You may already have a solicitor, but it is certainly worth looking at a variety of solicitors for a competitive quotation on legal costs. Click here to register for an instant quote from a number of firms of solicitors. The work of a solicitor is really to fulfil all of the legal documentation involved in transferring ownership of a property from one person to another, such as examining the legality of contracts and leases for leasehold properties. They will also check the background of your property with the local authority and title searches. The solicitor will also act as your appointed go-between with the vendor's solicitor.
Solicitors are highly trained professionals, and their services are expensive.
You are unlikely to any physical evidence of their work, but they will report to you and inform you that these legal tasks have been done. Expect to pay several hundred pounds for their work, and remember, if your property is over sixty thousand pounds in value, you will have to pay Stamp Duty. Your solicitor will ask for search fees as they are performed, and will probably present their bill a day or so before completion. Your mortgage company will ask you what type of survey you would like in order to be informed about your property. They will ask a surveyor to do this.