Conveyancing firms face a growing squeeze as fees fall despite rising compliance demands and a shortage of qualified professionals.
New figures from reallymoving show that the average cost of conveyancing fell by 3% in the third quarter of 2026.
Home movers now pay an average of £2,365 for a combined property sale and purchase, including VAT, expenses and disbursements.
That represents a £73 drop from the previous quarter and a 3.5% decline compared with the same period last year.
After adjusting for inflation, conveyancing costs fell by 3.9% quarter-on-quarter and 6.5% year-on-year.
The findings come amid subdued housing market activity and strong competition for instructions.
Reallymoving analysed more than 77,000 conveyancing quotes generated through its home mover comparison platform.
The average quoted cost of purchasing a property fell from £1,509 in Q2 to £1,479 in Q3. Selling costs dropped from £929 to £887 over the same period.
Falling fees add to workforce pressures
The latest figures come just days after the Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC) launched a major recruitment campaign to address a shortage of qualified practitioners.
The regulator revealed that the number of professionals authorised to undertake conveyancing work in England and Wales has fallen from 13,000 in 2021 to around 10,000 today.
Its Project 2,000 Lawyers campaign aims to attract 2,000 additional trainees who will qualify as licensed conveyancers by 2030.
The CLC has warned that workforce shortages could undermine efforts to speed up property transactions and reduce delays.
The combination of falling fees, rising operating costs and recruitment challenges adds to the pressure on conveyancing businesses.
Firms must also contend with increasingly complex anti-money laundering requirements, building safety obligations and cybercrime risks.
Conveyancing fees fall across nine regions
Nine of the UK’s 12 regions recorded a decline in average conveyancing costs during the third quarter.
The West Midlands saw the sharpest fall, with fees dropping 9.3%.
The East Midlands followed with a 5.3% decline, while Northern Ireland recorded a 5.2% reduction.
Only three regions registered increases. Costs edged up by 0.3% in the East of England and 0.2% in both the South West and Wales.
London remained the most expensive region, with home movers paying an average of £2,975 for a combined sale and purchase.
Firms face pressure to invest despite falling fees
Rob Houghton, founder and CEO of reallymoving, warned that declining fees could make it harder for conveyancers to invest in their businesses.
He said: “A 3% quarterly fall in the cost of conveyancing is concerning for firms already balancing pressure on margins with the urgent need to invest for the future.
“Conveyancers are managing increasingly complex anti-money laundering checks, building and fire safety requirements, leasehold issues and cybercrime risks alongside the core legal work of buying and selling a home – all while fees are declining. Inflation is compounding the challenge, widening the gap between what firms can charge and the cost of delivering their services.
“Lower costs may benefit home movers in the short term, but sustained pressure on fees over time will only weaken the sector’s capacity to deliver the fast, efficient and high-quality service movers need, especially as the government’s homebuying and selling reforms approach.”
The latest figures highlight the challenge facing conveyancing firms as the government pursues reforms to the home-buying and selling process.
While lower legal costs may benefit buyers and sellers, the industry must find ways to attract more qualified professionals, meet growing regulatory demands and maintain service standards in an increasingly competitive market.
Comments (1)
Conveyancing fees don’t simply fall like apples from a tree. They are deliberately reduced by firms and conveyancers who, at the first hint of a market downturn, panic and start undercutting each other.
And so the race to the bottom continues, with everyone seemingly surprised when fees, profitability and ultimately the ability to provide a decent service suffer.
Good work, guys!