The Mortgage Business Conveyancing Panel Example Support Desk Enquires from members of the public
I am in the process of selling my house and the estate agent has just texted me to warn that the purchasers are switching property lawyer. I am told that this is due to the fact that The Mortgage Business will only work with property lawyers on their conveyancing panel. On what basis would a big named lender only work with specific lawyers?
Mortgage companies have always had panels 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 25 years.
Lenders blame a rise in fraud as the reason 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.
Expecting to complete my purchase next Monday. I have now been asked to send a copy of my building insurance schedule by my solicitor as as he informs me that he is duty bound to validate that it is in order for The Mortgage Business. What risks do The Mortgage Business expect the insurance to cover?
Any lawyer on the The Mortgage Business conveyancing panel would need to check that the following risks are covered fire; lightning; aircraft; explosion; earthquake; storm; flood; escape of water or oil; riot; malicious damage; theft or attempted theft; falling trees and branches and aerials; subsidence; heave;landslip;collision;accidental damage to underground services;professional fees, demolition and site clearance costs; and public liability to anyone else. There are some other issues such as the level of excess that are set out in The Mortgage Business’s Part 2 requirements of the CML Handbook (last updated on The Mortgage Business). Being on the The Mortgage Business conveyancing panel your lawyer is expect to follow these requirements.
I need to find a The Mortgage Business panel solicitor in Inverness. Can you assist?
Unfortunately it’s not apparent why you need a The Mortgage Business panel solicitor but in any event, if you can not find one on our search tool you will need to speak directly to The Mortgage Business to find out which solicitors in The Mortgage Business are on their panel. If you do find such a firm not listed please direct them to our site to list. After all the cost is only one £1 a month
The lawyers that I appointed last week on my purchase in Brighton has without warning closed. I only went with them because I had to have a firm on the The Mortgage Business conveyancing panel and my family lawyer was not. I gave them a cheque for £150 in advance. What are my options?
If you have an estate agent involved then inform them immediately so that they can let the sellers know that there may be a slight delay due to reasons beyond your control. Hopefully they will be sympathetic and urge their lawyer to send a new set of papers to your new solicitors. You will need to appoint new lawyers that are on the The Mortgage Business conveyancing panel and notify the lender. If you have paid over any money it will hopefully be held by the SRA as money in an intervened firm's bank accounts is transferred to the SRA. Then, the SRA or the intervention agent looks at the intervened firm's accounts to work out who the money belongs to. To claim your money you will need to contact the SRA. If the SRA cannot return money you are owed from the firm's bank accounts, or if they can only return part of the money, you can apply to the Compensation Fund for a grant. Your new lawyers may be able to help
Do conveyancing lawyers on the The Mortgage Business conveyancing panel work on a no move no charge basis?
There is generally no requirements by lenders for their firms to operate on a no-sale-no-fee basis. There a small number of lenders who operate a very restricted conveyancing panel managed by a third party company (often termed in the industry as a ‘gatekeeper’). That third party may impose certain conditions such as non-sale-no fee on the panel firms. If you require this as a condition of your conveyancing then you should check with the conveyancing firm that this is part of their service
Planning on purchasing a flat with a mortgage with The Mortgage Business. I have received an online quote from a licensed conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Lender if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the The Mortgage Business conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.
They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that they are on the The Mortgage Business conveyancing panel
My ex -wife’s name is on the The Mortgage Business 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 The Mortgage Business mortgage in order to sell?
As regards the The Mortgage Business 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 The Mortgage Business 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.