The costs first-time buyers forget

The cash-flow timeline

Buying costs don't all fall on completion day. Knowing when you pay what helps you budget without being caught short.

• Offer accepted: ~£500-£900 on survey; instruct solicitor (often £200 deposit).
• Mortgage application: some products have a booking fee (£99-£299) paid up-front; others roll the arrangement fee onto the loan.
• Exchange: 5-10% deposit to your solicitor (if paying in stages) + exchange fees.
• Completion: remaining deposit + full SDLT + legal fees + disbursements + mortgage arrangement fee (if not added to loan). Usually the single biggest cash day.
• Moving day: removals, possibly locksmith, cleaner.

The itemised list

Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT)

The big one if you're not a first-time buyer — or are a first-time buyer over the £500k cap. See the SDLT calculator for your exact number. Typical examples:

• FTB, £275k purchase: £0
• Mover, £275k purchase: £1,250
• Mover, £450k purchase: £10,000
• FTB, £600k purchase: £17,500 (no FTB relief above £500k, standard rates on full price)
• Additional property, £275k: £14,750 (5% surcharge applies on every band)

Conveyancing / solicitor fees

Legal work to transfer ownership: title check, local searches (LLC1, Con29), water/drainage searches, environmental search, Land Registry fee, SDLT return submission. Typical total £1,200-£2,500 for a standard England freehold transaction, including disbursements.

Leasehold purchases are £300-£500 extra (the solicitor has to review the lease, check service charges, investigate the freeholder).

Survey

• Mortgage valuation only: free on many products. Only tells the lender whether the house is worth the loan — says nothing useful to you.
• RICS Level 2 Homebuyer Report: £400-£700 typical. Worth it on any property over ~15 years old; identifies condition issues without opening up walls.
• RICS Level 3 Building Survey: £700-£1,500 typical. Deep dive for older/unusual/extended properties, or anything flagged at Level 2.

Mortgage arrangement fee

Product-specific. Many 5-year fixes are fee-free; many 2-year fixes charge £999-£1,999. You can usually add the fee to the loan — convenient, but means you pay interest on it for the full term.

Broker fee

Free if the broker is paid by the lender (the norm for most UK whole-of-market brokers: L&C, Habito, Mojo). Fee-charging brokers typically £200-£1,000 — usually only when the case is complex (adverse credit, contractor income, non-standard property).

Removals

£500-£1,500 for a typical 2-3 bed move within 50 miles. Self-move van hire is £150-£300 but you'll need help; think honestly about whether you actually save money when you factor in a weekend of labour.

Electronic ID / AML checks

£15-£30. Both your solicitor and, increasingly, the estate agent are legally required to run these. They just are.

Mortgage account / completion fee

Some lenders charge a completion fee (sometimes called a "mortgage exit fee", confusingly). £50-£300 typical. Check the product terms.

Insurance

Buildings insurance is required from exchange. £200-£500 per year for a standard property. Contents insurance is optional but sensible: £100-£250 per year.

Things people underestimate in year one

• Council tax: £1,500-£3,500 per year depending on band and area. Check the specific property's band on the VOA website before offering.
• Utilities and setup: £300-£500 in the first six months between energy deposits, broadband install fees, appliance replacements.
• Repair float: Old properties always surprise. £2,000-£5,000 in unexpected first-year spend is not unusual.

A worked total for a £275,000 FTB purchase

Plug your own numbers into the affordability calculator — it does this working for you in real time.