Capital Home Loans Conveyancing Panel Example Support Desk Enquires from members of the public
My husband and I are novices when it comes to buying a property. Within the last couple of days our property lawyer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Capital Home Loans have this evening contacted us to advise us that there is now an issue as our solicitor is not on their conveyancing panel. Is this a problem?
If you are buying a property with the assistance of a mortgage it is usual for the purchaser's solicitors to also act for the purchaser's lender.
In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your property lawyers should contact Capital Home Loans and see if they can apply for membership of the Capital Home Loans conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable Capital Home Loans will instruct their own solicitors to act. You don't have to instruct a firm on the Capital Home Loans conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own solicitors, in which case it will likely add costs, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.
My solicitor has uncovered an inconsistency when comparing the surveyor’s assumptions in Capital Home Loans’s home valuation report and what is revealed within the title deeds. My solicitor has advised that as he is on the Capital Home Loans conveyancing panel he is obliged to ensure that the bank is with this discrepancy and is content go ahead. Is my solicitor’s approach correct?
A precondition to being on the Capital Home Loans approved panel is to comply with the CML Handbook requirements (last updated for this lender on Capital Home Loans) which do require that your lawyer disclose any incorrect assumptions in the lender’s valuation report and the legal papers. Should you refuse to allow your lawyer to make the appropriate notification then your lawyer will have no choice but to discontinue acting for you.
I am planning to acquire a property and require a conveyancing solicitor in who is on the Capital Home Loans conveyancing. Could you point me in the right direction as regards a conveyancing firm?
Our service is a directory service for firms who wish to be listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Capital Home Loans . We don’t recommend any particular firm.
What happens if my lawyer’s firm is suspended from the Capital Home Loans Solicitor panel prior to the completion date?
The first thing to point out is that, this is a very rare occurrence. In most cases even where a law firm is removed off of a panel the lender would allow the completion to go ahead as the lender would appreciate the difficulties that they would place you in if you have ti instruct a new solicitor days before completion. In a worst case scenario where the lender insists that you instruct a new firm then it is possible for a very good lawyer to expedite the conveyancing albeit that you may pay a significant premium for this. The analogous situation is where a buyer instructs a lawyer, exchanges contracts and the law firm is shut down by the regulator such as the SRA. Again, in this situation you can find lawyers who can troubleshoot their way to bring the conveyancing to a satisfactory conclusion - albeit at a cost.
Is the case that all CQS (Conveyancing Quality Scheme) solicitors on the Capital Home Loans conveyancing panel?
A selection of banks and building societies now use CQS as the starting point for Panel membership such as HSBC and Santander. CQS membership however is no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. That being said,the CML have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for firms wishing to join their approved list of conveyancing solicitors.
My wife and I have arranged a further advance on our mortgage from Capital Home Loans as we wish to carry out a loft conversion to our home. Do we need to appoint a solicitor on the Capital Home Loans conveyancing panel to deal with the legals?
Capital Home Loans would not normally appoint firms on their conveyancing panel to deal with such a matter. If they did require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the Capital Home Loans panel
Planning on purchasing a house with a mortgage with Capital Home Loans. I have received an online quote from a licensed conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Building Society if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the Capital Home Loans conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.
They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that they are on the Capital Home Loans conveyancing panel