solicitors fees and hips (reduction?)

gps_2

hello

don't know if this has been asked before but as the hips now provide us with some things the solicitor would previously do, does this mean solicitors fees are reduced accordingly? (for the buyer) i know these are disbursments but surely the legwork for this was factored in previously, (or should i say time on the internet requesting searches etc.)

i.e
local authority search
drainage and water search
title registry
etc


would be great if any solicitors on here could answer this.

chriserenity

I suggested on a previous post this might be a knock on effect of HIPs. Approx 200 pounds of current HIP costs go to pay for sourcing the documents you mentioned. Documents that cost the solicitor pretty much the same to obtain now.

When HIPs are fully integrated after this transition period you would expect solicitors conveyancing fees to decrease. Of course, you are still getting legal advice from a qualified industry professional regardless of what they actually need to do.

I'd also be interested in comments on this from conveyancers.

david29dpo

As long as the searches etc are less than 5 months-ish old, yes, the buyers cost will be less. Approx £100 for Local land searches, £42.77 for water and drainage, title plan and register,£6. If a buyers solicitor wants to do them again, ask WHY!!!

gps_2

david29dpo wrote: »

As long as the searches etc are less than 5 months-ish old, yes, the buyers cost will be less. Approx £100 for Local land searches, £42.77 for water and drainage, title plan and register,£6. If a buyers solicitor wants to do them again, ask WHY!!!

are you a solicitor?

gps_2

also what is a good quote just for selling and a hip on a house at £165k?

i got monkey move quote at about £300 for hip and about £550 for selling fees on housenetwork. (inc vat)

seems reasonable?

david29dpo

No, my partner is! Most HIPS seen to cost £300-£350 at the moment. I would recommend using a local HIP company and solicitor if possible due to the fact they are local, and they will know the area well. I have seen a few inaccurate HIPS from call centre based HIP companies with missing titles! Simply because they dont know the area. Make sure the HIP comes with official searches, some solicitors will not accept personal searches and most lenders wont either. This may seem not a sellers problem at first but when the HIP drops on the buyers solicitors desk and go's straight in the bin, you could have the buyer moaning at you! The idea of the HIP is to save time and money for the buyer, why risk having a useless HIP? Official searches are just as cheap as personal ones now anyway.

david29dpo

£550 for solicitors fees sounds ok.

Evee2000

david29dpo wrote: »

No, my partner is! Most HIPS seen to cost £300-£350 at the moment. I would recommend using a local HIP company and solicitor if possible due to the fact they are local, and they will know the area well. I have seen a few inaccurate HIPS from call centre based HIP companies with missing titles! Simply because they dont know the area. Make sure the HIP comes with official searches, some solicitors will not accept personal searches and most lenders wont either. This may seem not a sellers problem at first but when the HIP drops on the buyers solicitors desk and go's straight in the bin, you could have the buyer moaning at you! The idea of the HIP is to save time and money for the buyer, why risk having a useless HIP? Official searches are just as cheap as personal ones now anyway.

Totally agree with the point regarding using a local solution for your HIP provision. You will get the keenest price and most probably a better standard of service.

I have to disagree with regard to the 'most lenders wont' bit in the post above. 95% of lenders will accept the personal search and many have been accepting them for years. An indemnity insurance is usually included. The Council of Mortgage Lenders Handbook now includes specific guidance and references to personal searches, reaffirming that they can be used.

chriserenity

Evee2000 wrote: »

Totally agree with the point regarding using a local solution for your HIP provision. You will get the keenest price and most probably a better standard of service.

I have to disagree with regard to the 'most lenders wont' bit in the post above. 95% of lenders will accept the personal search and many have been accepting them for years. An indemnity insurance is usually included. The Council of Mortgage Lenders Handbook now includes specific guidance and references to personal searches, reaffirming that they can be used.

I also agree that personal searches are fine. You can check out the indemnity on the searches by looking at the insurance policy document attached to them.

Absolutely - find a local HIP provider through your local directories or other means. The new edition of the Yellow Pages should include your local HIP providers next time. Also local business listings or just google 'Home Information Pack' and your nearest major town. All should yield some good results.

Richard_Webster

I have to disagree with regard to the 'most lenders wont' bit in the post above. 95% of lenders will accept the personal search and many have been accepting them for years.

I agree with this. The problem is that a minority of solicitors out there are being difficult about it all, and while they are being difficult there is an argument for doing the "official" local search to avoid possible trouble and delay later. I'm not doing official searches in my HIPs unless the client specifically wants them or the "official" search is actually cheaper than through a search company!

As far as legal costs are concerned from a seller's point of view there is only a very small saving in that the official copies won't need to be requested twice (£6) or if the title is not yet registered then the HIP provider will do the epitome of the unregistered title and that piece of work won't be part of the selling process.

From the buyer's point of view, if his solicitor is not picky about the kind of local search then there should be a saving.

The seller didn't do the searches previously and many buyers' solicitors didn't do drainage searches anyway. In my area this has been an embarrassment for Southern Water who are only now catching up having had backlogs of about 2 months earlier this Autumn.

gps_2

what is the difference between personal and official searches?