Solicitor recommended by Estate agent?

M

Mr Tea

Guest
Hi,
When buying, is it a wise idea to use the solicitor recommended by the Estate agent selling you the property?
 
Why not ring around for quotes? If there isn't competition now, there never will be.
 
That's the thing. I did ring around and he was competitive, plus he is based in the area we're buying in. What I am wondering is should I be worried about them taking care of the interests of the estate agent more than ourselves or is that just illegal. I don't know (new to all this)
 
Mr Tea said:
That's the thing. I did ring around and he was competitive, plus he is based in the area we're buying in. What I am wondering is should I be worried about them taking care of the interests of the estate agent more than ourselves or is that just illegal. I don't know (new to all this)
Click to expand...

You would have a very serious complaint to the law society if your solicitor acted in another parties interest to the detriment of you, regardless of who recommended them.

Any chance of asking around to get a personal recommendation for that solicitor from a previous client.
 
My EA also recommended a solicitor down the country somewhere. she told me "we usually recommend her because she's cheaper"

I just went with my usual solicitor. It just didn't make sense .. the estate agent is effectively your competitor! They're getting paid by the seller and they're looking for the most money out of you. You really can't trust them.

Regardless of whether the solicitor gets a kick back... If the EA sent the solicitor a lot of business the solicitor might be afraid of doing anything that would upset the EA.
 
Generally the EA will try to put together attractive packages for the buyer because they are the ones that seal deals. If a solicitor gets enough business from an EA he will offer more competitive rates. The law is still the law so there shouldn't be any issues regarding the the standard of work done. If anything the EA will only recommend solicitors that have proven to be competent, so I would have no worries in using the recommended one.
 
Cheers

Thanks for all the replies guys. Much appeciated.
 
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