Compare Property Conveyancing Solicitors in Bristol
Moving to Bristol? Save on Your Property Conveyancing Costs
When moving to Bristol, you’ll need to hire a conveyancer to handle the legal side of your house purchase. Compare My Move can connect you with up to 5 of our licensed conveyancing partners, helping you save up to 70% on your conveyancing fees in Bristol.
Our partners join Compare My Move only after strict verification by our experienced team and all our conveyancing partners are regulated by the SRA, CLC, LSS, LSNI or CILEx. Not only will they handle the legal side of your property purchase, ensuring the property is transferred to the new owner on completion day, they will also organise essential searches on the home and surrounding land.
With the price of property in Bristol at some of the highest in the UK, you’ll want to be sure you are making a sound investment, which is why it’s important to hire a licensed conveyancer or conveyancing solicitor.
Our Bristol Conveyancing Solicitors
FAQs About Conveyancing in Bristol
Our research shows that the average conveyancing costs in Bristol are £1,390 when buying and £1,340 when selling. It takes, on average, 166 days to complete the conveyancing process in the city.
Due to the harbour and the path of the river Avon, many areas of Bristol could be at risk of flooding. However, your conveyancer will highlight any environmental issues after the searches are complete.
Why Hire a Bristol Conveyancer?
To help you through the buying and selling process, your conveyancer will take care of the legal side of the transaction. They will explain any legal jargon you're unsure of and help you through each step of the process. Due to the city's popularity, property in Bristol is highly sought after, resulting in the conveyancing process taking longer at times.
According to the UK House Price Index, there were 90,747 existing properties sold in Bristol over the last year and 4,472 new builds sold. Detached properties saw the biggest increase in price, rising by 11.8% in June 2022 alone. It's vital you instruct a conveyancer as soon as an offer has been agreed upon as it'll ensure a more efficient process. The stages of the conveyancing process include:
- Offers agreed
- Conveyancing searches ordered (if buying)
- Liaise with mortgage lender to finalise
- Agree on the completion date
- Check the contract and raise pre-contract enquiries
- Exchange contracts
- Completion day
- Pay any Stamp Duty
The length and requirements involved in the conveyancing process will vary depending on the circumstances of the transaction. For example, additional steps will be added if you’re buying or selling a leasehold property.
Data taken from UK House Price Index
How Much are Conveyancing Solicitor Fees in Bristol?
As Bristol has an average house price of £366,046, the average conveyancing fees for buying a freehold property is £1,390 and £1,560 if the property is leasehold. The average conveyancing cost for selling a freehold property in Bristol is £1,340 and £1,490 for a leasehold home.
Your final conveyancing costs will depend on a variety of factors, including your location, whether you're buying or selling the property and how complicated your case is. It will typically be made up of the conveyancer’s legal fee and conveyancing disbursements.
These disbursements include Land Registry fees and property searches if you’re buying. According to the Bristol Council website, the cost of a full local authority search in the city is £114.40 inc VAT.
Data taken from Compare My Move’s Moving House Calculator
How Long Does Conveyancing Take in Bristol?
According to our research, it takes around 285 days for a property sale to reach completion in Bristol. However, less than half of this time is taken over by the conveyancing process. Just 166 days out of the 285 are spent on the legal side of the transaction once an offer has been accepted.
The average length of the conveyancing process in England and Wales is 156 days, according to the previously mentioned data. This means that the average length recorded in Bristol, South West England, is only 10 days longer than the national average. However, it's important to note that this timescale will vary, depending on a variety of factors such as the difficulty of the case.
Another major factor that affects the length of the conveyancing process, is whether the property is freehold or leasehold. Buying and selling leasehold properties will take longer due to the additional paperwork required.
Data taken from Get Agent
What to Expect From Conveyancing Searches in Bristol?
As part of the conveyancing process, your solicitor will order conveyancing searches. These are made up of a Local Authority search, Environmental search and Water and Drainage search. This step in the process will check if the property and its surrounding land poses a threat, revealing risk of flooding, subsidence, ground stability and radon gas.
According to the local government, approximately 22,300 Bristol residents are at risk of surface flooding, with the city being recognised as one of the UK’s top 10 Flood Risk Areas that are susceptible to surface water flooding. The most high-risk areas include Ashton, Southmead, Henbury, Hengrove, St George and the base of Dundry Hills.
According to Geobear, Bristol also has a high recording of subsidence, possibly due to the city's history of mining. Bristol once had a large mining community, with open cast mining recorded as early as 1670. Coal mining took place in areas such as Kingswood and in Bedminster, where there were a dozen mines by the 1820s, affecting ground stability greatly.
Data taken from Bristol City Council and Geobear's Subsidence Map
