Reply to: Solicitors are they more of a rip-off than IT contractors?

[woohoo]

Fingers crossed for you but November gives you more than enough time. Are you going to try and exchange contracts prior to your holiday?

To be fair, once you have had your offer accepted, your mortgage offered and a more in depth survey carried out (if not done through your lender), there isn't really more for you to do as everything is in the hands of the solicitors unless they flag any problems.

Yup would like to exchange before the holiday, it’s surprisingly stressful buying a new house and selling.

The buyer is really keen, already enrolled their child in the local school, the letter came to the house. Just chasing up our survey.

The new solicitors seem more on the ball, they tend to answer email questions straightaway. So fingers crossed.

[Martin@AS Financial]

Good to know November is possible. On holiday around that time so want things to be sorted before preferably.

Fingers crossed for you but November gives you more than enough time. Are you going to try and exchange contracts prior to your holiday?

To be fair, once you have had your offer accepted, your mortgage offered and a more in depth survey carried out (if not done through your lender), there isn't really more for you to do as everything is in the hands of the solicitors unless they flag any problems.

[woohoo]

Less than one week from making an offer. Contacted the search company direct and all searches done in 24hs. Solicitor cost £1,200.00 to do it quickly.

You sound like a man that knows how to sell and buy a house. Good on you sir.

[Paddy]

Well my experience of the solicitors so far has been far from encouraging.

What's the fastest anyone has managed to complete a sale and buy a house? Is November looking realistic?

Less than one week from making an offer. Contacted the search company direct and all searches done in 24hs. Solicitor cost £1,200.00 to do it quickly.

[woohoo]

Yes - November should be realistic although a lot will depend on your buyers solicitor being pro-active. Your solicitor will have submitted a request to the local authority for the searches to ensure nothing is going to be built in or around your property that could have a future affect on the value. These can take a while to come back sometimes as local authorities tend to work at their own pace.

Good to know November is possible. On holiday around that time so want things to be sorted before preferably.

[woohoo]

For what it is worth, I am paying £2.1K including VAT with £500-ish of that being land registry fees. It's the stamp duty bit that gets up my nose.

We are paying more that than around 2.5k including VAT. But we are paying extra because our house is on a long lease and the same for the house we are buying. Also, we have land with our house that we own.

Yeah, the stamp duty is a kicker!

[Martin@AS Financial]

Well my experience of the solicitors so far has been far from encouraging.

I went for the one recommended by the estate agent for the house we are buying. For anyone that is interested the estate agent gets a £500 kickback for the recommendation.

Had to get rid of the first solicitor because they managed to get my name wrong 3 times and on the 4th try managed to get the misses name wrong. Also, they managed to add up their fees incorrectly (by a fair amount in my favour).

So, anyway after reading NLUK post, I decided to not take chances and got rid of them. Changed to another solicitor and they seem better so far. Managed to spell our names correctly and everything, so all looking rosey.

Still think its a big con, and sending out 40 page docs when only 3 or 4 are required just seems to be padding the work out.

I will bore you all with my upcoming house move... look forward to more moaning about solicitors, house moving companies and internet speeds at the new house.

What's the fastest anyone has managed to complete a sale and buy a house? Is November looking realistic?

Yes - November should be realistic although a lot will depend on your buyers solicitor being pro-active. Your solicitor will have submitted a request to the local authority for the searches to ensure nothing is going to be built in or around your property that could have a future affect on the value. These can take a while to come back sometimes as local authorities tend to work at their own pace.

[The_Equalizer]

For what it is worth, I am paying £2.1K including VAT with £500-ish of that being land registry fees. It's the stamp duty bit that gets up my nose.

[woohoo]

Well my experience of the solicitors so far has been far from encouraging.

I went for the one recommended by the estate agent for the house we are buying. For anyone that is interested the estate agent gets a £500 kickback for the recommendation.

Had to get rid of the first solicitor because they managed to get my name wrong 3 times and on the 4th try managed to get the misses name wrong. Also, they managed to add up their fees incorrectly (by a fair amount in my favour).

So, anyway after reading NLUK post, I decided to not take chances and got rid of them. Changed to another solicitor and they seem better so far. Managed to spell our names correctly and everything, so all looking rosey.

Still think its a big con, and sending out 40 page docs when only 3 or 4 are required just seems to be padding the work out.

I will bore you all with my upcoming house move... look forward to more moaning about solicitors, house moving companies and internet speeds at the new house.

What's the fastest anyone has managed to complete a sale and buy a house? Is November looking realistic?

[northernladuk]

Did you win?

I did if you can call it that. It took bloody years due to them knowing every delay tactic in the book. I then had to deal with their PI insurance solicitors who, in a nutshell tried to strong arm me in to a lesser settlement or see me in court mean I had to put to a 4 to 5 figure sum to pay for it and get it back at the end. Finally folded and accepted a figure at 50% less than I claimed for and then found out I have to put in to a pot that paid shared the costs between the solicitors. Never understood it as I'd had enough by then. Absolute disgrace it was. I won, got some money yet still felt like I'd had my pants pulled down by the whole system.

[woohoo]

Gotta be a pretty good **** up. I sued a solicitor for messing a purchase of a flat up. Hidden in the lease was a clause that I couldn't rent it out and the flat management company decided to pull it 4 years in. Right pain the bloody arse suing solicitors I can tell you.

Did you win?

[woohoo]

Just remember, if there's any f**k up, you can sue the solicitor. You can probably get a straightforward conveyancing job done for £500-800, by some pensioner working out of his kitchen, but you almost certainly shouldn't.

Don't tell me what to do! What's this pensioners name and contact details?

[barrydidit]

5 percent? I take it you bought a barn which hasn't been converted yet...

Eh? This is up north mate, that included Osbourne's additional-3%-for-being-a-flash-cant-with-more-than-one-house surcharge

Barns that haven't been converted aren't so cheap these days. Unless, like my mate, you happen to hear of a chap in severe (gonna declare bankruptcy in the morning style) financial distress, and make him a most reasonable offer

[DimPrawn]

Have your got a hotel yet?

One on Mayfair and one on Park Lane.

[AtW]

Pretty much, when you consider all the BTL properties combined.

Have your got a hotel yet?