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At Professional Properties, we know that when you’ve made up your mind to sell your property its time to make the some important decisions, choices and appointments.
In this article we look at the importance of appointing your legal representative who will oversee the transfer of the property to your buyer and/or the purchase of your new home too.
You are selling your most valuable asset. It’s extremely important that the people helping you to achieve your goals are the best people for the job.
Let’s assume you have already chosen your estate agent.. and let’s hope that it is ourselves!
Now you need to instruct a solicitor. Sometimes referred to as a conveyancer or conveyancing solicitor. Solicitors are usually more expensive than conveyancers and are qualified lawyers, so they can offer a full range of legal services.
Licenced conveyancers are specialised in property but can’t often deal with complex legal issues.
Over the years we’ve dealt with lots of them. Some very good. Some very bad. They really can be the difference between a property deal going through or it collapsing.
Let’s just have a quick look at what a solicitor will actually do:
A good solicitor should help everyone involved in the buying or selling of the property remain calm and well informed.
The three main things to look out for when picking a solicitor to handle your sale are the three C’s:
Communication
A good communicator will make you feel at ease and ensure that you know where you are in the process. A poor communicator will have you tearing your hair out and getting extremely frustrated.
Clarity of Service
Solicitors often charge in different ways; fixed fees, hourly rates or a percentage of the property price. We advise you to get three quotes which should all include a detailed breakdown of costs.
All quotes should include the following:
Customer Care
A good legal representative is not just there to complete the formalities, they are also there to advise you during what can be a very frustrating process. You may come up against a number of obstacles along the way:
Your solicitor needs to offer you advice and support if the unexpected happens during the buying and selling process.
One of the best ways is to ask the other property professionals that will also be part of the selling process; family and friends, mortgage broker or your agent. We work regularly with a panel of solicitors who we highly recommend.
Online conveyancing is an option too. These are often call centre type operations and you will only deal with them by email or phone but it is often cheaper that a local solicitor. However, be advised that you won’t fully understand the quality of service and you might not talk to the same person each time you call, and they can’t deal with more complex legal problems.
Also ensure that your chosen solicitor is: