You’ve more than likely seen the marketing phrases “all under one roof” and “agency fees and solicitors included” but you have probably also seen “free legals” or “cheap conveyancing fees” – what would you go for?
During the sales process, as agents, we deal with a range of solicitors from local firms, small firms, large (mainly online) conveyancing firms and solicitors from our very own Milne Moser Solicitors.
It is very clear that communication between your solicitor and estate agent is absolutely essential to ensure the sale runs smoothly.
Typically, your agent will organise the surveys, deal with any negotiations if needed and hand over keys on the day of completion as well as communicate between buyer and seller throughout the process.
Your solicitor will deal with all legal enquiries, searches, obtaining mortgage funds from the lender and finalising exchange and completion.
Now that’s a lot to deal with, right?
Generally, solicitors need longer to deal with the aspects of the sale, given the complex nature. This is where your agent steps in, by liaising with your solicitor as well as your buyers’, they can help keep the lines of communication open.
We have heard in some cases, sellers have gone weeks without speaking to their solicitor, which would leave you wondering what on earth is going on.
We are all for online portals and they can, at a glance, give you a brief update on where your matter is up to, but have you actually spoken to the solicitor dealing with the most important item you could possibly sell? Do they respond to you in a timely manner or are you having to chase them? In our opinion, none of that is good enough.
We have had feedback from clients who wish they had considered the above points when choosing their solicitor.
I recently had a client who decided to go for the cheaper solicitor, he also then found out he had to pay extra costs (£175) to exchange and complete with less than 5 days in-between and had to pay extra costs for his solicitor to pay his agency fees (nothing I had ever heard of in my career). He ended up waiting for the money to clear and settling the bill himself.
When you are selling and buying, making sure this money is allocated and set aside is actually much harder than you think.
At Milne Moser, our agents and solicitors often work in the same building, keeping in constant communication to make sure our clients are up to speed.
We work as one, when your negotiator or solicitor gets an update, they inform the other. The smoother and quicker the process, the lesser chance a sale has at falling through. Our gold standard service doubles up, what more could you ask for?
