Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Buying a house is a huge step for most people and choosing a conveyancing solicitor or a licensed conveyancer can also be a daunting task.  Should you just accept the one recommended by your estate agent or building society, should you make numerous telephone calls yourself for quotes, or are you tempted by the cheapest firm?  How can you be sure that you will receive the best value for money fixed fee conveyancing service?

Since 1995 Conveyancing Marketing Services have been building up a panel of solicitors and conveyancers throughout the UK who are willing and able to deliver a prompt and efficient legal conveyancing service. We monitor their performance on an ongoing basis and if they do not meet our standards - then we do not recommend them to our clients.  Furthermore, we have negotiated very special fees with them, so that you - the client - get the best deal possible.

What exactly is the CMS Price Guarantee?

Exactly that - CMS guarantee to better any other genuine quotation that you may receive.  Most other companies have hidden extras which are difficult to spot as they are hidden in the small print. Since 1995 the CMS policy has been to eliminate such extras and only provide genuine all inclusive quotations.  Therefore we are confidently able to guarantee the very best genuine quotes.  Even if you proceed with us and then find a cheaper quote we will honour our guarantee so you have nothing to lose.

What makes CMS different from any other website?

CMS have been providing legal and solicitors quotes since 1995 and do not use large conveyancing factories as do many other websites.  All our solicitor firms are medium size high street solicitor firms offering a personal service as well as very competitive fees.

Why is it that I have seen some quotes as low as £120 from other sites which appear to be cheaper than yours?

These quotations may appear cheaper but do not fall into the trap.  No conveyancing solicitor could make a profit from such low fees.  What they do is conceal many other hidden extras which when added on make their quotes very expensive indeed. CMS guarantee to better any other genuine quotation that you may receive.

What are disbursements exactly?

Disbursements are costs collected by solicitors and passed on to a third party. For example you have to have a local search undertaken if you are purchasing a property in the UK.  The solicitor will therefore need to collect the cost of this from the client and pass it on to the relevant Local Authority.  Please see the complete list of disbursements on our website.

What do you mean by hidden extra costs?

CMS do not have any hidden extras as they only insist on providing genuine quotes to all their clients.  However, may firms charge extra for acting for your lender, leasehold additions, extra searches, petty disbursements, expedition fees, indemnity insurance, abortive insurance etc.  These can add £200 or more to the quote.

I understand that the disbursements are the same with all quotes?

They should be but some firms use the list of disbursements to hide extra charges so they can make more profit from the client.  Remember they cannot make a profit if they charge you just £120 or so – they need the extra costs for that.

How can I compare quotes on a like for like basis?

This is becoming increasingly difficult for the public at large.  One way is to insist on being given the total costs for your transaction including everything that may be involved.  The other is to ask CMS without obligation to look at your other quotes and point out any possible hidden extras that you may have missed.  We have been giving such free advice to clients for years – and we invariably save them money. CMS guarantee to better any other genuine quotation that you may receive.

Surely you are only interested in getting business for yourself so why should you offer this service?

We are an ethical company (established 1995) and believe that it is morally wrong to deliberately under quote anybody.  We will explain the breakdown of all competitor’s quotes to you and inform you of the absolute total payable.  Which quote you take after that is your own decision – but at least you are now able to compare like for like.

Surely deliberately under quoting amounts to bad practice?

We couldn’t agree more but you will find that the majority of websites are now doing this in order to boost the very low conveyancing fees they have quoted clients.  CMS can and will point you to the relevant small print on these other competitor’s quotes so that you can judge for yourself.

What happens if I am unhappy with my solicitor for any reason during the transaction?

CMS offer a hands on and friendly service right through to completion.  Many of our firms have been on the CMS panel for 12 years and we know them very well.  In the unlikely event that you have such a problem we will invariably resolve the issue to your satisfaction.

Why should I use an Online Solicitor?

Moving house can be quite stressful at times and the CMS panel always try to make the process as smooth and painless as possible keeping you updated all the way.  Your transaction will proceed efficiently and quickly to completion.  CMS also provide you with regular updates to your matter with email and SMS updates.  This allows you to be kept up to date 7 days a week.  Also the whole matter is dealt with by post and email so there is no need for any time consuming meetings with your solicitor.  This means that CMS can offer extremely competitive fees with a high level of service.

Are all of your solicitors members of the Law Society?

Yes all members are full members of the Law Society all of whom are covered by a minimum of £1,000,000 indemnity insurance for your protection.

Our building society/estate agent has strongly recommended we use a local solicitor - should we not use them?

This can happen as lenders and estate agents like to recommend business to local solicitor firms (and often get investment business in return).  Indeed many of the larger estate agents have now also formed joint partnerships with solicitors.  The questions here are:

Will you, the client, be getting impartial legal advice on your transaction?

Will it cost you extra money for the same conveyancing to be done?

Our solicitors are approved by all the major banks and building societies (and are on their panel) meaning they can act for both you, and the lender, for no extra cost. 

Remember, you are totally free to choose your own solicitor.  At the end of the day it is your choice, and you are paying the bill !

I have been told that a local solicitor would do a better (quicker) job, and I can visit if necessary?

All solicitors have to carry out exactly the same preliminary enquiries and searches as any local solicitor would - there is no difference whatsoever.  Our solicitors use fax, e-mail and overnight document exchange to ensure there are no delays.

Most clients make one visit at most, to see their solicitor, in order to sign contracts (and even this is not necessary).  In today's modern world, most conveyancing is already conducted by fax, e mail, telephone and post for convenience.  We find that most clients want the legal work undertaken efficiently, promptly and at a reasonable cost. This is exactly what CMS panel solicitors offer  (However, we will always offer you our most local solicitor as an alternative choice).

Why is it that your prices are lower than other quotes I have received?

Solicitors fees do vary considerably throughout the country and in relation to the size of the law firm and their own overheads. CMS we have negotiated special discounted fees with reputable firms who specialise in conveyancing only.  We recommend many clients each year to these firms and naturally obtain lower prices for our clients.

I do not understand a lot of the legal terminology used - how do I deal with this?

CMS can help here - just click here for our jargon buster pages and hopefully most of your questions will be answered.

What are Home Information Packs and do I need one?

Again just go to our Home Information Pack pages for a full explanation.

What is involved with a Remortgage?

This is quite a straightforward process - please see our remortgage page and conveyancing guide for further details.

How do I add / remove someone from the deeds of my property?

This is quite a straightforward process - please see our remortgage page and conveyancing guide and also transfer of equity page  for full details.

I am buying a Leasehold Property - what does this involve?

There are quite a few differences with this type of property which are also explained in our conveyancing guide

Do you have any further information on mortgages?

Yes you can find this from our mortgage information page

How do we know we will get a good service from these solicitors?

We continually select our panel of solicitors on merit and efficiency, and have now been using most of them for many years. All our ‘high street’ firms are, of course, members of the Law Society with full indemnity insurance for your protection.  These CMS panel firms also have to use the CMS tracking software which enables us to monitor their performance at every stage - as well as keeping clients updated throughout the transaction..

Can we deal directly with the solicitor concerning our matter?

Most certainly, once we have given them your details, you will deal with them direct throughout the transaction. This can be by telephone, fax, email or you may visit them if you wish.

What if we have any difficulties in contacting or dealing with the solicitor?

In this unlikely event, please do not hesitate to contact us personally. We have an excellent working relationship with our lawyers and will always be pleased to assist. They have also signed a legally binding agreement with CMS including a Service Charter to cover your interests.

How long will my transaction take to complete?

This is probably one of the most difficult questions for anybody to answer as it often depends upon many factors.  These may include waiting for mortgage offers to be issued (either to yourself - or others in your chain), whether others in the chain have sold their property and the position of their own buyers etc.  Whether there are any survey or structural problems can also delay matters.  As a general guide an average transaction may take 6-8 weeks to exchange contracts with completion following after a further 2-4 weeks.  However, it may happen more quickly or slowly depending upon the individual circumstances.  None of the CMS panel of solicitors will delay any matter as it is in their own interests to complete as soon as possible.

How do we proceed if we are interested or have any further queries?

Just contact CMS either via our website, email or telephone and our dedicated team will be only too pleased to help should you have any questions or queries.

Remember CMS guarantee to better any other genuine quotation that you may receive

End of Frequently Asked Questions