WARNING: Estate agents ‘will go bust’ unless conveyancing speeds up
Paul Sams from Dutton Gregory says some solicitors take too long to process home buying deals, and it is putting agents at risk.
A leading national law firm has warned that estate agents will go out of business unless conveyancing times are speeded up.
Dutton Gregory Solicitors says many conveyancers take too long to raise enquiries and progress cases, which can extend completion times by weeks.
The company urges conveyancers to raise queries when the contract is first drawn up and not wait.
Paul Sams, partner and head of property at Dutton Gregory (main picture), says: “I don’t understand why any lawyer would want to slow the process down or turn it into a combat sport.
If a local estate agents practice folds, it’s a blow for not only the individual business.”
“Clients want certainty and efficiency, and the completion of their property transaction is essential for Estate Agents to be able to pay staff wages,” he says.
“If a local estate agents practice folds, it’s a blow for not only the individual business but also for the overall health of the housing market let alone the economy at large.”
In jeopardy
Sams says that completing transactions in the shortest time possible is “in everyone’s interests”.
“It’s not uncommon for our conveyancing team to receive over 40 new enquiries 48 hours before the whole chain is expecting to exchange contracts, which can put every linked transaction in jeopardy.
It astounds me that some folks just won’t work as a team.”
“It astounds me that some folks just won’t work as a team.
“We want to work with our industry peers to improve service levels and help the whole supply chain to stay in business.”
Dutton Gregory Solicitors has offices in Bournemouth, Chandler’s Ford, Poole, Liverpool, London, Winchester, and Woking.
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Conveyancers are by far the biggest cause of our fall-throughs. Often take 2 weeks to send out terms of business, then miss stuff out, take weeks to reply to enquiries, don’t know basic law like Transfer of Private Sewers etc!, 2015 amendment to septic tanks! but worst of all lie about so many things it’s a disgrace. The classic is “I sent it last week”, what you mean is, you put it in your “out tray”, to be be sent, and it takes the equally useless admin team 10 days to physically post it. You sending it last week is not the same as it physically leaving is it!… oh and “I never got the email!” but have just received the one you’ve resent (to the same address of course)!!!.