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Ready to buy a new home? Failing to check that a lawyer is on the Landbay list of approved solicitors can put your transaction at risk of delay or failure.
Find an Approved Solicitor on the Landbay Partners Ltd Conveyancing Panel
Frequently asked questions relating to the Landbay Partners Conveyancing Panel
My husband and I are FTBs. Within the 48 hours our solicitor has forwarded the sale agreement to sign with a detailed report with the expectation that exchange is imminent. Landbay Partners have this evening contacted us to inform me that there is now an issue as our solicitor is not on their conveyancing panel. Please explain?
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 property lawyers should contact Landbay Partners and see if they can apply for membership of the Landbay Partners conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable Landbay Partners will instruct their own lawyers to represent them. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the Landbay Partners conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own solicitors, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it will likely delay the transaction as you are adding another lawyer into the mix.
Our conveyancer has identified a defect with the lease for the apartment we are buying. The seller’s lawyers have suggested defective title insurance as a workaround. We are content with insurance and will pay for it. Our lawyer has advised that as he is on the Landbay Partners conveyancing panel he must ensure that the lender is happy with this solution. Who is the client here, us or Landbay Partners?
Just because you have a mortgage offer from Landbay Partners does not mean to say that the property will be meet their requirements for the purposes of a mortgage. Your lawyer has to ensure that the lease has to comply with the CML Handbook Requirements. You and Landbay Partners are the client. The appropriate lender requirements have to be complied with by the Landbay Partners conveyancing panel who has to balance acting for you and Landbay Partners
I require the services of a Landbay Partners panel solicitor in Inverness. Could you help me?
Unfortunately it’s not apparent why you need a Landbay Partners panel solicitor but in any event, if you can not find one on our search tool you will need to speak directly to Landbay Partners to find out which solicitors in Landbay Partners 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 firm that I recently instructed on my house acquisition in Newcastle has suddenly closed. I only went with them because I had to have a lawyer on the Landbay Partners conveyancing panel and my preferred lawyer was not. I gave my credit card details for them to take £175 for searches. What are my options?
Assuming that you have an Estate Agent in the equation then let them know straight away so that they advise the vendors 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 should appoint new lawyers that are on the Landbay Partners 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 solicitors should be in a position to assist
Are all solicitor practices on the Landbay Partners conveyancing panel regulated by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority?
As a firm of solicitors, in order to be on the Landbay Partners 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).
Last month we had a mortgage agreed in principle with Landbay Partners. Solicitors have been instructed? How long does it take for Landbay Partners to send the offer to our conveyancer
Some lenders take longer than others. Have Landbay Partners conducted the valuation? Have you advised Landbay Partners as your lawyers details and checked that your lawyer is on the Landbay Partners conveyancing panel? sometimes it can take as long as six weeks for a mortgage offer to be issued
I have instructed a lawyer having checked that they are on the Landbay Partners conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property?
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I've read lots of mortgage guides,I note that it is considered advisable to get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my solicitor - who is on the Landbay Partners conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. Is that normal?
Landbay Partners will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Landbay Partners will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey.
You may wish to consider appointing your own surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.
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Your lawyer will not organise the survey but they may be able to put you in touch with a local one that they recommend. RICS offers a find a surveyor service (just google it) where you can search for a qualified surveyor by postcode. As you are getting a mortgage with Landbay Partners you could contact your them to see if they have a list of approved surveyors.