Examples of recent questions relating to the Coutts & Co Solicitor Panel from members of the public
On what basis could a firm of solicitors be excluded from the Coutts & Co approved conveyancing panel?
A survey recently commissioned by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority found that three quarters of solicitor practices had been removed from a lender panel. The most common reasons in order are :
- Low volume of transactions
- the lawyer is a sole practitioner
- as part of the HSBC panel reduction
- regulatory contact by SRA
- accidental removal. We are not aware of the specific or common criteria for removal by Coutts & Co
Our solicitor has identified a defect with the lease for the flat we are purchasing. The other side have offered title insurance as a solution. We are happy with insurance and will cover the costs. Our lawyer says that as he is on the Coutts & Co conveyancing panel he must ensure that the lender is happy with this solution. Are we the client or is Coutts & Co?
The short answer to your last question is that, notwithstanding the potential for a conflict of interest, you and Coutts & Co are the client. A precondition to being on the Coutts & Co approved panel is to comply with the CML Handbook requirements (last updated for this lender on Coutts & Co). The CML Handbook conditions require your lawyer to disclose issues such as defects will the lease so that Coutts & Co can be afforded the opportunity to check with their valuer as to the extent that the value of the property is affected . 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.
Do all the licensed conveyancers and solicitor practices listed on your search have online case tracking as I was under the impression that this was a precondition of being on the Coutts & Co conveyancing panel?
The Council of Mortgage Lenders or BSA do not require online case tracking. Some law firms operate such technology and some don't.
My house is up for sale and I have a buyer. Does my solicitor have to be on the Coutts & Co conveyancing panel in order to deal with redeeming my mortgage?
Ordinarily, even if your lawyer is not on the Coutts & Co conveyancing panel they can still act for you on your sale. it might be that the lender will not release the original deeds (if applicable and increasingly irrelevant) until after the mortgage is paid off. You should speak to your lawyer directly before you start the process though to ensure that there is no problem as lenders are changing their requirements fairly frequently at the moment.
My wife and I have arranged a further advance on our mortgage from Coutts & Co as we wish to carry out alterations or improvements our home. Do we need to appoint a solicitor on the Coutts & Co conveyancing panel to deal with the paperwork?
Coutts & Co do not ordinarily instruct a member of 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 Coutts & Co panel
I was thinking of purchasing my friend’s property. Assuming we can agree a figure, what’s the best way to proceed? I plan to obtain a mortgage with Coutts & Co. Is it possible to avoid using solicitors to save us both money? My father said that years ago it was possible to take the documents into the local Land Registry office and they did the rest
If you are getting a mortgage with Coutts & Co involved you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Coutts & Co 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 Coutts & Co. Feel free to use our search tool to look for a licensed conveyancer or solicitor on the Coutts & Co conveyancing panel.
What are the common reasons for a lender such as Coutts & Co to withdraw a mortgage offer?
Lenders such as Coutts & Co can revoke their mortgage offer although this rarely happens. should Coutts & Co withdraw their offer they may or may not inform you or the lawyer as to their reasoning. There are many potential reasons but here are 5 examples:
- Where information comes to Coutts & Co ‘s attention regarding the customers or the security that they were not aware of prior to offer that affects their original decision to lend
- Many mortgage offers have an expiry date. Your lawyer should check this. Coutts & Co may amend or withdraw an offer before the end of its validation period if an offer extension is requested and following a re-evaluation of the property the value of the security is below a level which is acceptable to them.
- If the borrower informs Coutts & Co of a change in security address
- If the borrower informs Coutts & Co of a change in the loan amount agreed
- A cashback to the buyer, or | part of the price includes a non-cash incentive to the buyer (eg paid stamp duty land tax),or | any indirect incentive (cash or non cash) or rental guarantee, of which the lender was previously unaware
