Chelsea Building Society Conveyancing Lender Panel Compliance Tool

Lexsure’s COMPLETIONmonitor is web-based pre- and post-completion checklist for property lawyers. Supported by the Council of Mortgage Lenders and professional indemnity insures. It is a unique risk management tool.

This system assists the way you can prove to lender panels that you are, and can remain fully compliant with their instructions, with automatic updates on Chelsea Building Society’s changes. Notwithstanding that utilising the software is not a prerequisite for Chelsea Building Society , demonstrating you can stay up to date with Chelsea Building Society’s Handbook requirements is a helpful support to your application to their lender panel and, just as importantly, protect your firm’s panel standing.

The system creates real-time alerts, automatically produces compliance and CQS reports, and will improve your firm's efficiency. It is also user friendly, cost-effective and, for many firms, results in a PII saving.

Find a Law Firm approved by Chelsea Building Society

Lenders often change their requirements. The UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook requirements from Chelsea Building Society are not guidelines, they are instructions from a client. As with many clients, instructions can change - and they do change, frequently:

A Timeline of Policy Changes


Since 2008, Chelsea Building Society has made 367 revisions or additions to sections of their version of the CML Handbook.
That equates to a section change every 7.4 days. In total, 32% of the sections of P2 of the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Chelsea Building Society have been changed since 15/12/2008.

To find out more about lender panel compliance,

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Recent Changes Include

# Date Assoc. Changes Related To
5.14.1 02/05/2017 CML
Leasehold Conveyancing
Chelsea Building Society (a trading name of Yorkshire BS) panel lawyers leasehold conveyancing requirements : minimum unexpired lease term
5.14.9 02/05/2017 CML
Leasehold Conveyancing
Contact details at Chelsea Building Society (a trading name of Yorkshire BS) for approved lawyers for matters relating to the lease.
6.7.1 02/05/2017 CML
New Build Conveyancing
Chelsea Building Society (a trading name of Yorkshire BS) panel conveyancer requirements for New Build Conveyancing : Home Warranty Schemes
10.2a 06/02/2017 CML
Mortgage Advance and Certificate of Title
Do Chelsea Building Society (a trading name of Yorkshire BS) send the mortgage advance electronically or by cheque?
5.14.1 17/11/2016 CML
Leasehold Conveyancing
Chelsea Building Society (a trading name of Yorkshire BS) approved lawyers leasehold conveyancing requirements : minimum unexpired lease term
16.3.2 20/07/2015 CML
Transfer of Equity
Chelsea Building Society (a trading name of Yorkshire BS) details for requesting debt amount
1.11b 01/12/2014 CML
General Mortgage Instructions
Contact details at Chelsea Building Society (a trading name of Yorkshire BS) for approved lawyers to where standard mortgage documentation is inappropriate
16.3.2 01/12/2014 CML
Transfer of Equity
Chelsea Building Society (a trading name of Yorkshire BS) details for requesting debt amount
6.14.1b 01/12/2014 CML
buildings insurance in joint names or lender interest noted
10.3 03/05/2013 CML
Mortgage Advance and Certificate of Title
What are the standard deductions made by Chelsea Building Society (a trading name of Yorkshire BS) from the mortgage advance?

Last update 16/09/2019

Frequently asked questions relating to the Chelsea Building Society Conveyancing Panel from members of the public

My property lawyer is not listed on the Chelsea Building Society Conveyancing Panel. Is it possible for me to use my preferred solicitor notwithstanding that they are excluded from the Chelsea Building Society list of approved lawyers?
You will need to have a conveyancer complete the legal work required when you take out a Chelsea Building Society mortgage to buy your property. They’ll carry out all the necessary legal checks on the property, make sure that you’re properly registered as the owner and ensure that all the necessary mortgage documentation is in place. You can instruct a conveyancing firm of your choice. However, if the firm selected is not a member of the Chelsea Building Society conveyancing panel additional costs will be incurred as separate legal representation will be required by Chelsea Building Society. Conveyancing panel applications can be submitted, so if your conveyancer has not previously applied for membership they can do so.
Our lawyer is asking me for proof of ID documents asserting that this is part of his retainer as a conveyancer on the Chelsea Building Society Conveyancing panel. Is this right?
Anti-terror and anti-money-laundering rules require solicitors and licensed conveyancers to verify the identity of the person or body they are dealing with before they can accept their conveyancing business. The Terms and Conditions that you need to sign will no doubt confirm this. Your lawyer is right that Chelsea Building Society also require certain documents to be viewed. If a you refuse to provide ID verification documents, your conveyancer would not be able to accept instructions from you. Your lawyer also has obligations to obtain certain documents in accordance with Chelsea Building Society CML Handbook requirements last updated on Chelsea Building Society
I am purchasing a house and require a conveyancing solicitor in Manchester who is on the Chelsea Building Society solicitor. Could you point me in the right direction as regards a solicitor?
Our service is a directory service for firms who wish to be listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Chelsea Building Society . We don’t recommend any particular firm.
I am attempting to get my former partner taken off the mortgage deeds. Can Chelsea Building Society really tell me which solicitor I can or can not retain?
You can use any solicitor you like but Chelsea Building Society then has the right to appoint a different solicitor to act for them at your expense. It might be more cost effective and quicker to instruct a lawyer who is on the Chelsea Building Society solicitors panel
Is there a list of Chelsea Building Society panel solicitors on the CML Handbook Website?
No. There is no such tool on the Council of Mortgage Lenders or Building Society Association websites. Very few lenders make their panel listings available online.
I was thinking of purchasing my friend’s property. Assuming we can agree a figure, what’s the best way to proceed? I hope to get a mortgage with Chelsea Building Society. Is there anyway to cut out the solicitors to save us both money? My dad reckons back in the day he did a lot of it himself, just went into the land registry office and providing them with the info they needed himself
If you are getting a mortgage with Chelsea Building Society involved you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Chelsea Building Society conveyancing panel. We would not encourage you to both use the same solicitors' firm. There are clear conflict of interest issues and it's not going to make a huge difference to the speed of the overall process. So as not to hold things us you should pass on your solicitors details to Chelsea Building Society. Feel free to use our search tool to look for a licensed conveyancer or solicitor on the Chelsea Building Society conveyancing panel.
After much negotiation I have agreed a price on an apartment. My financial adviser recommended their conveyancers I paid an upfront payment of 200. Soon after the conveyancers contacted me sheepishly admitting that they were not on the Chelsea Building Society conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?
You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the Chelsea Building Society panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.