How often do you want/expect solicitor updates?

jazzyja

OK, so I'm completely new to all this so I've no idea what to expect when waiting for solicitors. I instructed on the 22nd june and asked for all searches to start ASAP. My mortgage offer is in place and survey done etc so literally just waiting for solicitor (I understand they are taking longer at the minute). So I just emailed yesterday to ask where we're at really as I've not heard that searches have been started and I haven't paid any money (I assumed I would pay something to get going, turns out not). Solicitor emailed back basically saying I said ASAP....so searches have started. ...but I expected to be told this really? And what searches? Like what order do they do them? I dont even want to email her back, she's quite a fierce woman, very good reputation but can tell she's 100% been a witch in a past life. 

I dont want to keep pestering but would like to be kept informed really....is that too much to ask? Given the current climate. Like I say this is all new to me. Will she tell me the result of each search or will it be a matter of getting in contact when ready to exchange?? Thanks 

pluto261

I'm also new to this, but not quite as new as you (offer accepted and solicitors instructed in mid-May) so I'll tell you what I've learned over the last couple of months.

Basically, on the pay scale of lawyer services, conveyancing is very very very cheap. So conveyancers make money by having 120-140 conveyancing cases open at any given time. There's only actually about three hours of work involved for each case, but the volume of them means that they're basically doing stuff on a conveyer belt system and updating clients is extremely low on their list of priorities. 

Dealing with chaser calls and emails is time-consuming and conveyancers hate doing it. But they're also not proactive about sending you updates (unless you get really lucky with your conveyancer), because from their perspective it's not important for the client to know what's going on. The closest thing you'll get to updates is when your conveyancer needs something from you, like a signature on a document or an answer to a question.

Basically the whole system is kind of broken, and it's one of the reasons why house buying takes so long in the UK and sales break down so often. Surveys have found that the majority of homebuyers would not recommend their conveyancer or use them a second time, and the #1 complaint about conveyancers is how bad they are at communication.

TL;dr Don't expect any solicitor updates at all unless there's something she needs from you. Chase via phone or email once a week (not Friday, that's their busiest day). She'll hate it, but it's the only way to know what's going on.

Octothorpe

In regards to your searches,  I would email her asking that when searches are back please can she let you know.

When she tells you they are in, you can then ask her when will she review your file and raise enquiries with your vendor.

When she tells you she's raised enquiries,  you can let the EA know so he can make sure vendor replies quickly and let you know they have returned enquiries to your solicitor. 

Then you can go back to your solicitor and say Enquiries have been returned,  please tell me
when you will review the file.

At each stage you can then have an idea of when to contact her. If she says, I will review your file Thursday,  on Monday you can chase and ask for an update, as she told you Thursday so should have done it.

Justonemorecupoftea

As I understand it, it would be very unusual for local searches (e.g. ones from the council) to be instructed without you paying for them first as it is an upfront expense for the solicitors, so I'd be following that up.

If you search online you may be able to find the land charges department for the council of the property you're buying. You should be able to email them and ask if searches have been instructed (we did this on our own house trying to see if our buyers had done anything yet!)

Have you had the property information form and fixtures and fittings forms through? If these haven't come through from your vendor yet, the solicitor may not have started work. They may have used "searches" as shorthand for requesting these.

I assume the chain is "complete" and the people you're buying from have found somewhere etc as they may not start things properly until they have.

The other thing to note is that the 22nd of June was probably the start of the busiest week in some time for conveyancing solicitors so anything instructed then may well have taken a few days to get going.

As for how often to expect updates - if you leave them alone they will generally only update when they need something from you to get to the next stage (sign this, review that etc) but there can be weeks between these stages and they often depend on other people doing stuff.

Check over any Ts&C's  or terms of service you signed at the start of the process, this may outline things.

The other people to get involved is your/your seller's EA, if they have a sales progression person, they'll be trying to keep on top of everything to keep things moving.

The final thing to keep in mind is that 12 weeks is probably a "normal" timeframe, so you may need to adjust your expectations accordingly. 

tink_1983

My estate agents calls me weekly after he has checked in with both mine and my buyers solicitors 

teachfast

Pluto261 is absolutely spot on, and has done so in a very polite and reasonable manner.  I would go further and add that there is often very little professional pride taken by conveyancers. They tend to treat their clients like an annoyance (as you will see from replies you will get on this thread) and have little thought for what their clients are going through.

In theory all this would be solved through two things:

1) an online portal showing progress / next steps with dates etc. The problem is these already exist but are mainly used by the cheaper conveyancing factories; who are going to turn you in a number rather than a person anyway.

2) raising the price of conveyancing so that sufficient people can be employed to do the work in a timely way. Sadly some local solicitors charge a packet and still provide a poor service with weak communication, almost like it is an expected part of the job and because they can get away with it.

Irishpearce26

Do you want the solicitor doing the work or spending unnecessary time letting you know they've done something each time?

What you should do is agree update calls and let them get on with it in between, remember they will have multiple clients all wanting work done and all wanting updates. 

The more you get in touch with them on trivial things like 'the EA has told me the sellers have the enquiries have been returned' just wastes time. The process can take 3-6 months on a normal process.

AdrianC

jazzyja said:

OK, so I'm completely new to all this so I've no idea what to expect when waiting for solicitors. I instructed on the 22nd june and asked for all searches to start ASAP. My mortgage offer is in place and survey done etc so literally just waiting for solicitor (I understand they are taking longer at the minute). So I just emailed yesterday to ask where we're at really as I've not heard that searches have been started and I haven't paid any money (I assumed I would pay something to get going, turns out not). Solicitor emailed back basically saying I said ASAP....so searches have started. ...but I expected to be told this really? And what searches? Like what order do they do them? I dont even want to email her back, she's quite a fierce woman, very good reputation but can tell she's 100% been a witch in a past life. 

I dont want to keep pestering but would like to be kept informed really....is that too much to ask? Given the current climate. Like I say this is all new to me. Will she tell me the result of each search or will it be a matter of getting in contact when ready to exchange?? Thanks 

Woah up! You instructed nine working days ago. Expect comms when there's something to report. You are in this for a few months, not a couple of weeks.

Have they even had the draft contracts through from the vendor yet?

Have you REALLY got your mortgage offer, or just an AiP?

TBG01

My mortgage offer is in place and survey done etc so literally just waiting for solicitor

What do you mean by this? I hope you don't think it's now just down to the Solicitor to wrap things up because you're still looking at months before completing.

I'm not having a go but it's crazy how many people admit to not knowing how the process works, but then gets upset and angry at solicitors not meeting their self imposed timescales and expectations.

jazzyja

TBG01 said:

My mortgage offer is in place and survey done etc so literally just waiting for solicitor

What do you mean by this? I hope you don't think it's now just down to the Solicitor to wrap things up because you're still looking at months before completing.

I'm not having a go but it's crazy how many people admit to not knowing how the process works, but then gets upset and angry at solicitors not meeting their self imposed timescales and expectations.

I know it's going to take months....I never said I was expecting weeks 🤔 what I mean by this is.....the solicitor side of things is what I am waiting for....or is there something else???

jazzyja

AdrianC said:

jazzyja said:

OK, so I'm completely new to all this so I've no idea what to expect when waiting for solicitors. I instructed on the 22nd june and asked for all searches to start ASAP. My mortgage offer is in place and survey done etc so literally just waiting for solicitor (I understand they are taking longer at the minute). So I just emailed yesterday to ask where we're at really as I've not heard that searches have been started and I haven't paid any money (I assumed I would pay something to get going, turns out not). Solicitor emailed back basically saying I said ASAP....so searches have started. ...but I expected to be told this really? And what searches? Like what order do they do them? I dont even want to email her back, she's quite a fierce woman, very good reputation but can tell she's 100% been a witch in a past life. 

I dont want to keep pestering but would like to be kept informed really....is that too much to ask? Given the current climate. Like I say this is all new to me. Will she tell me the result of each search or will it be a matter of getting in contact when ready to exchange?? Thanks 

Woah up! You instructed nine working days ago. Expect comms when there's something to report. You are in this for a few months, not a couple of weeks.

Have they even had the draft contracts through from the vendor yet?

Have you REALLY got your mortgage offer, or just an AiP?

I expected her to at the very least say she's started searches yes.

Yes I do have my actual mortgage offer and yes I am fully expecting it to take months. I never said I was expecting weeks. My question is simply how do they usually communicate. Am I just waiting 3-4 months and shel contact.