Extortion or a sensible approach?

Residential conveyancing solicitors are a pretty conservative bunch and are not renowned for thinking outside the box. Many clients still perceive them to be stuck in the past surrounded by dusty files, untidy desks and relying upon that new fax thing! It was with some surprise last week that I came across this story that is doing the rounds in the capital.

Some solicitors over there are so fed up with time wasters putting in offers and not concluding missives that they have come up with a rather ingenuous way of focusing the minds of the would be buyer to get their finger out and put pen to paper and sign the missives. They are demanding that if the offer is going to be verbally accepted and a start made towards concluding missives, they will insist on the successful bidder ponying up £2,000 as an insurance bond that if they do not conclude missives within a certain time then the solicitors can trouser the cash and remarket the property.

Solving a problem or extorting purchasers in a seller's market?