Conveyancing disbursements are fees for third-party services that your solicitor pays on your behalf. They will add these to your final bill.
Disbursements are separate from the legal fees you pay your solicitor. They apply whether you’re buying or selling, but buyers usually face more of them.
Disbursements should be set out in your conveyancing fees quote issued by your solicitor alongside their legal fees. They include conveyancing searches, Land Registry fees and Stamp Duty. If you are buying a leasehold property, there will be additional disbursements according to the lease.
When Do I Pay Conveyancing Disbursements?
Most solicitors request an upfront payment (“payment on account”) to cover early costs like searches. The rest are added to your final bill, payable on completion.
Even with a no sale, no fee solicitor, you’ll still need to cover disbursements already paid out.
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Disbursements for Buying
Buyers face the most disbursements, especially for leasehold or Help to Buy transactions.
The main conveyancing disbursements are listed below and should be listed in your conveyancing quote. The prices shown are usually fixed fees, but can vary depending on location, your situation and other factors.
Local Authority Search
A Local Authority Search can tell you vital information about the property, such as whether it's located in a conservation or tree preservation area.
You can get a conveyancing search package made up of Local Authority, Environmental and Water and Drainage searches for around £250 - £450.
Environmental Search
Environmental Searches are another search in the conveyancing search pack and will provide risk assessments on certain environmental factors that may affect the property.
Water and Drainage Search
You will also need a water and drainage search when buying a house. The water and drainage search will be able to tell you if the property is connected to the public water and sewer system and how the house is charged for water supply.
Stamp Duty
Stamp Duty will have to be paid within 14 days of buying a house. In Wales, this was replaced with Land Transaction Tax (LTT) and Land and Buildings Transaction Tax replaced Stamp Duty in Scotland.
Find out what you could pay with our Stamp Duty Calculator.
HM Land Registry Copies
Your solicitor will need to carry out a Land Registry search after the exchange of contracts to check that the property register has not changed since the contract paperwork was issued by the seller’s solicitor. This costs around £3.
Bankruptcy Search
This is so that your lender can ensure you or anyone else named on the mortgage has been declared bankrupt. The cost is around £2 - £4 per person.
Bank Transfer
There will be a bank charge for sending the deposit to the seller's solicitor. This is usually £32 on average.
Mining Searches
If you live in a mining area, for example, your solicitor will arrange searches for the type of mining. Areas in Cornwall are likely to require Clay Mining searches, with South Wales and Yorkshire areas often needing coal mining searches. A residential mining report costs £58.55 including VAT.
Chancel Liability Search
If you live near a church, you might have to pay for the upkeep. Your solicitor can order a Chancel Liability Search, which ranges from £20-£100 plus VAT. However, in recent years many solicitors have opted for indemnity insurance in place of the search.
Disbursements for Buying Leasehold
There will be additional disbursements if the property you are buying is leasehold. Be aware that some of these may also apply if you are buying a freehold property with a management company, which is increasingly common with new build homes.
Notice of Transfer
A notice of transfer fee will be set out in the lease. This fee will be around £143.
Deed of Covenant
This is provided either by the management company for the property or the landlord. The average cost is £159.
Certificate of Compliance
This is also provided by either the management company or landlord. Typically this will cost around £179.
Notice of Charge Fee
If the property is to be mortgaged, a notice of charge fee will apply and will be set out in the lease. You can expect to pay £114 on average.
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Disbursements For Selling
Below we will cover the disbursements that need to be paid when selling a house. The prices shown are usually fixed, but can vary depending on location, your situation and other factors.
Land Registry Document Fee
Your solicitor will need to obtain Land Registry documents to show that you are the official owner. The documents will consist of a property register and a plan of the property, costing around £6.
Bank Transfer Fee
When selling your house, your solicitor will pay off your existing mortgage on the completion of the sale. They will also need to transfer any net proceeds of the sale due to you. The Bank Transfer Fee will be charged to process such payments. Each bank has its own rates but on average this will cost £34.
Indemnity Insurance
This isn't always required, but it may be something requested by your buyer's solicitor. This is usually the case if there are missing Building Regulation certificates, for example. This is around £132 on average, with the cost varying depending on the reason for the insurance and what it covers. Your solicitor will pay the insurance premium to the insurer and include the cost among the disbursements due upon exchange or completion.
Prices are based on our cost data, received directly from user feedback.
Instruct a Conveyancing Solicitor
A conveyancer will be able to explain the conveyancing disbursements to you, setting out what they are and what they cost. Once you're ready to start your property journey, Compare My Move can connect you with up to 6 conveyancing solicitors so you can compare conveyancers, saving you both time and money.
To give you peace of mind at this time, all of our conveyancing partners have passed our strict verification process and are regulated by either the SRA, CLC, LSS, LSNI or CILEx.
Need a Surveyor?
If you're also looking for a surveyor, fill in our integrated conveyancing and surveying comparison form to get connected today. All surveying partners offering Level 2 and Level 3 surveys are RICS regulated and those offering Snagging Surveys for new build homes will be regulated by either RICS or RPSA.
FAQs
Do you pay disbursements if the sale falls through?
Yes, you will still have to pay any disbursements that have been paid out during the transaction if it falls through.
Do I pay disbursements if I use a no-sale, no-fee solicitor?
Even if you have a no-sale, no-fee agreement with your solicitor, you will still have to cover the cost of any disbursements that have been paid out during the conveyancing process. No-sale, no-fee will only apply to the legal work completed by the solicitor.
How long does a property transaction take?
A property transaction in the UK typically takes from 3 to 12 months on average. The most time-consuming part of the process is often conveyancing, due to the legal nature of the process.
