Can I contact the purchaser's solicitor directly?

2rkehij30qtza5

Long story short...sold a property...my solicitor has basically had me running around doing her work for her...demanding unreasonable things and not answering my calls..is constantly 'unavailable'. Nightmare stuff. Has actually made me ill from stress.

Sale was supposed to close today. I can only assume it didn't. Both me as the vendor and the purchasers have signed the contract. There seems to be nothing outstanding only the drawdown cheque, which I have no idea if it's done or not.

My own solicitor hasn't even had the courtesy to ring me back after me leaving messages that I want to speak with her.

Can I ring the purchasers solicitor directly myself to see what the story is? Am I allowed to do this?

Fred Swanson

This post has been deleted.

2rkehij30qtza5

Fred Swanson wrote: »

You will be told to speak to your own solicitor.

Ok thanks. Except my solicitor won't speak to me.

Fred Swanson

This post has been deleted.

L1011

You will be told very abruptly to talk to your own solicitor. The purchases solicitor do not represent you and have no need to talk to you.

2rkehij30qtza5

Fred Swanson wrote: »

That is not the other guys problem. He represents the seller and the seller only. You have your own solicitor.

Is this related to your other thread?

Yea. She's just being difficult. Bottom line-you pay for what you get when getting a solicitor and I went with a cheaper price and that's my own fault.

MarkAnthony

Purely out of morbid curiosity and for the benefit of the 0.1% of people that use the terrible search function successfully why did you pick a solicitor in Dublin if you're in Galway?

2rkehij30qtza5

MarkAnthony wrote: »

Purely out of morbid curiosity and for the benefit of the 0.1% of people that use the terrible search function successfully why did you pick a solicitor in Dublin if you're in Galway?

For a number of reasons:
because I thought it would expedite things (ie if something needed to be urgently couriered between solicitors it could be done easily) and also, I thought a solicitor in Dublin would be more familiar with how things worked in Dublin (the property I'm selling is in Dublin). I realise now that I made a terrible mistake in choosing the solicitor I chose and I feel so stupid and upset with myself for picking her.

MarkAnthony

Nelson Wailing Grindstone wrote: »

For a number of reasons:
because I thought it would expedite things (ie if something needed to be urgently couriered between solicitors it could be done easily) and also, I thought a solicitor in Dublin would be more familiar with how things worked in Dublin (the property I'm selling is in Dublin). I realise now that I made a terrible mistake in choosing the solicitor I chose and I feel so stupid and upset with myself for picking her.

Don't fret! These things happen, it definitely makes sense to pick a solicitor local to the property you're selling. If you're completely stuck PM me and I'll pop in for you. TBH usually these things sort themselves.

4ensic15

Nelson Wailing Grindstone wrote: »

Yea. She's just being difficult. Bottom line-you pay for what you get when getting a solicitor and I went with a cheaper price and that's my own fault.

Pay peanuts, get monkeys. reputation is everything. Paying a lot is no guarantee of a quality service either. Your solicitor gave you a low price and now doesn't want to spend a minute more on the transaction than absolutely necessary. Get a friend to ring and say she was in a car crash and suffered serious injuries which were made worse by negligent medical treatment and see how fast she rings back.

Earthhorse

That must be very frustrating for you. I can only say I am in the process of purchasing and though it's much earlier I find my solicitor very reluctant to take calls or call back. So perhaps it's just something solicitors in general do?

2rkehij30qtza5

Earthhorse wrote: »

That must be very frustrating for you. I can only say I am in the process of purchasing and though it's much earlier I find my solicitor very reluctant to take calls or call back. So perhaps it's just something solicitors in general do?

Oh gosh i would change solicitors to someone who actually is contactable! There's nothing worse than being in limbo land with nobody to give you answers

2rkehij30qtza5

MarkAnthony wrote: »

Don't fret! These things happen, it definitely makes sense to pick a solicitor local to the property you're selling. If you're completely stuck PM me and I'll pop in for you. TBH usually these things sort themselves.

Oh my goodness, such an incredibly kind offer. Thank you but I wouldn't dream of putting you out like that..but I am so grateful to you for offering. Genuinely such a nice thing to do. Thanks anyway

2rkehij30qtza5

4ensic15 wrote: »

Pay peanuts, get monkeys. reputation is everything. Paying a lot is no guarantee of a quality service either. Your solicitor gave you a low price and now doesn't want to spend a minute more on the transaction than absolutely necessary. Get a friend to ring and say she was in a car crash and suffered serious injuries which were made worse by negligent medical treatment and see how fast she rings back.

Oh I can only imagine how she'd suddenly be 'available' to take a call. I appreciate that she is busy with other cases or whatnot but she has had me do chasing for stuff that she should have been doing (like letters to her that technically I shouldn't even ever be seeing), wasting my time while I'm trying to do my own job. Like I've had questions that I emailed her (coz she wouldn't be 'available' to me on the phone) asking such things as "have I a liability if it goes beyond the closing date?" And no reply from her. So I'm in the dark not knowing if I am liable because she won't answer me, let alone let me know if the thing actually closed or if there's some other 'surprise' document she wants me to get before it can close

Rackstar

WTF is wrong with solicitors. They are a complete nightmare, don't return calls or emails. Suit themselves and couldn't care less about their clients, once you've given them the go ahead to act on your behalf that's it. They don't care, they know they will get payed eventually.

2rkehij30qtza5

Rackstar wrote: »

WTF is wrong with solicitors. They are a complete nightmare, don't return calls or emails. Suit themselves and couldn't care less about their clients, once you've given them the go ahead to act on your behalf that's it. They don't care, they know they will get payed eventually.

I don't understand it either. My own job is high pressure and taking a huge volume of phonecalls each day. I never leave people on edge waiting. If I tell someone that I'll update them, I will update them..even if it means that the situation is unchanged. I have never had the conscience to leave people in the dark about things and basically treat people with disrespect, which is the way I feel I am being treated by my solicitor.

Earthhorse

Nelson Wailing Grindstone wrote: »

Oh gosh i would change solicitors to someone who actually is contactable! There's nothing worse than being in limbo land with nobody to give you answers

Well, I'm not going to change jockey half way through the race so to speak! If this falls through I may well change solicitor if I'm buying another place. Like yourself I am sending queries trying to understand my liability and not getting answers.

Rackstar

Nelson Wailing Grindstone wrote: »

I don't understand it either. My own job is high pressure and taking a huge volume of phonecalls each day. I never leave people on edge waiting. If I tell someone that I'll update them, I will update them..even if it means that the situation is unchanged. I have never had the conscience to leave people in the dark about things and basically treat people with disrespect, which is the way I feel I am being treated by my solicitor.

Similar here, I'd be sacked.

I did call a vendors solicitor previously, only got as far as the receptionist. Things moved a little quicker after but not sure if it was a result of my call.

My own solicitor told me "we are a breed of our own, a bit archaic and like to deal by post only"

Pat Mustard

Rackstar wrote: »

WTF is wrong with solicitors. They are a complete nightmare, don't return calls or emails. Suit themselves and couldn't care less about their clients, once you've given them the go ahead to act on your behalf that's it. They don't care, they know they will get payed eventually.

Sounds like a foolproof business model.

December2012

This happens a lot when people pick based on price alone. Availability is a huge factor in good service

MarkAnthony

Rackstar wrote: »

WTF is wrong with solicitors. They are a complete nightmare, don't return calls or emails. Suit themselves and couldn't care less about their clients, once you've given them the go ahead to act on your behalf that's it. They don't care, they know they will get payed eventually.

Conveyancing is fixed fee. Constantly engaging with a client takes time. Some firms are excellent, organised and ideally completely electronic. The solicitor that did my conveyancing had someone in the office email me just about everything, primarily as he knew I wouldn't be ringing him every five minutes asking questions.

There is a fine line to be walked and some get it very wrong I'm afraid. The vast majority are professional, courteous and competent.

goz83

Rackstar wrote: »

WTF is wrong with solicitors. They are a complete nightmare, don't return calls or emails. Suit themselves and couldn't care less about their clients, once you've given them the go ahead to act on your behalf that's it. They don't care, they know they will get payed eventually.

In general, i've never had any big issues with my solicitor and I find he responds to email better than phone calls and sometimes it's just to say thanks (acknowledging my email).