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Ready to buy a new home? Failing to check that a lawyer is on the Monmouthshire BS list of approved solicitors can put your transaction at risk of delay or failure.
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Common questions asked concerning the Monmouthshire Building Society Solicitor Panel
My partner and I are first time buyers. Within the 48 hours our conveyancer has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through with a view to exchanging next week. Monmouthshire Building Society have this afternoon contacted us to advise us that there is now an issue as our solicitor is not on their conveyancing panel. Is this a problem?
When purchasing a property with the benefit of a mortgage it is usual for the purchaser's solicitors to also act for the purchaser's lender.
In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Quality Scheme. Your solicitors should contact Monmouthshire Building Society and see if they can apply for membership of the Monmouthshire Building Society conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable Monmouthshire Building Society will instruct their own solicitors to act. You don't have to instruct a firm on the Monmouthshire Building Society conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own solicitors, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it may delay matters as you have another set of people involved.
My lawyer has informed me that he requires proof of ID documents saying that this is part of his retainer as a solicitor on the Monmouthshire Building Society Conveyancing panel. This is news to me - can I refuse?
Due to Money Laundering Regulations your conveyancing lawyer is duty bound to confirm positively your identification when entering into a business relationship with you. It is a criminal offense if your lawyer not do this. If you do not provide ID early in the transaction the solicitor must refuse to act for you. It’s unlikely a lawyer will turn you away if you come to the first meeting without relevant ID but you will have to produce it at some point so you might as well bring it with you to the initial meeting so the lawyer can tick the ID verification box and start sorting out the conveyancing straight away. If you are getting a mortgage with Monmouthshire Building Society your lawyer also has to check ID documents to satisfy Monmouthshire Building Society
I am Googling for competitive conveyancing fees. Can I be sure that all the law firms that are listed on your site are on the Monmouthshire Building Society conveyancing panel?
The solicitor and licensed conveyancing practices on our directory have assured us via an online form that they are on the Monmouthshire Building Society panel and agreed to advise us to take down their listing in the event of removal off of the Monmouthshire Building Society panel. To date we have not been informed by either a bank or a member of the public that the data about a specific firm being on the Monmouthshire Building Society conveyancing panel is incorrect.
Please explain the implications if my lawyer’s firm is removed from the Monmouthshire Building Society Conveyancing panel in advance of the moving date as agreed at exchange of contracts?
The first thing to point out is that, this is a very rare occurrence. 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 for a fee.
I previously instructed online conveyancers located in London who are on the Monmouthshire Building Society solicitor panel. They are now charging me a separate fee of £195 for the legal aspects of the Monmouthshire Building Society mortgage. Is this a supplemental conveyancing fee specified by Monmouthshire Building Society?
Unfortunately, as long as it is in their Terms and Conditions or Quote then yes your solicitors can charge a fee for this. This fee is not set by Monmouthshire Building Society but by your lawyers. Some firms on the Monmouthshire Building Society will charge an ‘acting for lender’ fee but plenty of firms include it on their overall fee.
Why might a lender such as Monmouthshire Building Society withdraw a mortgage offer?
Banks and Building Societies such as Monmouthshire Building Society can revoke their mortgage offer although this rarely happens. In the unlikely event that Monmouthshire Building Society withdraw their offer they may or may not inform you or the lawyer as to their reasoning. There are many potential reasons but here are a number of examples:
- Many mortgage offers have an expiry date. Your lawyer should check this. Monmouthshire Building Society may amend or withdraw an offer before the end of its validation period if an offer extension is requested and following a re-evaluation of the property the value of the security is below a level which is acceptable to them.
- If the financial circumstances of the borrower have changed to the detriment and the Monmouthshire Building Society has been notified
- Where the purchase price and borrowers direct contribution differ to details on the mortgage application form completed by the borrower
- Following advice from the property assessor on their lender panel or If the lender has doubts about the effectiveness of the valuation as a result of subsequent events or information received post valuation but pre completion
- Where the Lender’s right to possession is fettered in some way
I have decided to exercise my right to buy my property off the council. I have a mortgage offer with Monmouthshire Building Society. Conveyancing is new to me. Can I proceed without a solicitor easily? I think we can but we keep being told I should use one. Any advice?
It is not advisable proceed with a house purchase without a solicitor. The council's solicitor are not acting for you. You need a solicitor for a number reasons. One of which is to verify what plans the Council have for repairs and refurbishment for the next five years. Many leaseholders have been stung for contributions of thousands of pounds. In any event if you are getting a mortgage with Monmouthshire Building Society you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Monmouthshire Building Society conveyancing panel.