Online Conveyancing

sniffypoopoo

Hi,

I have had a cash offer on my property, and the solicitors linked to the Estate Agents i'm with in Scotland are very expensive. I am not tied to using them to do my conveyancing and am thinking of using an online company.

Has anyone had any experience with this sort of thing, or advice?

Thanks in advance.

S. x

Yorkie1

The general advice is never to use the linked solicitors. The general comment is that with online conveyancers you tend to find that you don't get continuity of file ownership, so you can't ring up an individual and ask all the questions you wanted to ask, and there's no one person with oversight of your transaction. The other risk with them is that what looks like a decent price turns out to be a lot more expensive when all the extra charges / searches / fees etc are added on.

Best to get a quote from a couple of high street firms - local if you prefer, but see if you can get recommendations from friends family or colleagues. Get a feel for the firm, who will deal with your file etc. No point in trying to save a few pounds and risking a huge transaction.

Wannamove

I am new here but wanted to offer my opinion..

We are currently using an online company, who gave me a really cheap quote compared to high street one's. But unlike some companies who deal with call centres and you hardly get to hear from the actual solicitor, they appoint you a high street solicitor...So even though originally I heard about them through an online company the solicitors are in fact a small firm with 3 solicitors!
The solicitor I deal with always answers emails and messages, we have not exchanged yet but so far I am really impressed and saved over £1000! It was through CMS they were called..

Hope this helps,

alun4

I have used online for 3 sales. Different companies. My experience was professional and excellent in each case. They seemed to get things onto their desk and off their desk ..... not delayed by the multitasking of a small solicitor.

They were geared to do things by post so I didn't need to take time off to attend an office between 9.00 and 5.00.

With regard to extras, yes there were payment transfer charges, postal costs, copying fees and VAT and a couple of other things but then I have had all those (or twice the cost) at local solicitors. The secret is to ask at the start - when they are seeking your business.

There is no emotion involved. They are doing a job that is not that interesting (without local knowledge) but when I'm selling that is not my concern. Turn the question around to buying and a solicitor I know personally and trust with 30 years plus worth of local knowledge would be my target!

And the one other thought is building a relationship with your local solicitor. Twenty years ago I would have put this top of the list but now (like staying with your parents bank) I'm not sure there is any worth.