YES, once you have agreed a sale or purchase, you will need a conveyancing solicitor to assist with the legal aspects of the transaction and get you from ‘sale agreed’ (when you have an offer accepted) to ‘completion’ (when you hand over the money and get the keys). Your estate agent is likely to recommend a conveyancing solicitor who they are used to working with.
Related: How To Choose The Right Conveyancing Solicitor
A good conveyancing solicitor will have a close relationship with the agent and will work as a team to deal with any issues or complications. When considering which conveyancing solicitor to instruct, you should also consider reviews such as trust pilot and google, and consider their website which will give you an idea of the type of service they offer and any stand out features such as an online case tracker.
Related: The Cost of Buying a House and Moving
There are many technical terms used during the purchase or sale of a property which can make the process confusing for many people. Freehold is perhaps one of the most important of these.
Given the huge range of conveyancers that are available, the market can be confusing particularly for first time buyers, or those who have not sold or purchased a property for some time.
Related: Romford Property Solicitors
Are Licensed Conveyancers Solicitors?
When it comes to conveyancing, licensed conveyancers and conveyancing solicitors are not the same, but they are very similar in terms of job description. It is a common misconception that conveyancing solicitors are better qualified to deal with your property transaction. However, this is not the case as licensed conveyancers are legally trained and therefore just as competent.
Also See: Licensed Coventry Property Solicitors
The main difference is that conveyancing solicitors are trained in a variety of legal services and can specialise in more than one area of law. This means that they are not limited to providing just a conveyancing service which is useful if your case is more complex and overlaps into a different area of law.
Also See: Property Solicitors in Cambridge
On the other hand, licensed conveyancers are trained to specialise in conveyancing only. Therefore, they are limited in the sense that they can only offer a conveyancing service. However, licensed conveyancers are trained to a high standard so you can expect to receive a quality service from them.
Also See: Best Conveyancing Solicitors in Bournemouth
Our advice: When it comes to instructing a legal professional to help you with your property transaction, you can choose a licensed conveyancer or conveyancing solicitor as both have the requisite knowledge and expertise to assist you.
How Much Do Conveyancing Fees Cost?
While disbursement costs are fairly standard, conveyancing fees can vary anything between £200 to £2000 and beyond! Some lawyers will charge an hourly rate, where they record time spent on a case and charge you by the hour anything from around £150 per hour upwards, depending on the expertise of the person doing the work. Most conveyancers will charge a fixed fee, where they will quote a set fee for the standard work required for a case.
Also See: Top-Rated Enfield Conveyancing Solicitors
However, you should be aware that further fees may be required if the matter becomes more complex. Fixed fees can only cover the standard amount of work required, if additional work that was not required for all cases (such as acting for a mortgage lender) was included in this initial fee, this would be unfair on those that were paying for but did not require such work. Additional work will therefore incur additional fees which will depend on the time required.
How Is The Conveyancing Fees Calculated?
Conveyancing Fees is a very general term that can be used in different ways. Generally people want to know what the overall costs are going to be to sell or buy, in order that they can budget accurately and make sure they have enough saved to cover the purchase (or some left over for a new sofa!).
Also See: What is Online Conveyancing in UK
This overall cost is made up of ‘conveyancing fees’, that is the cost of the legal work required to complete the transaction, and ‘disbursements’, that is the additional payments to third parties for their services in relation to the transaction. Disbursements will include costs such as Land Registry fees and searches. Stamp Duty Land Tax and survey fees are further costs associated with a purchase that are not generally included in ‘conveyancing fees’ but should also be included in the buyer’s budget.
