Tough times ahead but no more redundancies, predict conveyancers
Property experts have predicted a slow start to the year, but forecast an end to redundancies among conveyancing solicitors.
Paul Marsh, lead Law Society spokesman on property, said the next 12 months would remain slow, but with house prices rising in some areas due to a shortage of supply.
Transaction volumes would stay low, he said, because lenders were still not lending enough.
Anxiety about unemployment, poorer mortgage deals on offer, the looming general election and forthcoming world cup could also prevent people from moving house, Marsh said.
‘Estate agents and surveyors suggest that once world cup fever begins, people will not think about moving house,’ he said.
Despite this, Marsh said he did not expect to see many more redundancies because firms had already made cuts. ‘It would be unwise to make more cuts because firms will need good staff when the market picks up again.’
Richard Barnett, chairman of the Law Society's conveyancing and land law committee, added that he did not expect to see more job losses or office closures.
'Firms made the necessary arrangements last year to make sure they've got a profitable model,' he said.
Peter Rodd, chairman of the Law Society’s property section, said it was difficult to predict what would happen to the property market in 2010 as ‘we have not before seen a property crash against the background of such economic disaster’.
He added: ‘The first few months will be slow, but I’m hoping a change of government, combined with fine weather, the abolition of home information packs and England success in the world cup will encourage a feel-good factor that will stimulate the market in the second half of the year.’
Mark Riddick, chairman of the E-Home Buyers Forum, said that over the past 20-25 years, conveyancers had got used to seeing roughly 1.2 million transactions a year. ‘Last year there were around half that number, and this year is not likely to be much better,’ he said.
‘It will be an extremely competitive market for solicitors as the number of transactions will remain depressed.’
Marsh said solicitors needed to do all they can to drive down their costs and improve efficiency.
‘They should use the lull to reorganise themselves and make sure they have IT and case management systems that will enable them to be efficient and attract clients,’ he said.
Barnett added that solicitors should also use the time to consider their use of referral fees and look at their firms’ advertising and pricing.
He said it was essential that firms were transparent about the cost of their service in their advertising.
'Advertise a proper fee, that shows the client what they are paying for,' he said. 'If referral fees are transparent, there is no problem with them, but firms should not have hidden costs in the service they provide.’
Comments
property market
With regard to Mr Rodd's comments about the upturn in the property market, I believe that he has overlooked an additional factor. I understand pigs will have developed wings and that porcine aviation will have a dramatic effect on the Uk's optimism register
Hips abolished, England win the the World Cup etc etc. I mean really....................
Property Market
"ESTATE AGENTS AND SURVEYORS SUGGEST THAT ONCE WORLD CUP FEVER BEGINS, PEOPLE WILL NOT THINK ABOUT MOVING HOUSE"
Who often drives a house move - the lady in the relationship. Other reasons for moving include work related, or pensioners. Where dopes football fit in? The World Cup will have no impact.
"FIRMS MADE THE NECESSARY ARRANGEMENTS LAST YEAR TO MAKE SURE THEY'VE GOT A PROFITABLE MODEL"
No. They shed staff to keep costs down but so many of those that are left have made little or no attempt to better their practices. We see such poor conveyancing standards in this current climate as proof enough of that.
‘THE FIRST FEW MONTHS WILL BE SLOW, BUT I’M HOPING A CHANGE OF GOVERNMENT, COMBINED WITH FINE WEATHER, THE ABOLITION OF HOME INFORMATION PACKS AND ENGLAND SUCCESS IN THE WORLD CUP WILL ENCOURAGE A FEEL-GOOD FACTOR THAT WILL STIMULATE THE MARKET IN THE SECOND HALF OF THE YEAR.’
The first two months are notorious for being slow anyway. A change of government will impact for the positive indeed, fine weather in this country is unreliable so little impact, abolition of HIPs is a red herring as they make little or no impact on a decision to sell even now, and English football success (please do we ever) will not make someone say, "Rooney kicked stunner into that goal, I'll buy a house".
"IT WILL BE AN EXTREMELY COMPETITIVE MARKET FOR SOLICITORS AS THE NUMBER OF TRANSACTIONS WILL REMAIN DEPRESSED."
The last 18 months has been just that, and the secret for those firms who have pulled through has been making themselves highly efficient - see below. So many firms have failed, even now.
THEY SHOULD USE THE LULL TO REORGANISE THEMSELVES AND MAKE SURE THEY HAVE IT AND CASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS THAT WILL ENABLE THEM TO BE EFFICIENT AND ATTRACT CLIENTS……. SOLICITORS SHOULD ALSO USE THE TIME TO CONSIDER THEIR USE OF REFERRAL FEES AND LOOK AT THEIR FIRMS’ ADVERTISING AND PRICING.
Dependence on case management is a ticking time bomb for the factory outfit. And it does not need to be expensive, just create better letters. Sure, have standard letters, but make sure they do not look like it, as clients are not stupid. Offer a high quality service, not a ‘open file, print’ one. Re-word standard letters, check for spelling mistakes, remove legal jargon, improve the standard of legal pack going to a Buyers lawyer (e.g who forgets to attach a fittings form to the contract, to include whereabouts of the HIP, to send documents referred to in the title, to apply early for the usual leasehold management information, to send up to date official copies rather than rely on months old HIP ones, to send standard enquiry forms, to get hung up on FENSA, boiler servicing etc etc.
Don’t close for lunch, have an email on your letters, and a direct dial if possible. Stay later than 5pm – or you’ll be one of those law firms that the Agents talk about with your competitor lawyer who tries to exchange with you at 5.15pm and you have closed.
Hahaha spot on my friend. I
Hahaha spot on my friend. I guess this means I'll also secure a training contract at last? And that College of Law didn't set me up for a monumental FAIL by offering far more places on the LPC than there are training contracts? Yeah, right.
Hmmm ...
Blaming the CoL? I'm guessing you didn't work hard enough to get a 1st at a red-brick uni and secure a t/c before your LPC started then??? Was your money, and your choice!
Hermmm
I would always give extra scrutiny of 1st class degrees in themselves. All theory no practice/social skills would be what I would look for. Always happy to be proved wrong. Then again, exams are getting easier so maybe 1st class is the new 2:1.
property market
Steve Keller's remark is right on the mark. Mr Marsh's comments about the need for firms to make themselves more competitive by reducing costs and increasing efficiency with greater use of IT and case management systems overlooks yet another additional factor. Where exactly are the smaller firms meant to find the money for such investment in this economic climate. They have already cut their fees to the minimum to stay competitive and are lucky if they can hire paralegals to do supervised conveyancing work. As a solicitor qualified in England & Wales but presently in N Ireland it has amazed me to find that conveyancing fees over here are higher than in England. Why? Because the solicitors here have not become beholden to the estates agents for business nor had unnecessary and crowd pleasing bureaucracy flung on them by their governing body.
Spend your way out of recession? I mean really...............
Referral Fees And Conveyancing
Every firm should be measuring the marketing cost
of every enquiry and conveyancing job it gets.
If its £150 per conveyancing job from an
agent and £100 per conveyancing job
from another marketing channel
then you know what to do.
(as long as each job is of the same value
and customer lifetime value is the same).
But most firms don't know the cost of each
job or customer lifetime value so keep
on spending highly on referrals.
It is best to get the business yourself
if you can do it at a lower marketing
cost than through others.
Agents are still only scratching the
surface on referring business so
help them refer more by adding some
of your marketing expertise to their
selling skills and reap the rewards.
You can also bundle services
in (like a Will) which increases
the value to the client and revenue
to the firm, (reducing the overall
marketing spend per client).
"Despite this, Marsh said he
"Despite this, Marsh said he did not expect to see many more redundancies because firms had already made cuts. ‘It would be unwise to make more cuts because firms will need good staff when the market picks up again".Surely it makes sense for firms to continue the cuts as there are already plenty of "good" property solicitors looking and waiting to come back into the profession at whatever salary.To suggest that only bad solicitors have been made redundant is somewhat offensive as those in employment may only be there because their salary is less than that of those made redundant
Conveyancers
The above point is spot on. I actually took a voluntary redundancy package to escape the awful factory firm I was working in. On leaving I was completely disillusioned with the legal profession, if the way that employer operated was to be the future of conveyancing, as they so proudly boasted to me, then I wanted no part of it.
But the good thing about recessions is that the good rise to the top, and the poor suffer. As I know has happened. So after a long break I am now ready to return to conveyancing. I would assume there are a lot of people like me, highly experienced, competent conveyancers of integrity and professionalism, ready and willing to now work again purely because we love the job.
I would hate to see conveyancing be done on a conveyor belt basis, with no customer care, as the norm. I have seen it in operation, it does not work. If there are Firms out there serious about coming out of this recession stronger, then I say to them your sensible option is to head hunt and find the people who have had a break, are re-energised, and ready to come back to the profession older and wiser. We are out here.
Only 55 working days remain before Land Registry Direct closes.
Please stay open Land Registry Direct.
My Firm was at the start of the sign up queue but we are involved with a shambles. We cannot use what we have been given, and cannot get help/solutions/replies from them.
Looks like the Country will go back to paper come the 55th day explosion...I can hear the ticking.
Memo to the Government, please also bin the idea of e-conveyancing, the Land Registry are not up to the job of leading conveyancing.
Now there's a surprise!
Abbey/Santander - HMLR won't register pre-11/1 charge?
I hear that the Land Registry say any purchases/mortgages completed after this date using the OLD ABBEY forms will be rejected by the LR. Unhappily we are not aware that Santander have produced new paperwork.
Whilst this seems totally illogical, has anyone experienced this yet?
We are investigating.