Solicitor Fees for Buying a House: What You Pay, Line by Line

Our fees to buy a freehold home under £2 million with one mortgage are £1,010 to £1,910 + VAT (£1,212 to £2,292 including VAT), depending on the price. Stamp Duty and the Land Registry fee are set by the government and are not part of our fee.

This guide explains what each line pays for and what else to budget for. Our price list is on our conveyancing fees page. Government figures were checked on 27 October 2026.

How much are solicitor fees for buying a house at each price?

This is our fee for a standard purchase with one mortgage, before disbursements, Stamp Duty and the HM Land Registry fee.

At exactly £500,000 or £750,000, your written quote confirms which band applies. For £2 million or more, we confirm the fee in your written quote.

Every client receives a written, itemised quote before instructing us. Get my quote to see the fee for your price.

What does the solicitor's fee cover, line by line?

On a £300,000 freehold home bought with a mortgage, your quote lists these lines.

That adds up to £1,010 + VAT. VAT of £202 brings it to £1,212 including VAT.

Before completion you get a completion statement with the final figures: see completion statement explained. Not included: a survey, indemnity premiums, freeholder or managing-agent charges, or lender charges. If your lender instructs its own solicitors, Dealing with your lender's own solicitors (£300 + VAT) is added.

What do conveyancing solicitors do?

Conveyancing is the legal work of moving a property from the seller to the buyer. We check the contract, the title and the searches, raise questions with the seller's solicitor, and explain what they mean for you and your mortgage offer. We then exchange contracts, complete, deal with your Stamp Duty and register you as the owner. Our buying a house page sets out each step.

What are disbursements?

Disbursements are costs we pay to other people on your behalf. They are shown apart from our fee. On a typical purchase they are:

Together they are typically £319 for one buyer and £341 for two, including VAT where it applies. Most of that is the search pack, and we confirm the exact figure once we know the property.

How much are Stamp Duty and the Land Registry fee?

These are set by the government, paid on top of our fees and disbursements, and never added into our total.

Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) applies in England and Northern Ireland. Wales has Land Transaction Tax instead. If it will be your only home, the standard SDLT rates are:

You pay each rate only on the part of the price inside its band. First-time buyers pay nothing up to £300,000 and 5% on the part from £300,001 to £500,000. Above £500,000 the relief is lost in full. Buying another home usually adds 5% to every band. Buyers who are not UK resident usually pay a further 2%.

Your solicitor normally files the return and pays the tax on completion day, from money you send beforehand. The legal deadline is 14 days after completion, as when Stamp Duty is paid explains.

The HM Land Registry fee registers you as the owner and is based on the price. For an existing home registered online, the Land Registry fee scale gives:

There is no separate fee for registering your mortgage when it goes in with the transfer.

A worked example: a £300,000 home

A freehold home in England for £300,000, bought by one person with a mortgage, as their own home.

Paid to us:

Paid to the government, separately:

Our conveyancing cost calculator works out your costs from buying to completion at your own price, with the government charges shown apart from our fees.

What other costs are there when buying a house?

A purchase has other costs beyond the legal side, often called the hidden costs of buying a house. They are paid to other people, so they are not in our quote, but they belong in your budget from the start.

Ask your lender and broker what applies to your deal. This is general information, not financial advice. The government's guide to preparing to buy lists more costs to budget for.

When are our fees and disbursements paid?

Stamp Duty and the HM Land Registry fee are sent at the same time but shown separately on your completion statement, which shows exactly how much to send.

What changes the fee?

• Buying without a mortgage. The Mortgage Handling/Admin Fee and the Lender Portal Management Fee are not charged. A freehold home under £500,000 bought with cash is £835 + VAT.
• Buying a leasehold flat. The fee scale is higher at most prices. A leasehold home under £500,000 bought with a mortgage is £1,260 + VAT.
• New build. A new-build home is priced on a higher fee scale, and New Build Property (£250 + VAT) is added to it.
• Extra work. Shared ownership, a defective title, bridging, buy-to-let or a halal or Islamic mortgage are charged as an additional fixed fee, typically £50 to £750 + VAT per item. It is added to the transaction fee and agreed in writing before the work starts.

What extra costs come with buying a flat?

"Dealing with Leasehold" is already included in the leasehold fee at every price band. It is not added on top of the £1,260 to £2,060 + VAT figures above. Freeholder or managing-agent charges are not included.

Other costs to expect on a flat:

• The LPE1 and the management pack. We ask the freeholder or managing agent for information, often on a form called the LPE1, and for the leasehold information pack, known as the management pack. It shows the service charge, reserve fund and planned works. The freeholder or managing agent sets its own charge for the pack, shown apart from our fee. Who pays on a purchase depends on the contract and the freeholder's terms, so ask us before you exchange.
• Service charge and ground rent. Service charge is your share of running and repairing the building. Under the Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act 2022, most new long leases granted from 30 June 2022 can charge no more than a peppercorn rent, which in practice means none. Older leases may charge ground rent. GOV.UK explains service charges and other expenses, including major works and reserve funds.
• Dealing with Building Safety Act (£500 + VAT). This applies to a flat in a building in England of five or more storeys, or over 11 metres, on a purchase or a sale.

Our guide to buying a leasehold flat covers the rest.

Do first-time buyers pay less?

Our fee scale is the same for a first-time buyer. A Gifted Deposit Check, or using a Lifetime ISA or Help to Buy (ISA), is extra work, charged as an additional fixed fee. What usually changes is the Stamp Duty: first-time buyer relief means nothing to pay on the first £300,000, as long as the price is £500,000 or less, every buyer is a first-time buyer and it will be your main home. Our legal fees for first-time buyers page explains what we do on a first purchase.

How long does it take, and what if the purchase falls through?

A freehold purchase typically takes 8 to 10 weeks and a leasehold one 10 to 12 weeks, from instruction to completion, depending on your chain, the searches and your lender. Our guide to how long conveyancing takes goes through each stage.

To move sooner, we can fast-track your file: 6 to 8 weeks freehold and 8 to 10 weeks leasehold, for £500 + VAT paid on completion. If we miss the fast-track timescale you do not pay the fast-track fee, unless the delay is outside our control, for example caused by the other side, the lender or the chain. In either case, your file stays on fast-track.

If your purchase falls through, you pay the File Opening Fee (Non-refundable), £100 + VAT, and any disbursements we have already paid out on your behalf, such as searches. Anything else you have paid us is refunded, or carried over to your next property when you find one.

Questions people ask

Do solicitor fees include Stamp Duty?

No. Stamp Duty is a tax paid to HMRC and is not part of our fee. In Wales, Land Transaction Tax is paid to the Welsh Revenue Authority. Our fee does include the Preparation of SDLT forms line, which covers preparing the return. The tax itself is shown separately in your quote.

Who pays solicitor fees, the buyer or the seller?

Each side pays its own solicitor. As the buyer, you pay your solicitor's fee and the disbursements on your purchase. The seller pays their own solicitor for the sale.

What fees do you have to pay when buying a house?

Your solicitor's fee and disbursements, Stamp Duty if the price is over the threshold, the Land Registry fee, a survey, any mortgage fees, buildings insurance and removals. A flat adds a service charge and sometimes ground rent. Each is explained above. Most of the big items are due shortly before completion.

How do I compare conveyancing quotes?

Check that each quote shows the legal fee, the VAT and the disbursements separately, and says what extra work costs. Stamp Duty and the Land Registry fee are set by the government, so the fees and disbursements are the part to compare. Use the checklist below, or a checklist for comparing conveyancing solicitors.

How much is Stamp Duty on my purchase?

It depends on the price and on whether you are a first-time buyer or will own another home. The rates are in the Stamp Duty section above. Our guide to Stamp Duty rates and reliefs has worked examples.

Why do solicitors take 25 percent?

Conveyancing is not charged as a percentage of the price. Our fee is a fixed fee set by price band, shown in the table above. If a quote shows a percentage, ask what it is a percentage of.

Is it better to use the same solicitor for buying and selling?

It is often simpler, with one file and one point of contact, but it depends on your timing. Our page on fees when you buy and sell together sets out the combined fees, and our guide to what it costs on the selling side covers the sale.

How much is a solicitor for 1 hour?

Conveyancing is charged as a fixed fee, so there is no hourly bill. Hourly rates apply only where a fixed fee does not fit your matter. They run from £100 to £270 + VAT depending on who does the work, and we agree them with you in writing first. See our hourly rates.

How do I check a quote?

Use this list on any conveyancing quote, ours or another firm's.

1. The legal fee is shown with the lines that make it up.
2. VAT is shown, so you can see the total including VAT.
3. Disbursements are listed apart from the fee, and any estimate is marked as one.
4. Extra work is named, with its price, and agreed in writing before it starts.
5. Stamp Duty and the HM Land Registry fee are shown apart from the legal fees, never in one total.
6. It says what you pay if the purchase falls through.
7. It gives a timescale for a freehold or leasehold purchase.

Our what a fixed-fee quote includes guide lists what a fixed fee covers, and you can ask for a written quote for your own purchase.

Sources

• Our fees: our fee scale, checked 27 October 2026, and our conveyancing fees.
• Stamp Duty: rates and first-time buyer relief and when it is paid, GOV.UK. Wales: Land Transaction Tax.
• Land Registry fees, GOV.UK.
• Costs to budget for: preparing to buy and how to buy a home, GOV.UK.
• Service charges, reserve funds, major works and ground rent, GOV.UK.
• Home survey levels from RICS, and estate agents' fees from Citizens Advice.
• Transparency Rules from the SRA, which require us to publish our costs.

Government figures (Stamp Duty and Land Registry fees) were checked on GOV.UK on 27 October 2026.

This is general information about the cost of buying a home, not advice on your purchase. Our fees are for a standard transaction, and your written quote confirms the exact figure. Tax rates and government fees change, so check the figures that apply on the day you complete.