Common questions asked concerning the Mansfield Building Society Conveyancing Panel from members of the public
My fiance and I are buying a 3 bedroom flat in Leeds with a mortgage from Mansfield Building Society. We like our lawyer but Mansfield Building Society says she’s not on their "panel". We have to appoint one of the Mansfield Building Society panel firms or keep our solicitor and pay for one of their panel ones to represent them. This seems very unfair; Can we not simply insist that Mansfield Building Society use our lawyer?
No, not really. The mortgage offered to you is subject to its terms and conditions, one of which will be that lawyers will on the Mansfield Building Society conveyancing panel. Until recently, most lenders had large numbers of law firms on their panels: a borrower could choose one for themselves, as long as it was on the lender's panel. The lender would then simply instruct the borrower's lawyers to act for the lender, too. You can use your lender's panel lawyers or you could borrow from another lender which does not restrict your choice. A further alternative is for your lawyer to apply to be on the conveyancing panel for Mansfield Building Society
My fiance and I intend to remortgage our maisonette with Mansfield Building Society. We have a son 18 who lives with us. The solicitor on the Mansfield Building Society conveyancing panel requested us to identify any adults other than ourselves who lives in the flat. The solicitor has now sent a form for our son to sign, waiving any legal rights in the event that the flat is forfeited by the lender. I have two questions (1) Is this document specific to the Mansfield Building Society conveyancing panel as he never had to sign this form when we bought 4 years ago (2) In signing this form is our son in any way compromising his right to inherit the property?
On the face of it your lawyer has done nothing wrong as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to Mansfield Building Society .This is solely used to protect the Mansfield Building Society if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave.
It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of Mansfield Building Society had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.
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 Mansfield Building Society solicitor panel?
No. There is no CML Part 2 or Building Society Association requirement relating to online case tracking. Some law firms operate such technology and some don't.
My aunt passed away six months ago and as sole heir and executor was left the property. The house had a small mortgage remaining of approximately £8000. I want to have the title changed into my name whilst I re-mortgage to Mansfield Building Society , pay off the mortgage etc. Is this allowed?
If you intend to re-mortgage then Mansfield Building Society will insist on your using a conveyancer on the Mansfield Building Society conveyancing panel. Here is link to the Land Registry online guidance around what to do when a property owner dies. This will help you to understand the registration process behind changing the details re the registered title. in your case it would appear that you are effectively purchasing the property from the estate. Your Mansfield Building Society conveyancing panel solicitor pays the new mortgage money into the estate, the estate pays off the old mortgage, the charge is released and you become the owner and the Mansfield Building Society mortgage is registered as a charge at the Land Registry.
When it comes to mortgage companies such as Mansfield Building Society 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.
My brother and I have agreed a price on a flat I spoke to a conveyancer recommended by my mum and he recommended using a law firm approved by Mansfield Building Society. The estate agent recommended two local firms so I asked Mansfield Building Society if the 2 suggested solicitors are approved, which they are not. Mansfield Building Society pointed out that either firm can fill out the appropriate forms to become approved. Do I (1) save myself the aggravation and use one of Mansfield Building Society 's conveyancing panel solicitors (2) Use the local solicitor and accept there may be delays etc as they go through the approval process.
Enquire of Mansfield Building Society for conveyancing panel firms in your area. Lenders have them all over the country. You can also use our search tool at the top of this page to search for a lawyer on the Mansfield Building Society conveyancing panel based on location. If you particularly like the sound of one of the local lawyers that you have spoken to ask them if they would go onto Mansfield Building Society conveyancing panel as it may only take about 2-3 weeks. As long as they meet Mansfield Building Society’s requirements it can be a very simple job for the solicitor. Other stuff will be going on in parallel (as you are at an early stage) so it may not delay matters.
Mansfield Building Society have agreed my mortgage in principle, my offer on house has been accepted, now what?
The estate agent will want to know who your solicitors are (make sure these solicitors are on the lenders panel). Call up Mansfield Building Society or your broker and complete any relevant paperwork. Mansfield Building Society will tell you what documents they want. Mansfield Building Society will instruct a valuer. The valuer will get in touch with the estate agent or seller to book an appointment. Once conducted (assuming no problems) it takes about week to get a mortgage offer. Mansfield Building Society will issue the offer to you and your lawyer. The transaction will then take it’s course according the nature and complexity of the conveyancing.