Local vs Online Conveyance

happy_2008

Got an offer accepted on a property we bidded on and currently researching the costs for solicitors was little shocked at the price difference:

Local
Our Charges: £550.00
Our Charges Mortgage: £50.00
Bank Transfer Fee: £30.00
Land Registry Fee: £200.00
Local Authority & Drainage Search Fee: £210.00
Land Registry Search Fee: £4.00
Land Charges Search Fee: £4.00
VAT: £126.00

Total £1,174.00

Online Conveyance:
Legal Fee: £425.00
Bank Transfer: £30.00
Mining Search £24.00
Land Registry Fee: £200.00
Land Registry and Bankruptcy Search: £8.00
Water Drainage Search: £50.00
VAT: £91.00

Total £828.00

Theres almost £300.00 difference between the two! My friend has used the online conveyance before and a little research shows that the solicitors behind them are Drummond and Co. Just wondering which one to go with

d.ross_2

happy_2008 wrote: »

Got an offer accepted on a property we bidded on and currently researching the costs for solicitors was little shocked at the price difference:

Local
Our Charges: £550.00
Our Charges Mortgage: £50.00
Bank Transfer Fee: £30.00
Land Registry Fee: £200.00
Local Authority & Drainage Search Fee: £210.00
Land Registry Search Fee: £4.00
Land Charges Search Fee: £4.00
VAT: £126.00

Total £1,174.00

Online Conveyance:
Legal Fee: £425.00
Bank Transfer: £30.00
Mining Search £24.00
Land Registry Fee: £200.00
Land Registry and Bankruptcy Search: £8.00
Water Drainage Search: £50.00
VAT: £91.00

Total £828.00

Theres almost £300.00 difference between the two! My friend has used the online conveyance before and a little research shows that the solicitors behind them are Drummond and Co. Just wondering which one to go with

Are you selling as well, because they both look expensive if you are just buying?

The beauty of a local solicitor is that if they are slow, you can go and see them to give them a kick up the backside.

happy_2008

We are FTB so just buying. How much is the average rate for buying then?

tyler80

There's no local authority search fee listed in the second quote, are these not included?

happy_2008

Nothing listed according to there website? Are both prices too expensive then?

d.ross_2

happy_2008 wrote: »

We are FTB so just buying. How much is the average rate for buying then?

I think I just paid about £750.

missdemeanour

I got a local, an online and a non-local quote. As above, the local one was really expensive. The online quote looked good until I contacted them to set it up and it turned out there were extra fees that they'd not mentioned in the online quote.
I ended up paying about £740 with a non-local firm, all-in price - similar to d.ross.

happy_2008

According to the website there is no hidden extra fees?

geoffky

local for me..every time.

gordonbennet

I agree. Local is really worth it. By all means phone several in the area to compare quotes, but it makes all the difference to use a solicitor who REALLY knows the area you are buying in.

They will be familiar with the locality, with the foibles of the local authority, and any particular issues that tend to crop up in that area. They may know of particular local searches that are necessary which might not occur to a remote person. (I once bought a place in an area which had been heavily mined 150 years ago. Too close to a disused mine and there was a risk of subsidence and my insurance would have been astronomical. The local solicitor got a mines survey done to show the exact locations of the mines and proved all was fine)

And if the sellers solicitor is also local it can really speed things up as they will be familiar with each other. They might even hand deliver documents rather than trust them to snail mail!

happy_2008

Is local really worth the extra £400 difference though?