• Fixed fee for a straight forward Divorce is £1,350 inclusive of VAT and Court Fees.

• 1 X LPA £510, 2 X LPA £834, 4 X LPA £1194 all Inclusive of VAT plus £82 registration fee per LPA to the Office of the Public Guardian.

• A Basic will is £245 plus VAT and mirror basic wills are £340 plus VAT. VAT is currently charged at 20%.

There are two steps to administering an estate, first obtaining a Grant of Probate and second collecting in and distributing the estate.

SIMPLE ESTATES

Grant of Probate Only – Fixed Fee

Our fixed fee for obtaining only a Grant of Probate, where all the information necessary for completing the application is supplied by the client and there is no requirement to submit an Inheritance Tax account to HMRC, is £900 plus VAT. VAT is currently charged at 20%.

Grant of Probate and Administration of Estate

To obtain a Grant of Probate and to collect in and distribute a simple estate (as identified below) including arranging the proper settlement of debts, funeral and testamentary expenses before distributing the estate in accordance with the terms of the Will, our fee is likely to be in the range of £2,200 to £4,400 plus VAT where the number of hours work involved is expected to be between 10 to 20 hours charged at our hourly rate for experienced solicitors of £220 plus VAT. VAT is currently charged at 20%.
These fees apply where:

• the Deceased died domiciled in England and Wales;
• the Deceased died leaving a valid Will;
• you are providing us with all of the financial information and details of liabilities at date of death;
• there is no Inheritance Tax payable and the Executors do not need to submit a full account to Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs;
• there is no more than one property (note that any costs relating to the sale or transfer of the property are not included in the above fees);
• there are no more than three bank or building society accounts;
• there are no other intangible assets;
• there are no more than three beneficiaries ;
• there are no disputes between beneficiaries on the division of assets;
• there are no claims made against the estate;

Disbursements
In addition to our costs, there are fees that we may have to pay to a third party. They include:

• Probate Application Fee: currently £273 plus £1.50 per sealed copy of the Grant.
• Statutory Advertisements in the London Gazette and local newspapers. These protect the Executors against unexpected claims from unknown creditors. The costs are estimated to be in the region of £150 to £300 plus VAT. VAT is currently charged at 20%.
• Bankruptcy only Land Charges Department searches £2 per person.

Our Service
We will:

• identify the legally appointed executors or administrators and beneficiaries;
• identify the type of Probate application you will require;
• obtain the relevant documents required to make the application;
• complete the Probate Application;
• draft a Statement of Truth for you to sign;
• make the application to the Probate Court on your behalf;
• obtain the Grant of Probate; and
• if instructed to do so, collect in and distribute the estate assets
• keep you regularly updated with the progress of the matter

COMPLEX ESTATES
For more complex estates we would be pleased to provide a quote based on the particular circumstances of the estate. The quote would be calculated by reference to our hourly charge out rate for experienced solicitors of £220 plus VAT. VAT is currently charged at 20%.
Timescale
For simple, non-taxable estates, we expect to have the information to hand to complete the application for Grant of Probate within 2-3 months to the Probate Registry. The Probate Registry is currently setting a target of 16 weeks to process applications and issue a Grant.
For complex estates, we would advise about the likely timescale by reference to the particular circumstances.

Fixed fees on a sliding scale depending on property value. Fees are exclusive of VAT (currently charged at 20%).

Our charges for a SALE	FREEHOLD	LEASEHOLD	Our charges for a PURCHASE	FREEHOLD	LEASEHOLD
Under £150,000	£600	£675	Under £150,000	£650	£700
£150,000-£250,000	£675	£725	£150,000-£250,000	£725	£800
£250,000-£350,000	£775	£825	£250,000-£350,000	£825	£900
£350,000-£450,000	£875	£925	£350,000-£450,000	£925	£1000
£450,000-£550,000	£975	£1025	£450,000-£550,000	£1025	£1100
£550,000-£650,000	£1075	£1125	£550,000-£650,000	£1125	£1225
£650,000-£750,000	£1175	£1225	£650,000-£750,000	£1225	£1325

Above this level, prices will be costed individually – all fees are exclusive of VAT (currently charged at 20%). In addition to our charges you may need to pay for searches and other potential expenses (disbursements). Some general disbursements with guide prices (inclusive of VAT where applicable) are below but may increase according to your area and circumstances:

• Local Searches - From £120
• Drainage and Water Searches - £45
• Stone Search - £60
• Chancel Check - £24
• Coal Mining Search - £40-60
• Land Registry Searches - each search £3
• Land Charges Bankruptcy Search - each search £2
• Bank Transfer Fees - each transfer £36

Land Registry purchase fees are payable at the electronic rate shown on the calculator here.
Stamp Duty Land Tax payable for purchases is shown on the calculator here.
In addition to the above any estate agent’s sale fees that you have agreed directly with them may become payable on the sale of a property.

What is and is not normally included in our standard fee

On a purchase, we will normally:

• Check on ownership and any known or likely problems with the property and the use to which it may be put. By agreement with you, this may include obtaining and reporting on various types of search including local authority, environmental, water and drainage, and mining searches
• Reviewing documents and liaising with the other parties’ solicitors with relevant enquiries
• Make recommendations where necessary regarding policies of indemnity insurance
• Report to you on our findings regarding the property
• Exchange contracts and complete the purchase
• Carry out post-completion formalities to ensure the appropriate tax is paid and the property is registered in your name

We will not normally expect to be required to (although we can do so for an additional charge):

• Deal with title defects or problems related to ownership or alterations made to the property
• Engage in protracted negotiations with the seller

On a sale we will normally:

• Prepare the sale contract and send it to the buyer’s solicitors
• Respond to enquiries from the other party
• Exchange contracts and complete the sale
• Pay any money due to you and any mortgage lender We will not normally expect to be required to (although we can do so for an additional charge):
• Deal with any problems which emerge regarding your ownership of the property
• Engage in protracted negotiations with the buyer

Timescales

On average, a sale or purchase will take between six and 16 weeks but that depends to a great extent on whether the title is ‘clean’ and on the speed at which third parties (such as search providers or other parties involved in a chain) operate.