Harpenden Building Society Conveyancing Lender Panel Compliance Tool

COMPLETIONmonitor is an online pre- and post-completion checklist for residential conveyancing lawyers. Supported by the Council of Mortgage Lenders and PI insurers such as AmTrust. COMPLETIONmonitor is a unique risk mitigation tool.

This software assists the way you can demonstrate to lender panels that you are, and can remain fully compliant with their instructions, with notifications given on Harpenden Building Society’s changes. While using the software is not a prerequisite for Harpenden Building Society , demonstrating you can remain up to date with Harpenden Building Society’s Handbook requirements is an excellent support to your application to their lender panel and, just as importantly, safeguard your firm’s panel standing.

The system generates real-time alerts, automatically produces compliance and CQS reports, and will increase your firm's efficiency. It is also user friendly, cost-effective and, for some firms, leads to a PII saving.

Find a Law Firm approved by Harpenden Building Society

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

A Timeline of Policy Changes


Since 2008, Harpenden Building Society has made 148 revisions or additions to sections of their version of the CML Handbook.
That equates to a section change every 18.4 days. In total, 63% of the sections of P2 of the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook for Harpenden Building Society have been changed since 15/12/2008.

To find out more about lender panel compliance,

Book a Personalised Demo

Recent Changes Include

# Date Assoc. Changes Related To
5.9.1 01/12/2014 CML
Commonhold
Harpenden Building Society panel lawyers clarification as to whether they lend where the title is commonhold
6.14.1a 01/12/2014 CML
contact point if property is not insured in accordance with lender requirement
5.4.5 01/12/2014 CML
Conveyancing Searches: Personal Searches
Harpenden Building Society approved lawyers clarification as to whether they accept personal searches and, if yes, the Harpenden Building Society requirements
Local Search Indemnity Insurance
6.14.1 01/12/2014 CML
Building Insurance
Harpenden Building Society panel lawyers additional requirements concerning building insurance
6.10.2 18/08/2014 CML
Conveyancing : retenions by mortgage company
Harpenden Building Society clarification to panel lawyers clarification as to who they release retentions (or instalments of the advance) to
16.1.1 01/12/2010 CML
Title Documents
Harpenden Building Society details for requesting Title Documentation
4.5a 01/12/2010 CML
Mortagge valuation - Reinspections
Contact details at Harpenden Building Society for approved lawyers where re-inspection required
4.5b 01/12/2010 CML
Certificates of Title
Contact details at Harpenden Building Society for conveyancing panel/approved lawyers where COT should be sent
5.5.3a 01/12/2010 CML
Planning Permission and Building Regulations : Breaches
Contact details at Harpenden Building Society for approved lawyers where there evidence of breach and all outstanding conditions will not be satisfied by completion
Lack of Planning Permission Indemnity Insurance
6.8.1 01/12/2010 CML
Roads and Sewers
Contact details at Harpenden Building Society for approved lawyers if no agreement and bond for an unadopted road or sewer
Adoption of Road or Sewer Indemnity Insurance

Last update 12/03/2019

Harpenden Building Society Conveyancing Panel Sample Enquires to our Call Center from members of the public

It has come to my attention via my financial adviser that my property lawyer is not on the Harpenden Building Society Conveyancing panel. How can I be sure that this is correct?
You need to contact your conveyancer. It is reasonable to expect your lawyer to advise you of the situation. If they are not on the panel they may recommend you to a firm that is on the the approved Harpenden Building Society solicitor panel.
Our conveyancer has identified a legal deficiency with the lease for the flat we are buying. The seller’s lawyers have put forward title insurance as a solution. We are content with insurance and will cover the costs. Our solicitor has advised that as he is on the Harpenden Building Society conveyancing panel he must be satisfied that the lender is happy with this solution. Who is the client here, us or Harpenden Building Society?
Just because you have a mortgage offer from Harpenden Building Society does not mean to say that the property will be meet their requirements for the purposes of a mortgage. Your lawyer has to ensure that the lease has to comply with the CML Handbook Requirements. You and Harpenden Building Society are the client. These conveyancing instructions must be adhered to by the Harpenden Building Society conveyancing panel who has to balance acting for you and Harpenden Building Society
I require the services of a Harpenden Building Society panel solicitor in Belfast. Can you assist?
Unfortunately it’s not apparent why you need a Harpenden Building Society panel solicitor but in any event, if you can not find one on our search tool you will need to speak directly to Harpenden Building Society to find out which solicitors in Harpenden Building Society are on their panel. If you do find such a firm not listed please direct them to our site to list. At a fee of one pound per month it is not expensive to register on the site
What happens if my lawyer’s firm is suspended from the Harpenden Building Society Solicitor panel in advance of completion?
The first thing to point out is that, this is very unlikely to happen. 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. Harpenden Building Society have issued a mortgage offer so presumably this is not a concern to them. Why is my solicitor raising questions about the panel?
As you are obtaining a mortgage with Harpenden Building Society your lawyer must to check the Harpenden Building Society conveyancing instructions contained in the Part of CML Handbook for Harpenden Building Society . The CML Handbook contains minimum requirements for solar panel roof-space leases, and solicitors are required to report to Harpenden Building Society where a lease does not meet these requirements. The requirements relate to the installation of panels on properties in England and Wales. The CML are developing guidance for Northern Ireland and Scotland.
After much negotiation I have agreed a price on a house. My mortgage broker 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 Harpenden 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 Harpenden 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.
I had an offer accepted on a property on the 5th February 2014, valuation was booked 3 days after, all came back fine. Property lawyer retained, so the only thing outstanding was my mortgage offer. Having made daily calls to Harpenden Building Society and chasing them on my offer I have now been told that my offer will not be issued unless the lawyer is on the Harpenden Building Society conveyancing panel. Are Harpenden Building Society entitled to hold back the Mortgage pending the lawyer being on the approved list?
A lender would not issue a mortgage until they have details of a lawyer on their panel. It can take a few weeks for Harpenden Building Society to deal with your lawyers application to be on the Harpenden Building Society conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitors will be accepted.