When you buy property here on PEI, or anywhere else for that matter, in addition to the services of a real estate agent you will also need a lawyer to provide the conveyancing services, taking care of the legal contracts between you and the vendor as well as calculating and pro-rating oil in the tank, prepaid property taxes etc.

There are really no hard and fast rules about choosing a lawyer to complete your real estate transaction, however on PEI real estate there is the extra step in many cases of applying to IRAC for clearance to purchase land if you are a non-resident.

Many buyers when it comes to choosing the lawyer that will handle the largest business transaction that they will ever make, use price as the primary consideration when evaluating the choices. The average smaller property conveyancing on PEI costs between $600 and $1000 which on a purchase as large as a home is one of the lower costs and therefore should not be a major consideration when choosing a lawyer.

Experience should be what you are seeking when choosing your lawyer. You want someone working for you that has the experience, and that experience should be in real estate law as opposed to any other type of practice. Ensure that the law office you propose to use processes sufficient properties that they are well versed in the ins and outs of the process. Further ensure that the office assistants are doing this type of work regularly as they will most likely be the people actually doing the work.

If you know a lawyer or your family member or friend of co-worker has recently bought a home and was satisfied with the lawyer they used then you might consider using him/her. Otherwise you may ask your bank manager, accountant, or realtor for names of local lawyers that do real estate conveyancing on a regular basis. People in these professionals will know who does what in the community that you are buying and certainly PEI is small enough that everyone knows everything. Alternatively you can check the Yellow Pages; however you will not have the benefit of another’s knowledge and recommendation when making your choice from a number of ads.

Ensure that you know the whole process first. Meet with your potential lawyer and make sure that there is an easy rapport between you. Have him/her detail out all the work that requires to be done, the costs and the time involved. You have a right to assume that your lawyer will work diligently on your file - however you should know what has to happen and when so that if anything is not happening to schedule you can contact the right person and get things back on track. There is a lot of room for mis-communication and that is usually the reason that things derail. It is important that all the information that you come into possession of regarding the deal be passed on to your legal team so that they may take the appropriate actions. Something insignificant missed today may have consequences later on.

There are special regulations that apply to land purchases on PEI real estate if you are not a resident of PEI. The Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission governs the purchase and ownership of land by non-islanders so this is an extra step your lawyer will have to take. Make sure when you write up your offer to purchase with your realtor that you add the clause "subject to approval by IRAC". This extra step was setup to prevent large tracts of land being sold to non-islanders and thereby creating monopolies on the very limited amount of land PEI affords. Remember also that you will pay an extra fee of $500 or 1% of the purchase price. As a side note and for the information of non-islanders, IRAC also controls rent, gas prices and electricity prices.

It is important to have competent legal representation and it is worth the time and effort to check out the lawyer you will use to purchase your PEI real estate.