Q and A’s regarding the DB UK Bank Conveyancing Panel from members of the public
I am in the process of selling my house and the EA has just called to warn that the purchasers are swapping law firm. The excuse is that DB UK Bank will only engage with solicitors on their conveyancing panel. Why would a major mortgage company only deal with specific law firms?
Banks have always had an approved set of law firms they are willing to work with, but in the past few years big names such as Lloyds Banking Group, have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for more than 15 years.
Banks point to the increase in fraud by way of justification for the cull – criteria have been tightened and a smaller panel should be easier to keep an eye on. No lender will say how many solicitors have been dropped, claiming the information is commercially sensitive, but the Law Society says it is being contacted daily by practices that have been removed from panels, or have other concerns about them. Some do not even realise they have been dropped until contacted by a borrower who has instructed them as might be the situation in your buyer’s case. Your purchasers are unlikely to have any sway in the decision.
My nephew is about to exchange on a house that has just been built with a home loan from DB UK Bank. His lawyer has advised him of a delay in receiving the ‘Disclosure of Incentive Form’. Who needs to receive the form?
The form is intended to provide information to the main parties engaged in the transaction. Therefore, it will be provided to your son’s lawyer who should be on the DB UK Bank conveyancing panel as a standard part of the process, and to the valuer when requested.
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 DB UK Bank conveyancing panel solicitor as early as possible, in order to avoid any last minute delays, and no later than at exchange of contracts.
Are there any apps to help find a local solicitor on the DB UK Bank conveyancing panel? I have a car and am prepared to travel up to 10 miles to meet the conveyancer.
You can use the find a conveyancing panel tool on this website. Please choose the lender and your location and you will see a number of lawyer located nearest you. Alternatively you can type in the name of your proposed law firm and see if they are listed as being on the DB UK Bank solicitor panel.
We're in Wales, First timers purchasing with a mortgage (lender is DB UK Bank , but our solicitor is on the DB UK Bank conveyancing panel). How long should the conveyancing process take?
The fact that your lawyer is on the DB UK Bank conveyancing panel is a help. It would almost certainly delay matters if they were not. However, no conveyancer should guarantee a time-frame for your conveyancing due to third parties outside of our control such as delays caused by lenders,conveyancing search providers or by the other side’s solicitors. The time taken is often determined by the number of parties in a chain
When it comes to lenders such as DB UK Bank do lawyers have to be pay a fee to be on the list of approved solicitors?
We are not aware of any lender fees to be on their panel although some do charge an administration charge to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel application.
I have instructed a lawyer having checked that they are on the DB UK Bank conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property?
Or
Having read lots of house buying,I note that it is considered advisable to get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my solicitor - who is on the DB UK Bank conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. Is that normal?
DB UK Bank will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually DB UK Bank will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey.
You may wish to consider appointing your own surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.
or
Your lawyer will not organise the survey but they may be able to put you in touch with a local one that they recommend. RICS offers a find a surveyor service (just google it) where you can search for a qualified surveyor by postcode. As you are getting a mortgage with DB UK Bank you could contact your them to see if they have a list of approved surveyors.
My offer on house has been accepted, the seller does however have a dependent purchase. The vendors have offered on somewhere, but not been accepted yet, and have viewings of other properties booked. My conveyancing solicitor has been instructed. What should be my next step? At what point should I appy for the mortgage with DB UK Bank?
It is usual to have concerns where there is a chain as you are unlikely to want to be too out of pocket too early (mortgage application is approx £1k, then survey/valuation, conveyancing search costs, etc). First you should check that your solicitor is on the DB UK Bank conveyancing panel. As to the next stages this very much depends on the circumstances of your case, desire for this property and on the state of the market. In a hot mortgage some buyers would pally for the mortgage with DB UK Bank and pay for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they pay their solicitor to press on with searches.