Online conveyancing or local solicitor?

Myflat

Hi, I am currently looking for a solicitor and do not seem to be able to decide whether to go for an online conveyancing firm or for a local solicitors. The 4 local solicitors have all quoted me £1,100 +, which I think is ridiculous to pay if I can get the same service for much less.

Is there any online firm you could recommend? I will obviously not bother with those firms whose fees seem too good to be true as I want to complete on time but is it wise to take the risk of not using the local solicitor?

Has anybody used the compareandconvey.co.uk website and one of their recommended solicitors?

Anybody wants to save me ££££ by giving good advice on this?

Thank you!

Doozergirl

£1100 is a perfectly normal price for the purchase of a property. About £5-600 of that cost is completely unavoidable payments for searches, land registry transfer etc.

I have used online conveyancers in the past and quite frankly, if I were selling it wouldn't really matter who I used. But when purchasing I have come to the conclusion that it's incredibly important that the solicitor gets things right first time, that they are qualified to do what you are asking and that they aren't causing delays by asking stupid questions or having too many cases to deal with and just not doing anything.

It's also helpful when a solicitor understands local issues that might need an extra careful look at.

You may save yourself £2-300 initially but it could cost you more in the long run, even just with simple delays. Having recently had to sue a vendor myself, I am incredibly happy that I had the support of a respectable firm with a litigation department!

G_M

What does the £1100 include? What do the online quotes include (or more importantly, exclude)?

Check here to see what should be included.

Online is cheaper (as a rule).

Local means if there are probs you can pop in (or pop in to sign papers etc) whereas online you have to relay on post and chasing by phone.

I'd definately avoid online if there might be complications: leaseholds with comples clauses; ancient conveyances associated with deeds; missing Building regs certificates, but where everything is straightforward online can save you money. Difficulty is anticipating if there might be complications!

zzzLazyDaisy

I used a local solicitor - we hit a problem with the right of way over a shared drive which had been incorrectly registered at the land registry 5 years earlier, effectively leaving the house landlocked with no legal access.

My solicitor had loads of extra work to do to sort it out. And because she was local I was able to call in and go through the paperwork with her, which was very helpful as explaining the problem over the phone wasn't easy.

I wouldn't have trusted an online conveyancer to pick up on the problem, let alone sort it out. It was definitely money well spent in my case.

Evilm

Local is always easier - if things get awkward or papers need signing you can easily attend the offices to sort it out rather than relying on the post and someone that, at the end of the day, you can't stand in the office and demand to see.

Whilst I say local is better I actually used a solicitor that was in the next city over because I knew them well and used the particular lady before. It may be worth asking around work for a recommendation or asking the estate agents (if you feel them trustworthy).

However £1k for solicitors costs (if it includes searches etc) isn't out of the ballpark for costs. It is a little on the high side but not astronomical.

Sphynx

I am paying my solicitor around £1200 for purchasing and selling costs. He is based in his house round the corner from me! It has already been useful and very fast when it comes to getting things to and fro. He has started his own business and so is VAT free at the moment. I think it is worth paying a bit more to have someone local tbh.

property.advert

I've got to agree that three are times when saving a little makes sense but this is not one. Just chalk it up as another cost of purchase.

PasturesNew

I'd say:
Buying: Real solicitor
Selling only: Online does the job

I used an online one when I sold and I found there was a lack of clarity, lack of communication, about what was going on and what stage we were at. I had started off saying I wanted two weeks between exchange and completion and by the end, just to get it over and done with I just said "stick with the original preferred completion dates", giving me two days.

DVardysShadow

PasturesNew wrote: »

I'd say:
Buying: Real solicitor
Selling only: Online does the job

As buyer once with local solicitor and vendor with on-line, I found the experience really frustrating. If you have a difficult sale, with deeds type issues to be put right by the vendor, it could be enough to deter your buyer.

For us the experience was bad enough that I decided if a vendor intended to use an online conveyancer, they would have to change as part of the deal

Heather25

I searched for conveyancers on line and they looked initially a lot cheaper but by the time they added in their search fees and registration our local solicitor was cheaper.

vl2588

It is also prefectly possible to do the conveyancing yourselves...or at least it was when my mum bought her property, which was a while ago now. Might be worth looking into though as it saves a lot of money!