Pricing Structure: SRA Transparency Rules : 2018

Staff: our people involved in doing the work will include :

David Warren Jones

Sole principal and head of our team : Solicitor with over 35 years’ experience specialising in residential conveyancing : lease extensions and private client work : lasting powers of attorney : David has lived and worked in Bournville and Astwood Bank for many years and has helped hundreds of families and individuals.

Susan Clark

Chartered legal executive with over 30 years’ experience specialising in Wills Probate and freehold reversions : Susan has been an invaluable member of team for over (24) years.

supported by :

Sonia Lawrence – Senior Legal Secretary (10) plus

Ann Bennet – Senior Legal Secretary (20) plus

Karen Hawkins – Senior Legal Secretary (25) plus

collectively over (55) years’ experience in residential conveyancing and private client work

References : our existing clients have said of us

• a very professional and thorough team
• as first time buyers, your advice and explanation throughout was excellent
• I have always been treated kindly and always met a friendly atmosphere
• I was most impressed by your service and will not hesitate to recommend you in the future
• impressed by attention to detail and explanation of jargon
• many thanks to you and your staff for all the work and detailed attention you gave to the matter
• thank you so much for all your efficient thorough and extremely professional service
• thank you for all your help and support in buying our first home : we really appreciate everything you’ve done
• we wouldn’t hesitate to recommend your services in the future
• our sincere thanks for all your patience and kind help and support

What is involved

We understand the stress involved in moving home :

the work we will carry out will involve : (sale)

• taking of instructions and provision of initial advice

• checking that your financial arrangements are in place

• obtaining land registry entries : advise on and drafting contract for sale

• submission of property information and fittings and contents forms

• reply to enquiries of buyer’s solicitors

• give you advice on all documents and information received

• obtain redemption statement from your lender

• personal meeting to discuss and sign contract papers

• liaise with your selling agents throughout

• agree a completion date

• exchange contracts and notify you when this has happened

• complete sale

• redemption of mortgage : settle agent’s account

• account to you for sale proceeds

the work we will carry out will involve : (purchase)

• taking of instructions and provision of initial advice

• checking that your financial arrangements are in place

• receive and advise on contract documents

• carry out searches

• obtaining further planning documentation if required

• make necessary enquiries of seller’s solicitors

• give you advice on all documents and information received

• go through conditions of mortgage with you

• personal meeting to discuss and sign contract/mortgage papers

• draft Transfer deed

• advise on joint ownership

• agree a completion date : date from which you will own the property

• exchange contracts and notify you this has happened

• obtain pre completion searches

• arrange for all monies needed to be received from your lender and you

• complete purchase

• deal with payment of SDLT : Stamp Duty Land Tax

• deal with application for registration at Land Registry

What is not included : obviously our fees do not include any external costs and charges that we may incur as part of the process : (eg estate agents commissions : removal costs) : you will be responsible for these items

Instruction : contact us on (0121 414 1949) or by email (info@davidwarrenjones.co.uk) or fax on (0121 471 3181) if you wish to instruct us on your matter or should you have any further enquiries/questions before making your choice of legal representative

Timescales : how long will the process take :

this is difficult to estimate as the overall length of time can depend on a number of factors some of which may well be outside your or our control : general guide :

freehold house

leasehold flat

this timescale can of course, be quicker or slower depending on the parties in the chain : for example : first time buyer at the bottom of the chain / new build property at the top of the chain

Please note we also undertake :

• wills : simple and tax/care home fee efficient

• probate : grant only or full administration

• powers of attorney : EPA registration or full LPA process

Examples of overall costs : sale (s)

 All Professional fees will be subject to VAT (20%) 

(1) sale freehold house £250.000 : no mortgage

legal fees : £507.00 plus vat plus disbursements : £15.00 plus vat : 626.40

(2) sale : freehold house £250.000 : subject to mortgage

legal fees : £557.00 plus vat plus disbursements : £15.00 plus vat : 686.40

(3) sale leasehold house £250.000 : no mortgage

legal fees : £557.00 plus vat plus disbursements : £15.00 plus vat : 686.40

(4) sale leasehold house £250.000 : subject to mortgage

legal fees : £607.00 plus vat plus disbursements : £15.00 plus vat : 746.40

(1) sale freehold house £350.000 : no mortgage

legal fees : £532.00 plus vat plus disbursements : £15.00 plus vat : 656.40

(2) sale : freehold house £350.000 : subject to mortgage

legal fees : £582.00 plus vat plus disbursements : £15.00 plus vat : 716.40

(3) sale leasehold house £350.000 : no mortgage

legal fees : £582.00 plus vat plus disbursements : £15.00 plus vat : 716.40

(4) sale leasehold house £350.000 : subject to mortgage

legal fees : £632.00 plus vat plus disbursements : £15.00 plus vat : 776.40

(1) sale freehold house £500.000 : no mortgage

legal fees : £557.00 plus vat plus disbursements : £15.00 plus vat : 686.40

(2) sale : freehold house £500.000 : subject to mortgage

legal fees : £607.00 plus vat plus disbursements : £15.00 plus vat : 746.40

(3) sale leasehold house £500.000 : no mortgage

legal fees : £607.00 plus vat plus disbursements : £15.00 plus vat : 746.40

(4) sale leasehold house £500.000 : subject to mortgage

legal fees : £657.00 plus vat plus disbursements : £15.00 plus vat : 806.40

Examples of overall costs : purchase (s)

All Professional fees will be subject to VAT (20%)

(1) purchase freehold house £250.000 : no mortgage

legal fees : £739.50 plus vat plus disbursements : £239.50 :

SDLT : 2500.00 Land Registry fee : 135.00 estimated total : 3761.90

(2) purchase freehold house £250.000 : subject to mortgage

legal fees : £839.50 plus vat plus disbursements : £239.50 :

SDLT : 2500.00 Land Registry fee : 135.00 estimated total : 3881.90

(3) purchase leasehold house/flat £250.000 : no mortgage

legal fees : £889.50 plus vat plus disbursements : £239.50 :

SDLT : 2500.00 Land Registry fee : 135.00 estimated total : 3941.90

(4) purchase leasehold house/flat £250.000 : subject to mortgage

legal fees : £989.50 plus vat plus disbursements : £239.50 :

SDLT : 2500.00 Land Registry fee : 135.00 estimated total : 4061.90

(1) purchase freehold house £500.000 : no mortgage

legal fees : £789.50 plus vat plus disbursements : £239.50 :

SDLT : 15000.00 Land Registry fees : 135.00 estimated total : 16321.90

(2) purchase : freehold house £500.000 : subject to mortgage

legal fees : £889.50 plus vat plus disbursements : £239.50 :

SDLT : 15000.00 Land Registry fees : 135.00 estimated total : 16441.90

(3) purchase leasehold house/flat £500.000 : no mortgage

legal fees : £939.50 plus vat plus disbursements : £239.50 :

SDLT : 15000.00 Land Registry fees : 135.00 estimated total : 16501.90

(4) purchase leasehold house/flat £500.000 : subject to mortgage

legal fees : £1039.50 plus vat plus disbursements : £239.50 :

SDLT : 15000.00 Land Registry fees : 135.00 estimated total : 16621.90

Supplementary costs : there may be occasion when circumstances dictate we need to charge further fees : to ensure you are fully aware these are set out below : it may be, of course, none of these apply to your transaction but, in case one or more should, we want you to be aware of these from the outset

Planning : Build Regs : Chancel policy

£10.00 for each policy

Defective title indemnity policy

£25.00 for each policy

Consent form : occupier : sale or purchase

£25.00 for each form

Revised mortgage offer : purchase

£25.00 for each offer

Further mortgages to discharge : sale

£25.00 for each mortage

Second mortgages : purchase

£50.00 for each mortage

Home Buyer’s report : full review

£25.00

Statutory Declarations

£50.00 for each

Merger of title

£50.00 for each

Insurance : approval

£25.00 non lender cover

Expedition fee : completion less than 7 days

£50.00

External funding : eg parents

£50.00

Bankruptcy searches : clearance

£10.00 per entry

Emails and phone calls : max of 10%. on estimated fees

if we are required to respond to numerous emails/calls on a regular basis we reserve the right to make an additional charge not exceeding 10% of the estimated fees

Extensive additional correspondence : max of 10% on estimated fees

We would normally expect paperwork to be sorted within 6 – 8 weeks : if (for any reason) this lasts beyond 12 weeks we reserve the right to look to an increment on our fees not exceeding 10% of the estimated fees

Note (1) : all costs are subject to VAT (20%)

Note (2) : further disbursements may be incurred if specialist searches prove necessary : eg coal : tin clay : radon : limestone

STAMP DUTY LAND TAX : PURCHASE

this depends on the purchase price of your property and whether it may (for example) be being bought as a second home

you can calculate the amount you will need to pay by using HMRC’s website

(https://www.tax.service.gov.uk/calculate-stamp-duty-land-tax/#/into)

we have also included some figures in the examples shown and direct you to the separate page on our website in this respect

LAND REGISTRY FEES : PURCHASE

this again will depend on the purchase price of your property

we have again included some figures in the examples shown and direct you to the separate page on our website in this respect

DISBURSEMENTS : these are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties : such as search fees : we will handle the payment of disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process : where possible we have incorporated reference to these in the fee structure set out BUT if you are purchasing a leasehold property (especially a leasehold flat) there may well be supplementary disbursements that will need to be budgeted for details of which we will not know until the management information is available : these could include :

a. notice of transfer fee

b. notice of charge fee

c. issue of share certificate fee

d. certificate of compliance fee

e. deed of covenant fee

note (1) : these costs, on occasion, can be considerable and can run into several hundreds of pounds

note (2) : for freehold property purchases on the Bournville Village Trust you will also need to budget for BVT fees of £150.00 plus vat

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES : we can provide advice and guidance : following areas

• residential sales and purchases

• re-mortgages

• freehold purchases

• lease extensions

• enduring powers of attorney : registration

• lasting powers of attorney : preparation and registration

• wills

• probate : grant only applications

• probate : full estate administration

• care home fee planning : will trusts

• care home fee planning : lifetime trusts

PREPARATION OF WILLS

for simple straightforward Wills : our fee will be from :

for more detailed Wills which may involve IHT and/or Care Home Fee planning fees may be considerably more : full cost estimates will be provided prior to any drafting being undertaken

for example :

will trust : £745.00 plus vat (20%) and disbursements

lifetime trust : £1295.00 plus vat (20%) and disbursements

PROBATE : ADMINISTRATION OF ESTATES

Our fees here will be based on two elements

Estate value element

0.5% charge of the value of any property

1.0% charge on the balance of the estate

Time cost value element

Here an assessment is made as to the amount of time we feel is it likely for us to complete the administration of the Estate: for this we use subsidised hourly rate figures as follows.

Chartered Legal Executive

Susan Clark – £75.00 per hour

Solicitor

David Jones – £125.00 per hour

example probate (estate administration) fee

estate (1) : testator dies leaving a freehold property valued at £395.000 : general assets and investments in the region of £200.000 : his Will appoints his two children as Executors and (with the exception of a nominal gift through to the grandchildren) leaves his entire Estate to his two children

estate value element : house (1975) estate (2000) : total value element : (3975)

time cost value element : estimated time for Sue Clarke : 10 hours : 750.

: estimated time for David Jones : 02 hours : 250.

total cost estimate is therefore (1975) + (2000) + (750) + (250) = 4975. plus vat and disbursements : from this figure we would normally consider some form of ‘reasonable allowance’ taking into account an overall assessment on the size and nature of the Estate and the level of work to be undertaken : in this example we would probably have reduced this estimate to provide a guideline costs figure for the administration of the Estate at say £4495. plus vat and disbursements

estate (2) : testator dies leaving a freehold property valued at £245.000 : general assets and investments in the region of £145.000 : his Will appoints two of his four children as Executors and leaves his estate split : 50% to his four children and 50% split between ten grandchildren some of whom are still under eighteen

estate value element : house (1225) estate (1450) : total value element : (2675)

time cost value element : estimated time for Sue Clarke : 18 hours : 1350.

: estimated time for David Jones : 03 hours : 375.

total cost estimate is therefore (1225) + (1450) + (1350) + (375) = 4400. plus vat and disbursements : from this figure we would normally consider some form of ‘reasonable allowance’ taking into account an overall assessment on the size and nature of the Estate and the level of work to be undertaken : in this example we would probably have reduced this estimate to provide a guideline costs figure for the administration of the Estate at say £4175. plus vat and disbursements

Standard disbursements on a probate matter

Search fees
£4.00
Per person: Estimate

ID/CDD fees
£9.00
Based on £4.50 Per person: Estimate

Probate fees
£155.00
Due for review in 2019

Office Copies
£6.00
Estimate

Option disbursements which may need to be considered

Will Search enquiry
£95.00
Plus vat: Estimate

Section (27) notices
£195.00
Plus vat: Estimate

All professional fees are subject to VAT (20%)

Lasting Powers of Attorney : guideline fees : standard drafting

Single person

Financial Decisions LPA

Preparation – Registration

Total = £445 plus VAT (20%)

Financial and Health and Care Decisions LPA

Preparation – Registration

Total = £495 plus VAT (20%)

—————————————

Husband and Wife / Civil Partners

Financial Decisions LPA

Preparation – Registration

Total = £595 plus VAT (20%)

Financial and Health and Care Decisions LPA

Preparation – Registration

Total = £645 plus VAT (20%)

Supplementary Notes

(1) OPG (Office for the Public Guardian) fees of £82.00 for the registration of each LPA subject to any qualification for remission of exemption from these fees

(2) more specialist drafting : for example :

(a) LPA for business purposes

(b) need for incorporation of extensive instructions and/or preferences

(c) where the Solicitor is asked to be an attorney

will result in an increase on these estimates : further guidelines as to potential costs can be provided on request and prior to any drafting

COMPLAINTS : we want to give you the best possible service : however, if at any point you become unhappy or concerned about the service provided you should inform us immediately, so that we can do our best to resolve the problem

in the first instance it may be helpful to contact the person who is working on your matter to discuss your concerns and we will do our best to resolve any issues : if you would wish to make a formal complaint, then full details of our complaints procedure are set out below : making a complaint will not affect how we handle your matter

what to do if we cannot resolve your complaint

the Legal Ombudsman can help you if we are unable to resolve your complaint ourselves : they will look at your complaint independently and it will not affect how we handle your matter

before accepting a complaint for investigation, the Legal Ombudsman will check that you have tried to resolve your complaint with us first : if you have, then you must take your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman:

within six months of receiving a final response from the Solicitor about your complaint: and
one year from the date of the act or omission giving rise to the complaint: or alternatively
one year from the date you should reasonably have known there are grounds for complaint

if you would like more information about the Legal Ombudsman, please contact them

contact details

visit : www.legalombudsman.org.uk

call : 0300 555 0333 between 9.00 and 17.00

email : enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk

post : Legal Ombudsman : P O Box 6806 : Wolverhampton WV1 9WJ

what to do if you are unhappy with our behavior

The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) can help you if you care concerned about our behavior : this could be for things like dishonesty, taking or losing your money or treating you unfairly because of your age, a disability or other characteristic

visit their website to see how you can raise your concerns with the SRA

DAVID WARREN JONES

MY COMPLAINTS POLICY

in the event of a problem you are entitled to complain : complaints will be handled promptly, fairly and in accordance with this policy

complaint about my firm’s bill :

your complaint can include a complaint about my firm’s bill : in this respect I would draw your attention to the following points with regard to my bill of costs :

1. if you are not satisfied with the amount of my fee, I will treat this as a complaint : my complaints procedure is set out in my ‘terms of engagement’
2. you may have the right to object to any bill of costs by complaining to the Legal Ombudsman or by applying to the Court for an assessment of the bill under Part (III) of the Solicitors Act 1974 : the Legal Ombudsman may not consider a complaint about a bill if you have applied to the Court for assessment
3. I am entitled to charge interest on the outstanding amount of the bill in accordance with Article (5) of the Solicitors (Non-Contentious Business) Remuneration Order 2009
4. the due date for payment is 30 days from the date of the invoice unless specific arrangements to the contrary have been made with me
5. interest is due after the due date for payment

commitment to high quality legal service :

I am committed to providing a high-quality legal service to all my clients : when something goes wrong I need you to tell me about it : this will help me maintain and improve my standards : it is my intention that all complaints will be handled promptly, fairly and in accordance with this policy : a full copy of this policy is available to you on request

my complaints procedure

if you have a complaint, please write to me personally (David Warren Jones) with the details

what will happen next?

1. I will send you a letter acknowledging your complaint and asking you to confirm or explain the details. I will also let you know who will be dealing with your complaint : you can expect to receive my letter within (2) working days of me receiving your complaint
2. I will record your complaint in my central register and open a file for your complaint : I will do this within (5) working days of receiving your complaint
3. I will acknowledge your reply and confirm what will happen next : you can expect to hear from me within (5) working days of your reply
4. I will then start to investigate your complaintthis may involve one or more of the following steps :at my discretion :
   • if I acted for you, I will consider the basis of your complaint : I will then send you my detailed reply or invite you to a meeting to discuss the matter : I will do this within (10) working days
   • if someone else (Susan Clarke) acted for you, I will ask her to give me their initial response to your complaint within (5) working days : I will do this within (5) working days
   • I will then examine their reply and the information in your complaint file : I may also speak to the person who acted for you : I will do this within (5) working days of receiving their reply and the file
   • I may ask another independent local solicitor to investigate your complaint and report to me : I will do this within (10) working days
5. I will then write inviting you to meet me and discuss and hopefully resolve your complaint : I will do this within (5) working days
6. within (5) working days of the meeting I will write to you to confirm what took place and any solutions I have agreed with youif you do not want a meeting or it is not possible, I will send you a detailed reply to your complaint : this will include my suggestions for resolving the matter : I will do this within (10) working days of completing my investigation
7. at this stage, if you are still not satisfied, you can write to me again : I will then arrange to review my decision : this may happen in one of the following ways :
   • I will review the decision myself within (5) working days : or
   • at my discretion :
   • I may arrange for someone who is not connected with the complaint to review my decision : I will do this within (10) working days
   • I may ask my local Law Society or another local firm of solicitors to review your complaint within (10) working days : I will let you know how long this process will take
   • I may invite you to agree to independent mediation within (10) working days : I will let you know how long this will take
8. I will let you know the result of the review within (10) working days of the end of the review : at this time I will write to you confirming my final position on your complaint and explaining my reasonsit is my intention to respond to all complaints in full within eight weeks
9. If we are unable to resolve the problem between us then : you have the right to complain to the Legal Ombudsman at the conclusion of my firm’s complaints processthe Legal Ombudsman can investigate complaints up to six years from the date of the act or omission about which you are complaining occurring or (if outside of this period) within three years of when you should reasonably have been aware of it : if you wish to refer your complaint to the Legal Ombudsman this should be done within six months of the date of my final decision on your complaintcontact details for the Legal Ombudsman are as follows : Legal Ombudsman

Telephone: 0300 555 0333

Email: enquiries@legalombudsman.org.uk

Post: PO Box:6806, Wolverhampton, WV1 9WJ

Website: legalombudsman.org.uk

if I have to change any of the timescales above, I will let you know and explain why you will not be charged for the cost of handling the complaint

DAVID WARREN JONES
SOLICITOR