Meeting solicitor in Cork this afternoon to discuss rates, what should I look for?

animha

Registered User
Messages
42
Hiya
Just wondering if anybody who has ever haggled with a solicitor could let me know what rate/flat fee I should look for and types of question to ask.

I've just put a booking deposit on an apt for 480k and want to know what the best rate I can get is i.e. I would prefer not to pay 5k to a solicitor.

I'm based in Cork.

Thanks!
 

Ask for a flat rate rather than a percentage.
 
Thanks, any suggestions on what a reasonable flat rate should be and what the extras could be?
 
Be careful not to let price become the dominant issue in your negotiations. A good deal on price is not much use to you if the service & quality of work is bad.
 
Re: Meeting solicitor in Cork this afternoon to discuss rates, what should I look for

ubiquitous said:
Be careful not to let price become the dominant issue in your negotiations.
Especially since many of the charges involved will not be negotiable anyway since they are not under the control of the solicitor (e.g. stamp duty, VAT, Land Registry/Registry of Deeds charges, search fees etc.). Only the solicitor's professional conveyancing fee may be negotiable. Ask the solicitor for an outline of the expected charges (a "section something" document - can't remember the name...) so that you can assess how much of the overall expected charges will be made up by the solicitor's own fee. As far as I know anything from €600 upwards would be normal for this particular charge. Check out some of the other threads on the board about how conveyancing fees break down. And try to use a solicitor recommended to you by somebody who was happy with them even if it costs a bit more than the lowest quote that you find.