Examples of recent questions relating to the Landmark Mortgages Conveyancing Panel from members of the public
My lawyer is not on the Landmark Mortgages Solicitor Panel. Can I still retain my preferred solicitor even though they are excluded from the Landmark Mortgages panel of approved conveyancing solicitors?
You will need to have a conveyancer complete the legal work required when you take out a Landmark Mortgages mortgage to buy your property. They’ll carry out all the necessary legal checks on the property, make sure that you’re properly registered as the owner and ensure that all the necessary mortgage documentation is in place. You can instruct a conveyancing firm of your choice. However, if the firm selected is not a member of the Landmark Mortgages conveyancing panel additional costs will be incurred as separate legal representation will be required by Landmark Mortgages. Conveyancing panel applications can be submitted, so if your conveyancer has not previously applied for membership they can do so.
Please assist. For no fault of my lawyer but, my purchase conveyancing has been going on for months. The Local Authority Search from Landmark Mortgages was date stamped random date and we have agreed a date for me to move into the property on 10 days inc Day of week eg. Mon. My solicitor informs me that as she is on the Landmark Mortgages conveyancing panel she needs to reorder the searches as they are no longer acceptable to the lender.
A precondition to being on the Landmark Mortgages approved panel is to comply with the CML Handbook Part 2 obligations (last updated for this lender on Landmark Mortgages)which specifies that a local authority search be not more than half a year old. You should nevertheless ask your lawyer to check whether something called ‘search validation’ indemnity insurance is acceptable to Landmark Mortgages.
What tools are available to search for a local solicitor on the Landmark Mortgages conveyancing panel? I have a car and am prepared to travel up to 25 kilometers to meet the lawyer.
You can use the find a conveyancing panel tool on this page. 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 Landmark Mortgages solicitor panel.
My house is up for sale and I have a buyer. Does my solicitor have to be on the Landmark Mortgages conveyancing panel in order to deal with paying off my mortgage?
Ordinarily, even if your lawyer is not on the Landmark Mortgages 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.
Do the majority of banks operate their own panel of solicitors?
Many lenders do operate a restricted conveyancing panel but a lot of lenders allow any solicitors to join their panel so long as they meet their criteria. Each lender sets their own criteria. For example the Landmark Mortgages conveyancing panel requirements are different to Landmark Mortgages’s conveyancing panel requirements.
I was thinking of purchasing my friend’s property. Once we agree a price, what’s the best way to move forward? I hope to get a mortgage with Landmark Mortgages. Is it possible to avoid using solicitors to save on the costs? 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 Landmark Mortgages involved you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Landmark Mortgages 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 Landmark Mortgages. Feel free to use our search tool to look for a licensed conveyancer or solicitor on the Landmark Mortgages conveyancing panel.
I have had an offer accepted on a house I spoke to a solicitor recommended by my brother and he recommended retaining a law firm approved by Landmark Mortgages. The estate agent recommended two local firms so I asked Landmark Mortgages if the 2 suggested solicitors are approved, which they are not. Landmark Mortgages 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 Landmark Mortgages '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 Landmark Mortgages 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 Landmark Mortgages 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 Landmark Mortgages conveyancing panel as it may only take about 2-3 weeks. As long as they meet Landmark Mortgages’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.