Probate charge

Capri

Yes, I know I can 'do it myself' but there was an amount of paperwork and questions from the probate office, not to mention valuing the property and the fact that some time had passed as well before starting the process.
Anyway, what would be a reasonable charge for a solicitor to do such work as I asked them what the charge would be and they sent back the charges - asking me if I thought it was ok, as if they wanted me to negotiate a lower charge

coylemj

What is 'reasonable' depends on the effort required which in turn depends on the complexity of the estate - the mix of assets and the number of different bodies (banks, social welfare, credit unions etc. etc.) that need to be dealt with plus whatever transfer of title(s) might be involved if there is land and/or houses to be disposed of.

The answer in other words is: 'It depends'.

Your question is hopelessly vague, it's like asking how much an architect would charge to design a house.

The Ayatolla

How long does probate take, provided it's just a house and small bit of cash and there has been a will made out?

coylemj

The Ayatolla wrote: »

How long does probate take, provided it's just a house and small bit of cash and there has been a will made out?

Depends on which part of the country you're in and if it's Dublin, it will depend on whether you're doing it yourself or using a solicitor since there are different sections in Smithfield for each stream so different processing times.

The Ayatolla

coylemj wrote: »

Depends on which part of the country you're in and if it's Dublin, it will depend on whether you're doing it yourself or using a solicitor since there are different sections in Smithfield for each stream so different processing times.

It's Cork, solicitor will be handling it.

coylemj

The Ayatolla wrote: »

It's Cork, solicitor will be handling it.

Then ask the solicitor, he/she will know based on recent experiences. It also depends on how long it takes the solicitor to finalise the paperwork as the probate office processing is only part of the overall time it takes to do probate.

The Ayatolla

coylemj wrote: »

Then ask the solicitor, he/she will know based on recent experiences. It also depends on how long it takes the solicitor to finalise the paperwork as the probate office processing is only part of the overall time it takes to do probate.

Unfortunately the solicitor is from the other side, I'm the buyer. My own solicitor has said it can take quite some time. Ah well!

coylemj

The Ayatolla wrote: »

Unfortunately the solicitor is from the other side, I'm the buyer. My own solicitor has said it can take quite some time. Ah well!

Has the other side accepted an offer from you and you are both now waiting for the probate to be completed so the sale can go ahead? In that case you need the vendor to put pressure on their solicitor to get the probate completed.

However with property prices rising, the advantage may be with the vendor rather than you so they may be happy to drag their feet and not put pressure on their solicitor. That's unless they need the cash sooner rather than later, for example if they're planning to use the money to trade up.

The Ayatolla

As far as I know it's 10 beneficiaries sharing the will, so don't think they'd be interested in dragging their feet for the sake of a few hundred euro. The impression I got is they just want rid. I've made an offer last week and still the highest bidder. Once my offer is accepted and deposit paid I assume they cant pull the plug and sell to someone else ?

coylemj

The Ayatolla wrote: »

As far as I know it's 10 beneficiaries sharing the will, so don't think they'd be interested in dragging their feet for the sake of a few hundred euro. The impression I got is they just want rid.

Then tell them to put pressure on the solicitor doing the probate to move things along.

The Ayatolla wrote: »

Once my offer is accepted and deposit paid I assume they cant pull the plug and sell to someone else ?

Surely you've heard of gazumping?

Until they sign a firm contract to sell, they can give you your deposit back and accept a higher offer.

The Ayatolla

I thought that was the point of having an auctioneer, to have this done professionally :P Silly me! In fact, I now realise they have zero use!

coylemj

The Ayatolla wrote: »

I thought that was the point of having an auctioneer, to have this done professionally :P Silly me! In fact, I now realise they have zero use!

There was a program on TV the other night about estate agents and one of the scenes involved a house which was for sale and on which a firm offer had been made. The commentator expressed curiosity as to why the auctioneer didn't take down the 'For Sale' sign or slap a 'Sold' sticker over it but the auctioneer said that until there was a firm commitment to buy, the house was still on the market. He reminded the program maker that he acted for the seller and not the buyer.

In the specific case, the prospective buyer had their own house for sale and there was a potential delay meaning that (1) someone else could come forward and make a higher offer to buy the featured house or (2) the prospective buyer's house sale could fall through in which case their offer was worthless. So as far as the estate agent was concerned, the house was still on the market.

I have no connection with the trade but the example showed that an inexperienced vendor doing a private sale might withdraw the house from the market when they shouldn't. Leave it to the professionals was the message.

Valentine1

The Ayatolla wrote: »

As far as I know it's 10 beneficiaries sharing the will, so don't think they'd be interested in dragging their feet for the sake of a few hundred euro. The impression I got is they just want rid. I've made an offer last week and still the highest bidder. Once my offer is accepted and deposit paid I assume they cant pull the plug and sell to someone else ?

Until the contracts are signed by both you and the seller and then exchanged they can return your deposit and walk away from the sale for any reason.

I don't know about Cork but in Dublin in the Solicitor section, Probates are taking 10 - 16 weeks to come through according to the office which in reality is 14 to 18 weeks.