Common questions asked concerning the Birmingham Midshires Conveyancing Panel from members of the public
My financial adviser has has requested my lawyer’ panel member for the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel. What is the best way to discover this. I have called my local Birmingham Midshires branch but they have not responded to me.
the sensible thing to do is ask for this information from your solicitor. A law firm is likely to keep a file or database of lender panel information which would include, if applicable their conveyancing panel details for Birmingham Midshires.
Our son is about to exchange on a newly built flat with a home loan from Birmingham Midshires. His conveyancer has advised him of a delay in completing the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. This document is news to me - what is it and who needs sight of it?
The document is intended to provide information to the main parties involved in the purchase. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the surveyor when asked.
The Developer will be required to start the process by downloading the form and completing it.
The form will therefore need to be available for the valuer at the time of his or her site visit. The form should be sent to the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.
I require the services of a Birmingham Midshires panel solicitor in Belfast. Can you assist?
Unfortunately it’s not apparent why you need a Birmingham Midshires panel solicitor but in any event, if you can not find one on our search tool you will need to speak directly to Birmingham Midshires to find out which solicitors in Birmingham Midshires are on their panel. If you do find such a firm not listed please direct them to our site to list. At a fee of one pound per month it is not expensive to register on the site
The firm that I appointed last week on my purchase in Brighton has suddenly shut down. I only went with them because I had to have a firm on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel and my preferred lawyer was not. I gave them a cheque for £150 in advance. What should be my next steps?
Assuming that you have an Estate Agent in the equation then let them know straight away so that they can let the sellers know that there may be a slight delay due to reasons beyond your control. Most sellers would be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You will need to appoint new lawyers that are on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new solicitors may be able to assist
The mortgage over my property is with Birmingham Midshires. Conveyancing was finalised some time ago. Should I wish to rent out my property and do not currently have a buy-to-let mortgage do I need to remortgage to a BTL mortgage or inform Birmingham Midshires?
Birmingham Midshires must be informed of your intention prior to renting your property as this is likely to be a breach of Birmingham Midshires’s mortgage conditions. It may be that Birmingham Midshires will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Birmingham Midshires directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel firm.
Can I register a complaint to Birmingham Midshires about the lawyers being on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel?
Complaining to Birmingham Midshires about their conveyancing panel is unlikely to yield much of a response. All solicitors and conveyancer must have a complaints procedure. You can get information from the solicitor’s or conveyancer’s website or ask at their office. They must tell you about it if you ask.
The Legal Ombudsman will make sure that your complaint is addressed by the solicitor. It can also advise you how to complain.
If a licensed conveyancer does not have a complaints procedure or will not tell you about it, contact the Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC), which will make sure that your complaint is properly dealt with by the conveyancer. Please see below for more information.
It is not clear whether my mortgage offer obliges me to make sure the lease term for the flat is extended prior to the completion date . I have called into my local branch Birmingham Midshires on various occasions and was told they are content with the situation and they would lend. My solicitor - who is on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel- telephoned and was told not they would not lend in accordance with their CML Handbook minimum lease term requirements. Who do I believe?
Your lawyer has to follow the CML Handbook Part 2 requirements for Birmingham Midshires. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that Birmingham Midshires will go ahead your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask Birmingham Midshires to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the remaining number of years left on the lease.