Before you go for the lowest possible price for your Conveyancing requirements… read this! It may save you more than a few pounds…
A lot of ‘mass bucket shop/assembly line’ conveyancing outfits will tell you the old line about conveyancing being ‘standardised’ and easy to do if you stick to the timetable and frameworks. Anyone with half a day’s training could do the work, so why pay more than a few quid? Well that’s what they would like you to believe!
The problem with the ‘standardised process’ argument is that property isn’t standardised! Each property is unique and so are the environmental conditions in the proximity to the property. Buyers also make decisions on an ascetic and emotional response as much as they do on a logical and financial basis.
rhw’s conveyancing team come across issues with properties they are dealing with time and again. Some of these may be structural and building regulation based, or planning, service charge and legal issues. Experience guides us to ask questions that less experienced residential assembly line conveyancers wouldn’t think of asking. The rigid processes set up to allow those organisations to get the process completed as cheaply as possible don’t allow for vitally important questions to be asked.
You may be asking what is the difference in the way we operate compared to the ‘conveyancing assembly line’ business? Well, it comes down to knowledge, experience and qualifications. If the person doing the frontline work on your house purchase or sale is a qualified solicitor, they are likely to pick up on potentially vital issues others wouldn’t even know to look for. Their training makes them a much more effective analyser of potential pitfalls then an unqualified ‘case handler’.
A ‘case handler’ will have to refer any matters (even if they are able to spot the issues that matter in the first case) to the supervising solicitor who will be responsible for a sizeable team and not just focusing on your matter. The end result? Lengthy delays to your transaction.
The other area we would draw your attention to are ‘referral fees’ tucked away in the conveyancing assembly line’s small print. The initial fee may look like a bargain but mass conveyancing relies on a steady stream of referrals from agents. These are obtained through referral fees and it’s you who will end up paying them, even if indirectly. These fees have to be disclosed so they will be easy to find if you read all the paperwork you are given.
The moral of all of this? You really do get what you pay for when it comes to conveyancing. It’s a huge asset you are asking someone to handle on your behalf. Instruct someone to protect your interests.
Need to speak to someone about conveyancing? Call Guilford solicitors rhw on or e-mail
