Best Conveyancing Solicitors

Here are some tips on choosing the best conveyancing solicitors...or better still, how to avoid bad conveyancing solicitors! The challenge for most is that the conveyancing process isn't something you do regularly enough to have the experience to know what to look for in your property solicitor, or better still, what to expect.

Our recent survey reveals that 41% don't even know or recall what made them choose their solicitor! This is not a decision to be taken lightly, and it can make all the difference to your sanity when roadblocks and hiccups arise with your property.

8 tips on choosing the best solicitor

Here are our top 8 tips to choose the best conveyancing solicitor and get the best buy conveyancing quotes...and avoid the bad ones!

• 1

  CQS is the mark of the best conveyancing solicitor

CQS (Conveyancing Quality Scheme) is an accreditation awarded by The Law Society to property solicitors who meet the highest standards of conveyancing. The idea behind CQS was to give a distinct brand and sign of quality that the public can relate to when choosing a conveyancing solicitor.

To be CQS accredited, the Law Society assess a conveyancing solicitor for the highest standards of service, procedures and processes. Rest assured, with SAM Conveyancing, your conveyancing will only ever be entrusted to one of our experienced CQS conveyancing solicitors, so you can relax while we do the hard work.

• 2

  Beware non-online/non-email quotes or "I’ll send you a quote in the post"

SAM Conveyancing solicitors provide the best online conveyancing quotes for the best online conveyancing solicitors - they are quick and simple, setting out what you will pay in full right from the start (but be careful and read Tip 3...!). Alarm bells should be ringing if a conveyancer says: "My conveyancing quote is £700 plus disbursements and I’ll send it to you in the post". Be prepared to walk away there and then. Email has been around since 1971 and has become one of the fastest ways to send written information. If a conveyancer mentions fax communication, it's a similar red flag - who regularly uses faxes these days?!

If a conveyancing solicitor isn’t going to email you a quote and will rely on the postal system - aka 'Snail Mail', then you might as well kiss goodbye to 3 days before you get that letter. These will use up time: dictation of the quote, typing up of the quote by the secretary, review by the solicitor, put in the office post bag, miss the first post, receive the quote whilst you are at work, then you finally get to open the letter! The best conveyancing solicitors should be proud to guard their time and yours.

• 3

  I estimate you will pay thousands, not hundreds

'Estimate'. Walk away. 'This is your quote to the best of my knowledge'. Walk Away.' A conveyancing quote from £99 to £400. Walk away! If we have worked with 1,000 solicitors, then we have seen thousands of conveyancing quotes and, sadly, there are solicitors who hide behind the small print and rely on you being fazed by the UNBELIEVABLE and SUCH A TOP DEAL price.

Like anything else in life, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is - and you can't get top conveyancing solicitors to work for peanuts, although it's reasonable to search for a value-for-money price. Either your estimate will include additional solicitor fees, or you won’t have direct access to a solicitor and may be working with a "team" of people (read Tip 5).

• 4

  Who is your actual conveyancing solicitor?

Were you told who your actual solicitor was? If the answer is no, walk away. You need to have a close relationship with your solicitor, so you need to know who they are.

SAM Conveyancing will give you the name of your dedicated CQS solicitor right at the start. You'll also be given the solicitor's contact number.

• 5

  Avoid conveyancing warehouses

The 2000s saw the rise of conveyancing factories, a far cry from the small law firm where there was a secretary/receptionist/bookkeeper and then the solicitor. A conveyancing factory can make you feel like a number, rather than a person.

Teams of people trained on the job, and you having no contact with a regular solicitor, are signs of a conveyancing warehouse. Walk away. After all these years, the best advice we can give is to steer clear of conveyancing warehouses. Nothing can ever replace a one-to-one relationship with a good conveyancing solicitor.

• 6

  How experienced is your conveyancing solicitor?

Now you have a property solicitor’s name, Google them. Find their LinkedIn profiles; how long has your solicitor been working? Experience is key. An inexperienced conveyancer could miss something crucial and cost you £1,000s. SAM Conveyancing's solicitors have 'been there, done it before and got the t-shirt'. In the conveyancing world, you learn from your mistakes. 

• 7

  Check online reviews for the conveyancing solicitor firm

Ignore what a firm writes on its own site. Ignore what videos they post. Ignore the specially chosen reviews from apparently happy customers. Instead, read what people have written on web forums, paying special attention to Money Saving Expert.

A healthy dose of scepticism is always worthwhile, generally where online material is concerned, and nothing beats a direct enquiry to a firm if you want to know a little more. 

• 8

  Did you like the solicitor?

Sometimes, when you speak to someone on the telephone, you get a sense of reassurance and make a connection. If the person sounds rushed, they are too busy for you; if they don’t make you feel valued, then they don’t care. Did they sound excited about your amazing new home? Were they helpful and prepared to give you the time to discuss your questions? We think these are the types of conveyancing solicitors you should work with.

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Checklist for choosing the best conveyancing solicitors

1
Make sure your conveyancing solicitor is CQS accredited

2
Email quotes are a must; pop in the post, pop that solicitor in the bin!

3
Never go with an estimate for solicitor fees - get a fixed, final quote to get the best conveyancing costs

4
Steer clear of solicitor quotes that look too good to be true; question anything under £400

5
Ask your conveyancing solicitor – "What are you going to charge me for doing all of the legal work; no ifs, no buts"

6
Find out who your solicitor is and check out their previous working history

7
Avoid conveyancing warehouses and working with ‘teams’ of people

8
Check online reviews, but be sceptical

9
Did you like your solicitor when you spoke to them?

When you work with SAM Conveyancing solicitors, you will be in safe hands from the word go. Our conveyancing solicitors have years of experience helping people move home and are best placed to help you with your home purchase.