Real estate teams in the Midlands and throughout the UK are continuing to benefit from increased client instructions and new client wins. Whilst this is a great sign of a better and more confident real estate market, it can also cause problems for partners.
Retention of staff is as important as recruitment of staff for a lot of real estate teams.
We regularly speak with the full range of real estate solicitors about their career path and plans: some are actively considering their options, others show a passing interest and a lot are very happy in their current role.
So which type of real estate solicitor are you?
Conor Farrell, Manager at Michael Page Legal in Birmingham talks through the different types of real estate solicitors that we speak to on a daily basis.
1. The happy real estate solicitor
A lot of real estate solicitors are perfectly happy in their current roles.
Firms are aware that property lawyers are a rare commodity and therefore make sure they are looked after in terms of remuneration, work/life balance and quality of work.
Some firms have worked very hard over the last few years to ensure that they get the balance right for their valued (and much sought after) solicitors.
2. The frustrated mid-level real estate solicitor – overworked and underpaid
We speak regularly with mid-level solicitors who are incredibly frustrated and feel they are undervalued but are too nervous to take the plunge and look at the market. These solicitors know they are in demand but there is a certain comfort (and loyalty) with staying at your current firm, especially when the team is busy and the work stream is flowing.
We ask these solicitors:
- Have things become stale at your current firm? If so, why?
- Has your career / progression path stagnated?
- Do you feel you are not properly remunerated for all of the extra hours you put in? (i.e. there are teams in Birmingham regularly paying five-figure bonuses to their property solicitors
- Are partners preventing quality work / client contact filtering down to you?
- Do you feel unappreciated and undervalued?
If the answer to any of these questions is yes, then you should raise this with your manager immediately. If you don’t make your firm aware of your concerns, then they can’t fix them!
If your firm is unable to address your concerns, then it’s time to explore the market. There are likely to be a number of options for you in the market, whether that is with a direct competitor or with a slightly different proposition.
3. The ambitious real estate solicitor
Do you currently work for a smaller firm and always fostered ambitions of working for or returning to a larger real estate team? We have a track record of recruiting real estate solicitors from regional firms into larger, sometimes international teams.
Partners are fully aware that the recession forced a lot of solicitors to qualify at or move to a smaller firm. As long as you have had solid experience in real estate and have the aptitude to make the step up, there’s no reason why firms won’t consider you.
4. The aspiring real estate solicitor
Are you due to qualify in 2017 and considering qualifying into real estate?
Your point of contact for private practice recruitment in the Midlands is Conor Farrell, Manager at Michael Page Legal
Conor recruits solicitors into private practice from NQ to Partner level across the West and East Midlands. The team also have a specialist in-house function, recruiting for a range of companies and organisations in the region. Prior to joining Michael Page in 2012, Conor worked for four years at international law firm Squire Patton Boggs in Birmingham as a corporate finance solicitor having trained and then qualified at the firm in 2010.
T: 0121 634 8800