Solicitor Costs
Discussion
Quick question.
Had an offer on our house that I'm selling. Not purchasing another.
Had a first quote from Estate Agents solicitors of £800 costs to sell the house.
Does this seem about right?
House is selling for £90k near Birmingham.
Need to confirm to them today if I will use their solicitors or take time to shop around.
Had an offer on our house that I'm selling. Not purchasing another.
Had a first quote from Estate Agents solicitors of £800 costs to sell the house.
Does this seem about right?
House is selling for £90k near Birmingham.
Need to confirm to them today if I will use their solicitors or take time to shop around.
tim2100 said:
Quick question.
Had an offer on our house that I'm selling. Not purchasing another.
Had a first quote from Estate Agents solicitors of £800 costs to sell the house.
Does this seem about right?
House is selling for £90k near Birmingham.
Need to confirm to them today if I will use their solicitors or take time to shop around.
Seems a bit steep to me. I paid that on a £500k sale late last year.Had an offer on our house that I'm selling. Not purchasing another.
Had a first quote from Estate Agents solicitors of £800 costs to sell the house.
Does this seem about right?
House is selling for £90k near Birmingham.
Need to confirm to them today if I will use their solicitors or take time to shop around.
Depends very much on if that is the all in figure or if it is plus vat and disbursements.
You can get conveyancing services from many different sources and at different prices. Quite often what is a very cheap quote suddenly can accumulate extras that bring the price right up within days of instruction. I'm not talking about title issues here but normal every day things.
The other question you need to answer is do you want to use a faceless never speak to the same person twice operation or one where you get to speak to the organ grinder almost every time and are not just a file number.
FWIW if you were calling me (and I'm not touting as although a new client is good, I have plenty on my desk right now
) it would be £650-£750+vat and disbursements iro £30.
You can get conveyancing services from many different sources and at different prices. Quite often what is a very cheap quote suddenly can accumulate extras that bring the price right up within days of instruction. I'm not talking about title issues here but normal every day things.
The other question you need to answer is do you want to use a faceless never speak to the same person twice operation or one where you get to speak to the organ grinder almost every time and are not just a file number.
FWIW if you were calling me (and I'm not touting as although a new client is good, I have plenty on my desk right now
) it would be £650-£750+vat and disbursements iro £30.Edited by Rude-boy on Monday 17th January 11:24
Rude-boy said:
Depends very much on if that is the all in figure or if it is plus vat and disbursements.
You can get conveyancing services from many different sources and at different prices. Quite often what is a very cheap quote suddenly can accumulate extras that bring the price right up within days of instruction. I'm not talking about title issues here but normal every day things.
The other question you need to answer is do you want to use a faceless never speak to the same person twice operation or one where you get to speak to the organ grinder almost every time and are not just a file number.
That's the important bit, not the price. You can get conveyancing services from many different sources and at different prices. Quite often what is a very cheap quote suddenly can accumulate extras that bring the price right up within days of instruction. I'm not talking about title issues here but normal every day things.
The other question you need to answer is do you want to use a faceless never speak to the same person twice operation or one where you get to speak to the organ grinder almost every time and are not just a file number.
Edited by Rude-boy on Monday 17th January 11:24
Call centre sausages who will just say 'computer says no' when asked anything because another sausage forgot to scan something in, or one properly qualified person who's local to your purchase dealing with all of your file.. it will make a difference should something go wrong.
The agent will very likely be getting a kickback there too. If it's not received beneath the desk in a brown envelope, commission should be mentioned in T&C you'll sign.
Shop around - but by word-of-mouth, not price.
I've used Leonard Jacobs a few times and always found him to be very on the ball.
Definitely old school - dotting the i's and crossing the t's and although when I originally rang around for quotes he did come up a little more expensive, but imho he's worth it, and a world away from the call centre 'sausages'.
Happy to correspond by email, always prompt with his replies.
Definitely old school - dotting the i's and crossing the t's and although when I originally rang around for quotes he did come up a little more expensive, but imho he's worth it, and a world away from the call centre 'sausages'.
Happy to correspond by email, always prompt with his replies.
tim2100 said:
Had a first quote from Estate Agents solicitors of £800 costs to sell the house.
That will include substantial commission for the EA.My daughter signed up with the company recommended by her Building Society, a solicitor's with an online conveyancing arm. I found the prices quoted direct from their website were hundreds less than she paid. No problem with them though, it all worked OK and they were in contact quite a lot and easy to get hold of.
It's tempting to go for the cheapest option - selling *should* be straightforward, but many buyers are weirdo's. Some friends of ours are selling at the moment and, no word of a lie, the buyer is complaining about the size of the water bill!. The buyer is a single woman though, so I suppose weirdness is to be expected.
Deva Link said:
tim2100 said:
Had a first quote from Estate Agents solicitors of £800 costs to sell the house.
That will include substantial commission for the EA.My daughter signed up with the company recommended by her Building Society, a solicitor's with an online conveyancing arm. I found the prices quoted direct from their website were hundreds less than she paid. No problem with them though, it all worked OK and they were in contact quite a lot and easy to get hold of.
It's tempting to go for the cheapest option - selling *should* be straightforward, but many buyers are weirdo's. Some friends of ours are selling at the moment and, no word of a lie, the buyer is complaining about the size of the water bill!. The buyer is a single woman though, so I suppose weirdness is to be expected.
I dealt with one person as well, which is definately a good thing.
We made the mistake of using one of the "sausage sheds" (I just mae that up) and it was not pleasant experience. ARC property services or something.
It was nigh on impossible to speak to the chap dealing with the case. I'm not sure they realise that those bits of paper floating around their desks are actually people waiting around, stressed to fvck, waiting for them to carry out what seems to be the simplest of tasks. Like picking up a phone etc etc.
It was nigh on impossible to speak to the chap dealing with the case. I'm not sure they realise that those bits of paper floating around their desks are actually people waiting around, stressed to fvck, waiting for them to carry out what seems to be the simplest of tasks. Like picking up a phone etc etc.
Not all EAs will be receiving a referral fee. There are a number round here who recommend my firm although we have never paid a single referral fee. To them it is a question of wanting the deals to go through where the real money is, not just a little kick back.
The major agents tend to have their panel firms, many of which are not staffed by solicitors but professionals with a different type of qualification, paralegals and phone jockeys, who they push their work towards in return for £15-£25 in the wage packet of the negotiator and £100-300 for the EA.
The legal services provider should be disclosing any commission they receive in connection with the referral and the agent should also be letting you know that they will be getting a kick back, although it is interesting how many people have no recollection of being told this and quite how small and ‘buried’ the information is printed on the T&Cs. One operation whose contract from last year I just happen to have a copy of in front of me shows fees at £499+vat for the OP’s price, plus £125+vat if there is a mortgage+ disbursements. When reading the small print it advises that the “law firm retains between £316-372+vat+dsbs” and the rest of this goes to the EA. Not too bad (many outside the profession may think), except when you look at, say, a £650k-£700k sale the fees are £1099+vat+dsbs, and the “law firm retains between £316-372+vat+dsbs”
The major agents tend to have their panel firms, many of which are not staffed by solicitors but professionals with a different type of qualification, paralegals and phone jockeys, who they push their work towards in return for £15-£25 in the wage packet of the negotiator and £100-300 for the EA.
The legal services provider should be disclosing any commission they receive in connection with the referral and the agent should also be letting you know that they will be getting a kick back, although it is interesting how many people have no recollection of being told this and quite how small and ‘buried’ the information is printed on the T&Cs. One operation whose contract from last year I just happen to have a copy of in front of me shows fees at £499+vat for the OP’s price, plus £125+vat if there is a mortgage+ disbursements. When reading the small print it advises that the “law firm retains between £316-372+vat+dsbs” and the rest of this goes to the EA. Not too bad (many outside the profession may think), except when you look at, say, a £650k-£700k sale the fees are £1099+vat+dsbs, and the “law firm retains between £316-372+vat+dsbs”
Edited by Rude-boy on Monday 17th January 13:08
Rude-boy said:
Not all EAs will be receiving a referral fee. There are a number round here who recommend my firm although we have never paid a single referral fee. To them it is a question of wanting the deals to go through where the real money is, not just a little kick back.
Fair enough. But £800 for the sale of £90K house in what must be a pretty competitive area (Birmingham) sounds "full" to say the least.Deva Link said:
Rude-boy said:
Not all EAs will be receiving a referral fee. There are a number round here who recommend my firm although we have never paid a single referral fee. To them it is a question of wanting the deals to go through where the real money is, not just a little kick back.
Fair enough. But £800 for the sale of £90K house in what must be a pretty competitive area (Birmingham) sounds "full" to say the least.FWIW last year I picked up 3 matters where sheds took one look at the papers and told the clients it was beyond them, and these weren't even difficult matters, one of them only required a ToE transfer and another only required some appropriate wording in the transfer to deal with the removal of a Restriction on the title. The other was a little exciting though
Edited by Rude-boy on Monday 17th January 13:40
Deva Link said:
Rude-boy said:
Not all EAs will be receiving a referral fee. There are a number round here who recommend my firm although we have never paid a single referral fee. To them it is a question of wanting the deals to go through where the real money is, not just a little kick back.
Fair enough. But £800 for the sale of £90K house in what must be a pretty competitive area (Birmingham) sounds "full" to say the least.
hole further along the chain changing their mind and backing out. 
LeighW said:
Deva Link said:
Rude-boy said:
Not all EAs will be receiving a referral fee. There are a number round here who recommend my firm although we have never paid a single referral fee. To them it is a question of wanting the deals to go through where the real money is, not just a little kick back.
Fair enough. But £800 for the sale of £90K house in what must be a pretty competitive area (Birmingham) sounds "full" to say the least.hole further along the chain changing their mind and backing out. Sorry to hear of your sale falling through, it's especially bad when it is something totally out of your hands that causes that to happen.
As others have said, there is usually a reason one person charges one figure and the second something very different. It's a bit like saying that a Focus is a fantastic car. It sure is, yet there are many who would never consider one on their way to the Porsche dealer.
nammynake said:
Sorry to thread hijack, but I am looking to buy a property for 180k, and have been quoted £840 in total by a local solicitor. Does this sound about right?
Where are you in West Yorks? We've just used somebody for buying who came highly recommended to us by most of our friends and having gone from offer accepted to exchanged in just over 4 weeks I would be happy to recommend her. Price was about £1100 all in for a £330k purchase price. PM me if you want her details.
nammynake said:
Sorry to thread hijack, but I am looking to buy a property for 180k, and have been quoted £840 in total by a local solicitor. Does this sound about right?
If solicitors are charging £800 to sell then the same price to buy stacks up very well.Are you sure that includes all fees, search costs, disbursements etc and VAT?
Deva Link said:
If solicitors are charging £800 to sell then the same price to buy stacks up very well.
Are you sure that includes all fees, search costs, disbursements etc and VAT?
Includes fees, VAT, Local council search, draining search, mining search, name search and land search? I hurridly scribbled them down over the phone. 'All in' according to the woman on the phone.Are you sure that includes all fees, search costs, disbursements etc and VAT?
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