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McKenzie Bell Solicitors

3.8(72 reviews)See reviews ↓·Sunderland

What customers say

Based on genuine customer reviews

Residential property transactions, from first purchases to sales and re-mortgages, form the bulk of the work described by clients of McKenzie Bell Solicitors in Sunderland. Feedback divides sharply. Those who dealt with Chris, Rebecca, Heidi or Laura speak warmly of helpful staff who explained each stage, answered questions and made a difficult process feel less anxious, with first-time buyers particularly grateful for that guidance and for pricing seen as reasonable. Where things went well, clients note that someone always picked up the phone and updates arrived without prompting.

An aspect raised across a number of reviews is the opposite experience: slow progress, calls and emails left unanswered, and repeated chasing for leasehold information needed to move a sale forward. One account describes incorrect bank details being entered when purchase monies were sent, turning completion into a long and stressful day, and more than one reviewer says they would instruct the firm again not. The recurring theme is that individual attention is valued where it is offered, while the reliability of communication across a whole transaction is what clients question most.

Law firm

Reviews

Reviews are taken from publicly available sources.

LJ
Lily Johnston3 August 2026

Lovely staff, including Rebecca, Heidi and Laura, would totally recommend!

BS
Bridget Scott21 July 2026

As long as you're not in a hurry

CH
Chris Horoschok19 March 2026

Personally, I wouldn’t use them again. I’ve given them 2 stars purely because they completed my house purchase. Their communication throughout my first house purchase was horrendous. Contacts from my estate agent to them were ignored, the seller’s solicitor had to chase them several times, some of my emails were ignored, some of my calls to chase contacts weren’t returned. I’m still chasing them for a document they should have sent upon completion, 3 weeks ago I emailed and have chased since, ignored once again. Completely unprofessional and unacceptable given you’re paying in excess of £1000 for a service.

R&
Relax & Replenish Sports Massage27 January 2026

Terrible experience with the Sunderland branch McKenzie bell. After nearly a year of asking for leasehold information which was vital for the sale of my parents property this firm offered no response to emails or phonecalls (twice per week) I was absolutely furious at the extremely negative attitude towards my concerns of losing the sale because of lack of clarity regarding the leasehold. The ombudsman website states that you must complain to another director and give a timeline for reasonable response. We did this and complained to George because we felt Helen wasn't looking into the lease for us and wasn't responding no matter how many times I called. We got the same 0 response from George absolutely terrible and gave no reply to my emails offering 0 communication since may (it's now January) Joyce at McKenzie bell Washington however has been an absolute diamond and as I had to take this further by asking another branch to look into this for me, she seemed to get a response from Sunderland with an immediate effect so I would trust the Washington branch with anything in the future but Sunderlands lack of communication was nothing but negative..a horrible experience and I'd stay well clear

ER
Eliana Rooks23 December 2024

Really helpful, especially as a first time buyer - thank you for talking me through the process and answering my questions! Very reasonably priced too, compared to the comparison sites!

AB
Andrew Bainbridge16 December 2024

We used Mckenzie Bell to purchase our house back in 2022, I can not fault their services one bit, someone always answered the phone and I was always given an answer on my questions or updates on the purchase. 2024: couple years in our house and after a re-mortgage I had to ask Mckenzie bell to get involved through no fault of their own, the new solicitors (I did not get to pick new solicitors) had messed up with our deeds to the house. MckenzieBell, even though no longer being their customer still helped with the case and I don't think this would have got resolved without them. A special shoutout to Julie, who is always helpful whether phone or email!

JG
Judith Gurney25 September 2024

Wish I could review with no stars . Very unprofessional. Asked (and received a quote) for them to act regarding the sale of a leasehold flat. I telephoned on numerous occasions to instruct this firm however, despite being assured my call would be returned, no one got back to me . I understand every firm has a right to chose for whom they act however ignoring a potential customer is unprofessional in the least .

Conveyancing solicitors in Sunderland compared

Ordered by rating, weighted by the number of reviews — businesses with only a handful of reviews do not jump to the top automatically. 5 businesses in this category in Sunderland are compared.

RankProviderRatingReviewsOpen Sat.
1Brian Mackenow & Co Solicitors★ 4,871No
2Mortons Law Limited★ 4,358No
3Peter Dunn & Co★ 4,157No
4McKenzie Bell Solicitors (this page)★ 3,872No
5Ben Hoare Bell LLP★ 3,651No
Contact
+441915674857www.mckenzie-bell.co.uk47 John St, Sunniside, Sunderland SR1 1QU
Working hours
Monday09:00–17:00
Tuesday09:00–17:00
Wednesday09:00–17:00
Thursday09:00–17:00
Friday09:00–17:00
SaturdayClosed
SundayClosed