cost to sell and buy property

[tezestwing]

dose any one have a ballpark figure on estate agents/ solicitors to sell a three bed semi �1400 town house, then buy a two bed bungalow similar price same area. Also any views on DIY above. Thanks in advance for any help Tez

[meglet]

Estate agents fees vary. I can tell you my experience - I've always paid 1% or 1.5% for a sole agent but it can be more. Multi-agent is around 3%. For solicitors fees I have paid around �500 for the purchase and a bit less, maybe �400, for the sale. Plus VAT. Plus you have to add on costs for searches etc.

But �1400 for a town house???? I'll pop to the cash point now!

[Hawkwalk]

There is also 1% stamp duty to add for the purchase of the new property.

[tezestwing]

thanks meglet and Hawkwalk I should have corrected to �140K not quite sure about multi -agent meg or stamp duty ? thanks Tez

[meglet]

Stamp Duty:
Stamp duty is a tax that is paid to the government on any property that you buy over �120k. The amount of stamp duty is calculated as follows:

Up to �120,000 - nil
�120,001 to �250,000 - 1%
�250,001 to �500,000 - 3%
More than �500,000 - 4%

Multi agent:
You can either instruct one agent to sell your property or you can select as many as you like. People do this when they are desperate to sell. But the estate agents will insist on a higher fee because they market the property with less guarantee of selling it as other agents are doing the same. If I were you I would stick with one agent. They all put the properties on websites like rightmove.co.uk these days anyway and do far fewer mailshots and the like. You need to pop into your local estate agents and get them to go through everything with you about how much it will cost you in fees etc. Why not get a couple of agents in to value your property and see what they say. Don't be pressured to sign anything unless you are absolutely sure. Come back on this thread if you would like some more advice. I bought and sold 4 properties in 6 years so I have a bit of experience!

[tezestwing]

thanks meglet just testing the water at the moment me and Mrs Tez want to downsize some time in the not to distant future to East Mids local area, but you hear so many things about market trends and avoiding any pit falls so I am open to any tips or advice that ABers can give thanks again meg Tez