The cost of buying a home is to be reduced
shortly following an announcement from the government agency responsible for
maintaining the register of property titles, The Land Registry.
If you have purchased a property you
will be aware that on the sale of any property the buyer’s solicitor has to
apply for registration of the transfer with the Land Registry, and pay a fee for
the service.
The good news for home buyers is that the Land Registry has announced that it will be halving the fees it charges home buyers as from
17 March, with the immediate consequence that the transfer fee for an
average-priced home will fall from £190 to £95.
This registration fee is payable after
the purchase transaction completes, so the benefit of the reduced fees will be
passed on to buyers whose purchases are completed on or after 17th
March.
The amount of the fee is based on a
scale varying with the purchase price.
This reduction has come about due to
the Land Registry’s electronic Document registration Service (e-DRS) which
allows buyers’ solicitors to submit the majority of transfer applications
digitally. This has also led to a reduction
in the time it takes to register the title with the Land Registry.
Here is a guide to the new fee
structure for the electronic submission of applications.
|
Purchase price
|
Old fee
|
New fee
|
|
£0 to £50,000
|
£40
|
£20
|
|
£50,001 to £80,000
|
£70
|
£20
|
|
£80,001 to £100,000
|
£120
|
£40
|
|
£100,001 to £200,000
|
£190
|
£95
|
|
£200,001 to £500,000
|
£270
|
£135
|
|
£500,001 to £1 million
|
£540
|
£270
|
|
Over £1 million
|
£910
|
£455
|
Morgan Jones and Pett are solicitors who provide legal advice and services to clients based in England and Wales and who can be contacted on 01603877000 or via email at davidpett@m-j-p.co.uk
