True cost of buying a house calculator
Deposit plus stamp duty is roughly two thirds of what you actually need on completion day. This is the rest of it.
Last updated July 2026 · built by working UK builders
Fee ranges are typical 2026 UK figures and are shown at their midpoint. Your conveyancer's quote, your lender's fees and your removals firm will all differ. Not financial advice — we are builders, not brokers.
Every cost of buying, explained
Deposit
The gap between the purchase price and the mortgage. Note that the exchange deposit — usually 10% — is legally at risk if you pull out after exchange, which is why nobody exchanges before they are certain.
Stamp duty / LTT / LBTT
Cash, on completion, no exceptions. See thestamp duty calculator for the exact figure across all four nations.
Conveyancing and searches
£1,100–£1,900 including VAT for a freehold purchase, plus £250–£450 of searches — local authority, drainage and water, environmental, and whatever is specific to the area (coal mining, tin, chancel repair). Leasehold adds £300–£600 because the freeholder's management pack has to be obtained and reviewed.
Land Registry fee
Set by statute on a sliding scale from £20 to £500 depending on price. Small, fixed, and always forgotten.
Survey
The one discretionary cost that reliably pays for itself. A lender's valuation is not a survey — it exists to protect the lender's security and tells you almost nothing about the building.
Mortgage fees
Arrangement or product fee of £0–£1,500, a valuation fee of £0–£400, and a broker fee if your broker charges one. Adding the arrangement fee to the loan costs you interest on it for the whole term.
Removals and the first week
£400 for a van and two people locally, £1,500+ for a three-bed across the country. Then locks, a deep clean, curtains, and the fact that nothing you own fits the new windows.
Repairs
The line everyone leaves at zero. On a pre-1970 house with an unremarkable survey, 1% of the purchase price in year one is not pessimistic — it is what actually happens. If the survey is not unremarkable, price the findings properly before you exchange, because that is the last moment the seller has any reason to help.
Where the money can still be saved
- Conveyancing: get three quotes on a like-for-like basis. The spread is often £600.
- Mortgage fee versus rate: on a two-year fix, a £999 fee is £42 a month. Do the arithmetic rather than assuming the headline rate wins.
- The price itself: a well-evidenced repair schedule from someone who knows building costs is the only thing that moves a seller after survey. Vague concern does not.
Frequently asked questions
How much cash do I need to buy a house, on top of the deposit?
Outside the deposit and stamp duty, budget £2,500–£5,000 for a straightforward freehold purchase: conveyancing, searches, Land Registry, a survey, a mortgage fee, removals and first-year buildings insurance. Leasehold adds £300–£600. Then add whatever the survey says needs doing.
What are the hidden costs of buying a house?
The ones buyers forget are Land Registry fees, the mortgage arrangement fee, leasehold management pack costs, apportioned service charge and ground rent, removals, and the immediate repairs found by the survey. Together they routinely add £4,000–£8,000 to a purchase that was budgeted at deposit plus stamp duty.
Should I pay for a Level 3 survey?
On anything pre-1950, anything extended or altered, anything that has stood empty, and anything with visible cracking or damp, yes. The extra £300–£500 over a Level 2 buys a report that actually says what is wrong rather than flagging it for further investigation. On a modern, conventional house in good order a Level 2 is usually enough.
How much should I set aside for repairs after completion?
On a house built before 1970, 1–2% of the purchase price is a realistic first-year figure even when the survey is unremarkable. Boilers, consumer units, gutters, a section of roof and the decorating you did not plan on all land in the first twelve months.
Can I negotiate any of these costs?
Conveyancing quotes vary by hundreds of pounds for identical work, and mortgage arrangement fees can often be traded against a slightly higher rate — worth doing the arithmetic on a short fixed term. Stamp duty and Land Registry fees are fixed by statute. And the repair costs are negotiable with the seller, not with the builder.