A Consumers Associationn survey found that the cost of conveyancing a £75,000 ($110,000) freehold house (putting a legal stamp on the sale, in effect) ranged between £117 and £750.
France's 9,000 notaires enjoy a monopoly over property conveyancing.
But lawyers have always cared about making money, and giving duff legal advice is seldom a good business plan.Liberalisation will probably affect low-end services first, such as will-writing and conveyancing.
Notaries' role in conveyancing makes them reliable tax collectors, so change is risky while money is tight.
Whereas inter vivos sales and inter vivos gifts of movables are treated quite differently, the conveyancing aspects of inter vivos sales and inter vivos gifts of immovables are quite similar.
Indeed, he could be a local solicitor who had wandered in off the street en route to a spot of conveyancing.
At the moment, information on whether a property is at risk of flooding comes too late, often when people have already invested money in conveyancing".
"There are conveyancing companies that do it cheaper," she said, but a reputable company is unlikely to charge less than 1,000 New Zealand dollars.
Conveyancing solicitors should be under a greater duty to explain the ways to own a property but often they don't, argues Kerry Fretwell.
4. Vendors must tell you if they have experienced flooding When buying an existing home the vendor must tell you of any significant flooding incidents when they fill in the Law Society's property information form for conveyancing.
You will also need to factor in other costs, such as stamp duty prices, conveyancing and legal costs, as well as pest and building inspections.
