Shoddy conveyancer

[North0ftheBorder]

I know conveyancers have a reputation for being a bit crap, but is it normal for them not to advocate on behalf of their client? We’re trying to agree on an exchange date with our difficult buyers, but our conveyancer has taken to just copying and pasting responses from their solicitors. They don’t contribute anything else, no advice or explanations. I have repeatedly asked for them to seek a compromise, explaining my concerns, but they haven’t addressed any of this in their responses. What’s the point of paying them for legal services if they can’t advise on legal matters?!

We made the big mistake of taking the estate agent’s recommendation with this firm, but feel it is now too late to change. Am I expecting too much? What can I do to give them a kick up the 🍑?

If you're not in contact with the puchasers, I'd say it then falls to agents to relate suggested dates between parties. I've always done it like this. You then let you solicitor know everyone would like to work to a certain date (assuming all the legal paperwork and mortgages are available then)

That’s helpful, thank you. I’ll try the estate agents.

The big conveyancing firms, yes, it is normal. They have shedloads of either unqualified or minimally qualified call centre staff working their way down tick box lists (and being penalised for not following them). Anything outside the norm is beyond them. Estate agents recommend them because they get a referral fee. They also tend to be cheaper so clients instruct them not realising it is very much a ‘you get what you pay for’ situation.

They are also normally useless when it comes to local knowledge.

It is almost always better to get a local solicitor who knows the area. He / She may use unqualified staff but will hopefully have much better oversight.

I know it’s too late for you. I wanted to post this for anyone else who might be at the start of buying / selling a property.

If you’ve instructed a local firm, you’ve been unlucky - it may be time to ask to speak to your solicitor’s supervisor.

Absolutely. We won’t be making the same mistake again!

I think it’s the norm that EAs negotiate dates, not the conveyancer.

Going through the same process and our EAs tried to harass us about every small detail (dates included) but we left it with the solicitors, letting them know our preferences and when something was a hard no. (For background out sellers are very demanding).

Most conveyancers aren't actually paid very well for the amount of work they do (solicitors in other areas of law often bill much higher for the same time) so they are probably keeping all interactions brief and to a minimum. I'm not condoning that approach though and would be just as annoyed had our solicitor taken the same approach as yours.

As PP suggested, you can contact their supervisor, but first I would hound them every day with exactly what you want. Not ideal to respond that way, but potentially necessary to get the result you want. Best of luck!

Solicitors and conveyancers deal with the legal transfer of property, not chatting about dates and seeking compromises with other parties. You'll have dates you prefer and your buyers will have dates they prefer.

Your solicitor won't be able to exchange until your date and your buyer's date is agreed. The EA can help with that. Of course, I'm assuming that both solicitors have reached a point where exchange is imminent rather than a guesstimate before the work has reached that point.

Thank you to everyone who has responded. It’s been a long time since I’ve moved home so making a lot of rookie mistakes! Our estate agents have been such poor communicators, pretty much radio silence since the offer was accepted, that I assumed it would be the conveyancers who took over. I’ve now asked them to step in and see if we can compromise on an exchange date. Bracing myself for a trickle of passive-aggressive emails now…