Pop quiz: When was the last time you read the end user license agreement for your phone?
In fact, when was the last time you read any of the many legal documents you are forced to sign in order to participate in the modern world? Those documents might be as complex as a mortgage, a student loan, or the warranty of your computer. Or they could be as simple as a banner on a website informing you that you have to accept cookies from the sight to use it.
By and large, people do not read these. Most of the time, this does not come back to bite a person. The contracts are there to satisfy legal liability concerns, not to actually develop a contract with a person. Even mortgages and student loans are relatively simple contracts.
But when it comes to dealing in real estate, nothing is simple. To avoid the many pitfalls and problems of dealing with buying and selling homes and other assets, you need a conveyancer.
What is a Conveyancer?
The basic idea is that a conveyancer is someone who helps with the transfer of ownership of property between one person and another. But occupying that position as a middleman requires a few skills. After all, there are whole industries of completely superfluous conveyancers looking to extract value out of other people’s deals. How does one justify themselves?
Let’s start with what a conveyancer actually does. For one thing, they need to be able to read and evaluate the validity of a legally binding contract. They do not have to be a barred lawyer, but it helps if they have a law degree or education of some kind to help them with this.
Failing that, they should at least have experience in the relevant industry. If a conveyancer has been working in real estate for 20 years, for instance, then they probably know a lot more about how to read and analyse a real estate contract than someone fresh out of law school.
There is, however, a skill more fundamental than reading contracts. And that is being neutral.
The Importance of a Neutral Conveyancer
Imagine that you get a conveyancer and the first they tell you is that they are “on your side”. This is good, right? They will edit contracts to favour you. They might even tell a little white lie or omit some information to the other person you are doing business with. Isn’t this a good thing?
Well, here is a question: If they are willing to lie to others, why do you think they aren’t willing to lie to you? They told you they are on your side. But that could be a lie too, couldn’t it?
A conveyancer has to be neutral. If you have a terrible idea, they should tell you. If you are misrepresenting yourself, they should let this be known. Why? Because if they don’t do that, then they cannot be trusted to do the same thing with the other person in the business deal.
This is why people seek out conveyancing solicitors online so often. If you can find a conveyancer on the internet, then you can find reviews describing their conduct. That forces them to be honest, both with you and the people they help you connect to.
The worst-case scenario is that a conveyancer helps you in a deal, and then decides that the opposing party in that deal will pay them more to “side” with them over you.
Will a Conveyancer Improve a Business?
In almost every case, a conveyancer will help improve a business deal in some way. Most of the time it is through enhancing transparency. Let’s say you are buying a house. A conveyancer will make sure to find an appraiser for the house to determine its exact value.
On the flip side, let’s say you are selling a house. Lots of real estate contracts will be lousy with hidden language excusing the buyer from paying certain amounts in certain circumstances. A conveyancer will help you spot these and avoid them.
At the very least, a conveyancer will know their way around your business well enough that just about any deal that you start can be closed much faster due to their expertise.
Conclusion
Of course, most of these benefits are dependent on getting a good conveyancer. To do that, you will want to look for someone that has experience in the industry you need them for.
Experience trumps everything. And it will help you ensure you are getting the best deal you can.
