Cost effective registration of property transfers at the Land Registry
HM Land Registry introduced a new Electronic Document Registration Service, known as “e-DRS”, earlier this year.
e-DRS was devised by the Land Registry to improve their service and offers a faster and more cost-effective way to submit and receive applications for registration of land.
Applications to change the register may now be made via the Land Registry’s portal which improves turnaround times for applications and results in a reduction in the registration fees charged and paid by a purchaser. By way of example, when a purchase buys a property in the price range from £200,000 to £500,000, the registration fee is 270 when submitted by post. The same application made by via the Land Registry’s portal costs £135, exactly half.
Similarly, a property purchased at a price between £501,000 and £1,000,000 would cost £540 if submitted by post, but again this fee is reduced by 50% to £270 when applying for registration using the portal.
There are lots of expenses to think about when buying a property and so, when it is possible to save money without doing anything different, that can only be a good thing. Lennons Solicitors subscribe to e-DRS and although the portal does not accept all applications presently, we will put all applications through the portal where possible, ensuring our clients can save the added fee.