Paratus AMC Conveyancing Panel Sample Enquires to our Call Center from members of the public
I am progressing with the sale of my flat and the estate agent has just texted me to advise that the purchasers are switching solicitor. I am told that this is due to the fact that Paratus AMC will only work with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. On what basis would a major mortgage company only deal with specific lawyers?
Mortgage companies 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 Nationwide , have reviewed and reduced their conveyancing panel– in some cases removing conveyancing firms who have worked with them for more than 25 years.
Banks blame a rise 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 hearing daily from firms 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 lawyer has requested from me proof of ID documents asserting that this forms part of his requirements as a conveyancer on the Paratus AMC Conveyancing panel. Can this be correct?
Anti-terror and anti-money-laundering rules require solicitors and licensed conveyancers to verify the identity of the person or body they are dealing with before they can accept their conveyancing business. The Client Care letter that you need to sign will no doubt confirm this. Your lawyer is right that Paratus AMC also require certain documents to be viewed. If a you refuse to provide ID verification documents, your conveyancer would not be able to accept instructions from you. Your lawyer also has obligations to obtain certain documents in accordance with Paratus AMC CML Handbook requirements last updated on Paratus AMC
Do all the firms listed on your directory have online case tracking as I understood that this was a condition of being on the Paratus AMC 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.
I am thinking of refinancing my property does my lawyer have to be on the Paratus AMC Conveyancing panel?
In theory, you could use a solicitor that is not on Paratus AMC conveyancing panel, but Paratus AMC would require one of their panel solicitors to be instructed to act in their interests, and you'd have to pay for this - so most people instruct a panel solicitor. It's also easier, as otherwise you'd have to deal with two solicitors for the same conveyancing matter.
Is it the case that all conveyancing solicitors on the Paratus AMC conveyancing panel overseen by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority?
As a firm of solicitors, in order to be on the Paratus AMC conveyancing panel they would need to be regulated by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority. Many lenders do allow licenced conveyancers on their panel in which case such firms would be regulated by the Council of Licensed Conveyancers (CLC).
My ex -wife’s name is on the Paratus AMC mortgage of my property but not on the land registry. The apartment was transferred to me on our divorce many years ago by way of a sealed court order. Does my ex still have a say on the sale even though the land registry showing the property in my name alone? Will I be required to take her name of the Paratus AMC mortgage in order to sell?
In terms of the Paratus AMC mortgage, it is unusual that your ex-wife’s name remains on the mortgage but not on the title. It is conceivable that this is an oversight on the part of your conveyancers to ensure that her name was removed or even an administrative error on the part of Paratus AMC in failing to update their data. In any event, it should cause difficulty providing her name no longer appears on the Land Registry title and you have a court order ordering that the property is transferred to you.
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 in the pipeline. My conveyancing solicitor has been instructed. What do I do now? When should I get the mortgage app going with Paratus AMC?
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 Paratus AMC 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 Paratus AMC and pay for the valuation and only if it comes back ok would they pay their solicitor to press on with searches.