea Property Prices
Average property price in Southend on Sea Source: lasted updated on | £374,717 |
What is the population of Southend on Sea: Source: Office for National Statistics lasted updated in the 2021 Cencus | 174,800 |
Thinking of moving to Southend on Sea?
Southend is a seaside town in Essex, north of the Thames estuary, 40 miles east of Central London and has the longest leisure pier in the world. It has its own airport (mainly domestic with some European flights) and its railway station gives good access to London, via Liverpool Street. It has great shopping, hosts festivals, and its Focal Point Gallery is a great place to view visual artistry.
There are many attractions and landmarks in the locale. Two Tree Island is a wildlife nature reserve, Cliffs Pavilion is an arts venue with 2 theatres and panoramic dining and Hadleigh Castle is worth a visit - it's a 13th-century ruined castle which overlooks the Thames estuary and the Essex marshes.
Southend University Hospital, Prittlewell Chase, Westcliff-on-Sea, SS0 0RY
Spire Wellesley Hospital, Eastern Ave, Southend-on-Sea, SS2 4XH
BMI Southend Private Hospital, 15-17 Fairfax Dr, Westcliff-on-Sea, SS0 9AG
Southend Station is the terminus of a line that connects it to London Fenchurch Street via Barking and Upminster (both of these are on the District Line tube). The A127 is the main road, linking the town to other urban areas and heading in towards London.
Distance to Airports from Southend-on-Sea
| Airport | miles by car |
| Stansted | 38.3 miles |
| Gatwick | 59.6 miles |
| Luton | 63.5 miles |
Shoeburyness High School, Caulfield Rd, Southend-on-Sea, SS3 9LL
Chase High School, Prittlewell Chase, Westcliff-on-Sea, SS0 0RT
Southend High School for Girls, Southchurch Blvd, Southend-on-Sea, SS2 4UZ
Local conveyancing solicitor
Are local, licensed conveyancing solicitors near me more expensive?
Buyers and sellers alike often start the process by searching online for conveyancing solicitors in Southend on Sea. But, can you find a better service, when you widen the search?
With advanced online security, you are no longer restricted to having to work with a licenced conveyancer near you. Often, an online conveyancing solicitor who specialises in property transactions will be preferable to a local one.
Affordable Housing Schemes
Several affordable housing schemes in Southend on Sea help make buying a property more achievable. The work is more complex, and we have specialist conveyancing solicitors to handle the following:
- Shared Ownership Solicitors
- Right to Buy Solicitors - speak to Southend-on-Sea Borough Council to find out if you are eligible
- Discount Market Sale - check with Southend-on-Sea Borough Council if they are running a DMS scheme
Southend on Sea conveyancing solicitors
You can rest assured that you're in good hands with us. We hand select our panel for skill and experience, from a simple purchase to complex transactions with specialist ownership structures and deeds of trust.
Are you buying or selling a short lease in Southend on Sea?
If there are 80 years or less on the leasehold, it will be harder to mortgage. Whether you're buying or selling, consider extending the lease, which may be done before, during, or in some cases after the transaction.
Our specialist leasehold conveyancing solicitors have vast experience handling the extension of a short lease for buyers and sellers. Speak to a SAM advisor for inclusive, fixed-fee, conveyancing quotes for leasehold conveyancing or share of freehold conveyancing today. Property Challenges Solved.
Look no further for your residential conveyancing solicitor in Southend on Sea
Whatever your property challenge, we can solve it.
Selling a property
Your expert conveyancing solicitor's role when selling a property will include:
- Draft contracts – Your conveyancing solicitor drafts the initial legal contract to be sent to the buyer's solicitor.
- Responding to enquiries – your solicitor responds to any questions the buyer's solicitor may have (this is where you'll find out if you are missing documents, which can cause delays to your sale).
- Investigating issues – your solicitor may need to complete further investigation to try and satisfy them.
- Exchange contracts – once the buyer's solicitor has satisfied their enquiries, contracts are finalised and exchanged.
- On the day of completion – your solicitor receives the money for the sale, discharges the mortgage (if required), pays the estate agent, deducts their fee and then sends the net sale proceeds to you.
- Post completion – your solicitor receives the DS1 discharge documents and, when leasehold, settles your liabilities for ground rent and service charges.
Our conveyancing solicitors' cost for selling a property starts from £748 INC VAT.
Buying a home
- Draft contracts – Your solicitor reviews the draft contract sent by the seller's solicitor.
- Raising enquiries – your solicitor will ask the seller's solicitor questions based on the contract, title, and property documents to protect you from any nasty surprises.
- Exchange contracts – once your solicitor is satisfied with their enquiries, they agree with the seller to finalise and exchange contracts
- Day of completion – on the day of completion, your solicitor transfers the money for the sale.
- Post completion – following completion, your solicitor makes an application to HM Land Registry to register you as the new owner.
Our Southend on Sea conveyancing solicitors' cost for buying a property starts from £748 INC VAT.
Add or remove someone from a property title
With a Transfer of Equity, you can buy someone out of a shared property and remove them from the title, or add someone to the title to transfer ownership of a share of the property, making them a joint owner. This service includes:
- Property solicitors' fees, including ID checks, office copies
- HM Land Registration fees
- (if party being removed) ID1 Form verification fee
- (if mortgage) Change of mortgage fee
- (if leasehold) Notice fee to freeholder
Our Southend on Sea conveyancing solicitors' cost for a Transfer of Equity starts at £399 INC VAT.
If someone is giving up their share of the property for less than market value, they may be required to get independent legal advice, which will be an additional expense.
Switch your mortgage deal in Southend on Sea
Your remortgage solicitor will perform all the necessary checks, review your new mortgage offer, and update HM Land Registry post-completion. The process is similar to when you purchase but should take less time, as the solicitor doesn't need to raise any legal enquiries.
If you own a leasehold property, your solicitor must carry out extra work to investigate the lease terms. Our conveyancing solicitors' cost for a remortgage in Southend on Sea starts at £399 INC VAT.
Purchase the next chunk of your equity
When you're ready to buy the next chunk of the equity in your shared ownership property, a conveyancer will be required to handle:
- The bank transfer;
- obtaining a mortgage redemption statement from your existing lender;
- receiving your new mortgage offer and confirming the lender terms;
- receiving the memorandum of staircasing;
- handling completion;
- filing SDLT form (if required); and
- registration at the Land Registry.
Our conveyancing solicitors' cost for shared ownership staircasing in Southend on Sea starts at £823 INC VAT.
If you need to add someone to the legal title, you will need to pay an additional fee for a transfer of equity.
Paying off your Help to Buy equity loan
You'll need a solicitor to:
- Receive redemption letter;
- review title for ownership and restrictions;
- obtain Authority to Complete;
- draft a deed of postponement for your current lender;
- handling completion;
- bank transfer; and
- if repaid in full, removal of the loan restriction at the Land Registry.
Our conveyancing solicitors' cost for Help to Buy loan redemption in Southend on Sea starts at £333 INC VAT.
Price based on a freehold with the loan being repaid in full using savings.
Islamic finance solicitors
Specialists in Sharia-compliant conveyancing for Islamic mortgages.
- Can review, advise and negotiate with all Sharia Mortgage Lenders.
- Terms of the contract fully explained with confirmation of Sharia compliance and UK legal compliance.
- We can help with Ijara (Lease), Diminishing Musharaka (Reducing Partnership), and Murabaha (Cost-Plus Financing).
Conveyancing FAQs
What are the conveyancing costs?
Fees vary between online conveyancing solicitors, high street conveyancers or housing solicitors introduced by your estate agent.
The actual conveyancing costs, outside of the legal work, should be fixed, including:
For buyers: stamp duty, land registration, property searches, ID searches and leasehold charges (if buying a leasehold property).
For sellers: office copies, title plan and management information (if selling a leasehold property).
Make sure to budget for all of the above conveyancing costs and to get a fixed fee conveyancing quote from several firms, to compare value.
Making the right choice of solicitor is key to the whole process:
- Cheap Conveyancing
- Fast Conveyancing
- Best Conveyancing Service
When does your solicitor pay your stamp duty?
After you complete, your solicitor has 30 days to file your stamp duty land tax return and pay any tax due.
They also register your property at the Land Registry and pay the appropriate fee. It can take anywhere between 1 – 6 months for your property to be registered – Land Registry is still working at clearing a considerable backlog!
