Moving home or buying your first home is an exciting, but in some cases quite stressful, time. So you need to ensure that you have a solicitor or conveyancer that you trust to deal with the transaction.

But what is the difference? A solicitor is a qualified lawyer with extensive training and the ability to offer a full range of legal services whereas a conveyancer has less training but specialises in property.

Conveyancers may provide a lower quote in the first instance but effectively a conveyancer’s job is to complete all the relevant paperwork so that on completion the title to the property is in your name.

So, why should you use a solicitor instead of a conveyancer?

In most cases the buying or selling of a property can become particularly difficult and legal issues may arise which therefore require a solicitor.

For example, you may have bought the property with no issues whatsoever so feel that a conveyancer would be more than suitable for the sale of the property. But what about problems that might have arisen during the time that you occupied the property? A noisy neighbour, or perhaps one who disputes where the property boundary is?

A solicitor would raise enquiries to the problems with neighbours. Unfortunately, not telling the purchaser at the time of sale isn’t an option. By not disclosing problems to the purchaser, you run the risk of being taken to Court for damages for misrepresentation.

A solicitor would also go through your obligations under the terms of any lease or restrictions. There will be obligations that you will have to meet and that the purchaser will have to meet such as ground rent. A solicitor will clearly set these out and make you aware.

The issues that can arise when buying or selling a property are extensive; properties can be built without planning consent, boundary disputes, and even properties bought when only part of the house would be actually owned. Imagine trying to sell a house when you in fact only own three of the walls and the fourth is leased to someone else!

We appreciate that moving home is extremely costly but conveyancing is not the time to pinch pennies. Clients should look for the best solicitor who will complete the sale effectively and in a timely manner.

Buying a house can be a risky business. Cut down the risks by taking the best advice not the best price.

At St Helens Law we have a dedicated team of specialist conveyancing solicitors and an advanced case management system, which enables us to deal with your purchase transaction quickly and efficiently.

To contact our Residential Property team, please call 01744 742360, or click here to email conveyancing@sthelenslaw.co.uk

USEFUL GUIDES

• Please click here to download our PDF guide to what you can expect from the conveyancing process.

• Click here to view the residential property section of our website

• Click here to view our Residential Property FAQs