A LinkedIn post highlighting the “constant battle” facing conveyancers has amassed nearly 50 comments in support of the profession.
Summing up the feelings around the industry currently, Partner at Dean Wilson LLP Karl Willmott-Post posted:
“Conveyancing right now feels a constant battle against your inbox/telephone and actually doing the legal work.
I would think even the most organised and scheduled conveyancer must struggle to balance the two.
Setting expectations is so important, but trying to remind and enforce them feels nay on impossible… So many of us have left the industry I wonder whether the SRA/CQS are truly listening to our concerns.”
Recruitment continues to be a major issue for firms with experienced conveyancers leaving the profession over the last couple of years, many in response to the incredible pressures created by COVID and the SDLT stimulus sending the property market into overdrive.
One response said:
“Until some new conveyancers join ranks, I cannot see the pressure easing off. In order for new people to come into conveyancing it takes time to train them up properly and not to become tick box-conveyancers. It takes years of experience, and unfortunately there just aren’t enough conveyancers to go around with the amount of work that there is.”
Another added:
“Unfortunately, this will take [over] five years to fix. The vast amount of conveyancers who have rushed for the life raft or have moved into non-fee earning roles cannot be replaced overnight. For those of us that remain, it is imperative that we nurture and develop the next top talent and help shape a profession so it’s fit for all key stakeholders and most importantly for our clients. There are huge challenges ahead, but some big opportunities as well for those that want it.”
Speed of communication in the “Amazon Prime culture” has left many conveyancers struggling to stay on top of the inbox and constant phone calls:
“If you do not respond to an email within five minutes you get another and if you don’t answer that in five minutes, the client either calls or appears at your reception demanding to know why you haven’t answered… every day your professional competence is measured on how quickly you reply and not the quality and substance of the advice you provide.”
Many conveyancers are admitting that they do some of their conveyancing work out of hours when the volume of enquires dies down.
The conveyancing profession was branded “broken” and “shambolic” in a series of comments published in the estate agency press this week. Frustrations around technology, speed, and communication mirror many of the comments in support of the post.
Calls for conveyancers to charge more have intensified in recent months as transaction timescales have lengthened. A recent LinkedIn survey revealed that 78% of consumers would pay £2,000 or more for their conveyance. The subsequent report identified that many SME law firms’ website quotations provide a figure much less than that:
- Large Southeast firm with national reach – £995
- Large regional Midlands firm – £1,350
- Large East of England regional law firm – £1,695
- Mid-size Buckinghamshire based law firm – £1,150
- Large East Midlands law firm – £1,250
- Mid-size Merseyside firm – £1,195
- Mid-size East Anglia firm – £,1,100
Thank you to Karl for allowing us to use his post.
2 Responses
Even though we explain our situation that we are 3 down out of 5 conveyancers some clients and some estate agents and some brokers will state in their emails “..well I understand you are short staffed but all we want is a quick update..” whilst also urging us to get on with the work.
We are hiring-it takes time. We will raise our fees and control file numbers much more closely. We will offer a more personal service. We may even update estate agents and brokers.
However the current state of play is that there is a national shortage of experienced conveyancers and a shortage, in some quarters, of empathy.
Solicitors are sometimes our own worse enemies.
By specialising in a discrete earea of conveyancing, you can hope to eleiminate most of the hassle.
Equally, you tacitly encourage the hassle by rushing to reply to everything.
If a client seeks a level of service that you just cannot deliver, just say no.
And NEVER try to compete on price- that way madness lies.