Higher costs for conveyancing firms as property sales become ever more complex and require more staff to complete are being passed on to home movers, it has been claimed.

Moverly says its data shows conveyancing fees paid by buyers and sellers have increased by up to 18% over the past 12 months, with homebuyers how paying an average of £1,375 when purchasing a freehold property, and £1,746 when purchasing a leasehold.

Overall there has been an annual increase of 13% for freehold costs, and 13.3% for leasehold costs. In the North East of England conveyancing fees have risen by 18%, the greatest rise in the UK.

“Conveyancing costs are rising due to a range of factors, and as market pressures increase they have an impact on timelines and therefore costs,” says Gemma Young, Co-Founder & CEO of Moverly tells The Neg.

“As demand for conveyancing increases, firms have to increase the amount of staff hours dedicated to getting the job done, and this cost is passed on to the customer.

Complexity

“This is also true for complexity – the more complex a case, the more hours are required to complete the process, and the more it costs.

But Young points out that it’s not just the conveyancing professionals who are contributing to rising costs and that fees are increasing across the entire sector including those charged by the Land Registry.

“So, it’s essentially the result of a number of driving factors, including regulatory requirements adding to workload; and the aforementioned rise in ancillary costs suchinflation; increased complexity in transactions; higher administrative and staffing costs; increased legal and as Land Reg fees,” adds Young.