Upfront Legal Fees

Mizz_Pink

Hi,

I hope someone knows about this !

Hubby is looking at moving to a new shop, the vendor wants him to pay his legal fees of £700. We have had advice from our solicitor who says paying the vendors legal fees is not a legal requirement. The vendor is now saying, if you dont get anymore advice from your solicitor then my fees will be £500 and you will need to sign an agreement saying you wont go back to your solicitor :eek:

He's calling hubbys bluff, the estate agent says people usually do pay the vendors fees.

Should we stand our ground ? We wont be bullied and hubby doesnt have the funds to pay it all anyway.

Thanks

NAR

How has the vendor the power to change his legal fees from £700 to £500?
Bottom line is how badly do you want the shop, or have you got a good price for the purchase. If you have a positive answer to either of these questions then that would be the only reason to pay the vendor's fees.
Otherwise refuse to pay is my advice.

dunstonh

As NAR says, it depends on how badly you want the shop. However, the vendor wanting you to sign an agreement not to use your own solicitor would put me on guard straight away.

LittleVoice

I agree with what the others say.

I would add that if he really can't afford to pay £700 in addition to other costs then he may not have enough funds available to him to be running the business.

Mizz_Pink

Thanks for replying.

Yeah hubby wants to move premises, our rent is being reviewed and may be increased substantially. Also he shares the shop rent and bills with my Dad who is looking to wind down the business and retire (i work here and am lookign for a new job ) So until we hear from our landlords we dont know if we can afford to continue the lease.
The new shop is in a better location and small enough and affordable for hubby to be on his own which would be a big step but would inject new customers.
Ive told hubby I dont like the sound sof this guy already and wouldnt want him to rent off him anyway. The vendor said " if you dont use your solicitor and use mine then my fees will be £500 and not £700", so the contract will be in his favour totally and not hubbys.
So far hubby has called his bluff back and said he wants the shop but doesnt haveto pay this guys fees and cant afford too plus rent upfront (it works out 2.5k which we just cant afford) The estate agents still havent said about what rent he would need to pay but we are guessing at least 1 month.

barvid

This guy sounds way too dodgy - I'd back off, or do the whole thing strictly by the book. Asking you to agree not to contact your own solicitor is completely ridiculous.