Can You Add Solicitors Fees to a Mortgage?

There are a number of tasks and responsibilities that will fall to your solicitor or conveyancer when you’re going through the process of securing a house purchase, for which they will be billing you for, including arranging contracts, registering your property on the land registry database and organising the searches.

Here, we’ll explore whether you can put these fees onto your mortgage, and suggest potential alternatives that could help you foot the bill.

Can you add the cost to your mortgage?

No. Conveyancing charges are different from your mortgage fees and they can not be absorbed by your overall mortgage, so you will need to think about how you will stump up the cash. You will be billed over the course of your house buying process instead, so this is something you should bear in mind when you’re beginning your mortgage application process.

Alternative ways to pay your solicitor

A good mortgage broker will be able to advise you on how to go about this, but generally taking out personal loans or credit cards to pay for your house moving fees can be risky. Not only are short-term loans usually very expensive, but they also have an impact on your credit record, which then has a knock-on effect on how your lender approaches your mortgage offer.

Borrowing from family might be a safer bet, but ultimately proving you have the money in the bank and ready to pay is far more attractive to both solicitors and lenders. If you have to borrow to pay these fees, it’s wise to look around for a solicitor or conveyancer, as some will be more amenable than others.

If you already own a property, there are ways to raise cash through it, such as remortgaging to release equity, a secured loan or a lifetime mortgage, if you’re an older borrower.

Finally, you may be able to free up some funds for conveyancing by finding a lender who accepts a lower amount of deposit.

Most mortgage providers will expect you to put down at last 10% of the property’s value, but exploring 5% deposit mortgages could leave you with enough left over to pay your solicitor – just keep in mind that a lower deposit amount means holding less equity in your home, and this in turn can mean being hit with a higher interest rate.