CURRENT POSITION
Building your cost picture
You've started selecting costs. Keep going — most buyers end up with 6–9 of the 12 items selected.
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Estimated upfront costs
£1,800Estimate
Excluding your £20,000 deposit
COST PLANNER
Estimate the cash you may need before completion — fees, setup costs, and a sensible buffer.
Total upfront
£1,800
% of price
0.9%
Selected costs
3 / 12
Deposit separate
£20,000
BASIC NUMBERS
Affects stamp duty rates (BTL and second homes incur a surcharge).
No stamp duty on the first £300,000, and 5% on the part from £300,001 to £500,000 (England & Northern Ireland).
The relief is lost above £500,000, so standard rates apply to the whole purchase. It doesn’t apply to an additional property.
Buying in Scotland or Wales? Use the stamp duty calculator.
COSTS TO CONSIDER
Most buyers end up with 6–9 of these 12. Tap a cost to see what it covers and edit the estimate.
Most buyers end up with 6–9 of the 12 below. Tick any that might apply to you — each card opens to show what it covers and an editable estimate.
Land transfer tax. First-time buyers pay nothing up to £300,000 in England and a reduced rate up to £500,000.
When it hits: Due at completion — your solicitor pays HMRC on your behalf.
Calculated from the price, with first-time buyer relief (England & NI).
Learn more →Solicitor's fee for handling the sale — searches, contracts, transfer of funds.
When it hits: Invoiced in stages through the legal process; final balance on completion.
Starter estimate — edit if you have a better number.
Learn more →Independent check on the property's condition before exchange. RICS Homebuyer or Building Survey are common upgrades over the lender's basic valuation.
When it hits: Booked after the mortgage offer, before exchange.
Starter estimate — edit if you have a better number.
Learn more →The lender's own check that the property is worth what you're paying. Some lenders bundle it free; some charge.
When it hits: Charged by the lender when the mortgage application is submitted.
Learn more →Fee paid to a mortgage broker for sourcing your deal. Many brokers charge nothing (commission from the lender) — confirm upfront.
When it hits: Usually due on offer of the mortgage or on completion.
Learn more →Lender's fee for the specific mortgage product. Can be paid upfront or rolled into the loan — rolling it means paying interest on it.
When it hits: Due at application or added to the loan balance.
Learn more →Removal company, van hire, packing materials, and any specialist movers (piano, large fragile items).
When it hits: Move week — usually paid on or before the day.
Learn more →Paying for two places at once — overlapping rent, storage, temporary accommodation, duplicate bills.
When it hits: The weeks around completion if move-in and move-out don't line up cleanly.
Learn more →First-week-in-the-home costs — bed, sofa, kitchen kit, basics that weren't in the old place.
When it hits: First 2–4 weeks after moving in.
Learn more →Replacing missing appliances (fridge, washing machine) or sorting small issues that need fixing quickly.
When it hits: First week in the property.
Learn more →Early leasehold charges that can feel bigger than expected — first quarterly service charge, ground rent in advance, sometimes a balancing charge.
When it hits: First quarterly or annual demand after completion.
Learn more →A safety pot for the costs that always seem to appear once you've moved in — boiler glitch, leak, appliance breakdown, insurance excess.
When it hits: Any unexpected cost in the first 6 months.
Learn more →CURRENT POSITION
You've started selecting costs. Keep going — most buyers end up with 6–9 of the 12 items selected.
NEXT BEST MOVE
Moving costs, overlap, and a contingency buffer are easy to forget. Add them now while you're thinking about it.
Where to go next
Tick the items you already own and add the ones still to buy. From kettles to smoke alarms.
Open moving checklistTie your move into the full plan
The Buyer Planner connects upfront costs and conveyancing tracking with Document Readiness — so you walk into completion with nothing forgotten.
The deposit gets all the attention, but most UK first-time buyers underestimate everything else by £4,000-£10,000+. Categories that typically catch people out:
See the full cost of buying guide for the deeper breakdown.
Looking at one house? Can I afford this house? adds the mortgage and the monthly cost to these upfront costs.
Solicitor fees are typically the largest single cost beyond the deposit and stamp duty. Realistic UK ranges:
Always get three quotes. The cheapest isn’t always the best — slow firms cost weeks of stress. See the conveyancing guide for what your solicitor actually does, and how to choose well.
Three RICS survey levels for UK first-time buyers, each with different depth and cost:
A survey is almost always worth the cost. See the property survey guide for what surveyors actually check and how to act on what they find.
On the day itself, three cost categories tend to land within 24 hours:
Plan to have one month of household costs left over after all of these — that’s the completion-day buffer that protects you from the unexpected stuff that always shows up in month one.
Most UK first-time buyers spend £4,000-£10,000+ on costs beyond the deposit: solicitor fees (£1,200-£2,500), survey (£400-£900), mortgage arrangement and valuation fees (£0-£1,000), stamp duty (where applicable — first-time buyers pay none up to £300,000 and 5% on £300,001-£500,000), removals (£500-£1,500), basic furniture and white goods (£1,000-£3,000), and a buffer for unexpected costs. Use the planner above to see your specific scenario.
£1,200-£2,500 for the legal fee itself on a standard freehold first-time buyer purchase, plus £200-£500 in disbursements (search fees, Land Registry, electronic transfers). Leasehold purchases typically add £100-£300 for the extra legal work on the lease. New-builds, shared ownership and Help to Buy purchases can add £200-£600. Always get three quotes including a breakdown of fees vs disbursements before instructing.
Realistic ranges: £300-£700 for a small one-bed move locally with a man-and-van, £700-£1,500 for a small house with a professional removals firm, £1,500-£3,000+ for longer distance or larger properties. Weekend and end-of-month dates cost more. Always get at least three written quotes and confirm transit insurance is included. Self-hire van + helper is the cheapest option (£150-£400 inclusive) if you can manage the lifting.
Almost always yes. The lender's valuation is for the lender — it confirms the property is worth roughly the loan amount and is often a desktop check, not a physical survey. If you want to know what state the property is actually in, commission a separate survey: RICS Level 2 (Homebuyer Report) for most modern properties (£400-£700); RICS Level 3 (Building Survey) for older, larger, or unusual properties (£700-£1,500+).
For a basic move-in to an unfurnished UK property: bed and mattress (£300-£800), sofa (£400-£1,200), dining set (£200-£500), curtains (£100-£300), washing machine (£250-£500), fridge-freezer (£300-£600), kettle/toaster/microwave (£50-£150) — typically £1,500-£3,000 minimum. Buyers furnishing fully tend to spend £5,000-£10,000+ in the first six months. Charity shops, eBay and family hand-me-downs cover a lot of the first-week list affordably.
Cash left over after completion to cover unexpected first-month costs — survey-flagged repairs you decided to defer, boiler issues, locks that don't turn properly, the gap to first payday. A common target is one month of total housing costs (mortgage + bills + everyday) sitting in your account after move-in. Most surprises in month one come from things the survey flagged or things you didn't notice at viewings.
Summer (June-August) and end-of-month dates are most expensive — peak demand for removals and harder to book solicitors with capacity. January and February tend to be cheapest. Mid-week and mid-month completions are 10-25% cheaper for removals. Bank holiday weekends are best avoided — most firms don't operate, and the rare ones that do charge a premium.
Yes. You become liable for council tax from the day of completion (your solicitor notifies the council via a Council Tax Notification of Change). Set up utility accounts BEFORE completion day where possible — even if no one's using them, billing starts. First-week utility costs are typically £30-£80 for the first read-and-setup period; first full month £150-£300 depending on property size and season.
Standard fibre broadband in the UK: £25-£40/month with installation fee of £0-£100. Mobile contracts unchanged from before move. Some providers waive installation if you sign a 24-month contract. Plan around the installation window — broadband installs typically schedule 2-4 weeks after order, so book as soon as you have an exchange date.
The planner uses realistic UK averages for each cost category. Real outcomes depend on specifics the planner can't perfectly predict: which solicitor you instruct, which surveyor you choose, how much furniture you actually buy, whether you DIY removals, and unexpected one-off costs. Use the planner as a baseline budget, then refresh estimates as you get real quotes during the buying process.
This planner is for illustrative purposes only. Actual costs vary by solicitor, surveyor, removals firm, property type and region. Use the planner as a baseline budget and replace estimates with real quotes as you get them.