Coutts & Co Conveyancing Panel Sample Enquires to our Call Center from members of the public
A lawyer my husband and I wanted to use for conveyancing on a purchase said she would charge more if my lender is because of their unusual legal requirements. Will I regret using Coutts & Co? Any comments will be appreciated
Coutts & Co conveyancing requirements for their panel are no better or no more complicated than most lenders.
It is the case now the CML Handbook, the "bible" used by solicitors to establish lender requirements, is different for each lender.
It is not clear if your lawyer is on the Coutts & Co conveyancing panel. If they are not, this does add further risk of delay as Coutts & Co will appoint their own solicitors to look after their interest.
We are nearing an exchange and my parents having transferred the 10% deposit to my lawyer. I am now advised that as the deposit has not come from me my lawyer needs to disclose this to my lender Coutts & Co. Apparently, being on the Coutts & Co conveyancing panel and acting on their behalf he must inform Coutts & Co if the balance of the mortgage advance is not just from me. I advised the bank about my parent’s contribution when I applied for the home loan so is it really necessary for him to raise this?
Your lawyer is obliged to check with Coutts & Co to make sure that they are aware that the balance of the purchase price is not from your own funds. Your solicitor can only report this to Coutts & Co if you agree, failing which, your lawyer must cease to continue acting.
Is it necessary during the course of the conveyancing process to visit the offices of the Coutts & Co conveyancing panel solicitor to sign the legal charge? If so, I will appoint a lawyer who conducts conveyancing in Manchester
so that I can pop in to their offices if necessary.
Whereas this was necessary twenty years ago, most lenders no longer require their conveyancing panel solicitor to witness the borrowers signature. You will still be obliged to provide ID Documents and there are still distinct advantages to using a local solicitor, in your case a conveyancing solicitor in Manchester
.
What happens if my solicitor is suspended from the Coutts & Co Solicitor panel before completion?
First, 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.
I am buying a property where the roof has a solar panel. Coutts & Co have issued a mortgage offer so presumably this is not a concern to them. Why is my solicitor raising questions about the panel?
As your lender is Coutts & Co your lawyer must to check the Coutts & Co conveyancing instructions contained in the Part of CML Handbook for Coutts & Co . The CML Handbook contains minimum requirements for solar panel roof-space leases, and solicitors are required to report to Coutts & Co where a lease does not meet these requirements. The requirements relate to the installation of panels on properties in England and Wales. Requirements for Scotland are due in the near future.
My fiance and I are spending time looking at houses and am about to put in an offer. Should I already have a conveyancer appointed at this stage? I intend to finance via a home loan with Coutts & Co
You should start obtaining conveyancing quotes from solicitors ASAP. After you have chosen your lawyer and once your offer is accepted you can instruct them to work for you and pass their details on the the EA. As you are getting a mortgage with Coutts & Co , make sure you remember to check that your lawyer is on the Coutts & Co conveyancing panel.
I recently had an offer accepted on an apartment. My financial adviser pressured me to appoint their lawyers I paid an upfront payment of 150. Soon after the conveyancers contacted me to say that they were not on the Coutts & Co 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 Coutts & Co 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.