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Ready to buy a new home? Failing to check that a lawyer is on the Scottish BS list of approved solicitors can put your transaction at risk of delay or failure.
Find an Approved Solicitor on the Scottish Building Society Conveyancing Panel
Scottish Building Society Conveyancing Panel : Questions and Answers
Can you please explain the reason why all solicitors are not on the Scottish Building Society Solicitor panel?
Pre- 2008 most lenders had an appetite for risk which was higher than today. The Financial Services Authority in 2010 conducted a thematic review into mortgage fraud which concluded: know the conveyancing solicitors that you are dealing with. Consequently, lenders have regularly sought more information from law firms about their operations and the individuals who work for them and set certain criteria such a completing on a minimum number of transactions. Many firms that have been excluded from lender panels have 100% healthy track record, no complaints and no claims and didn't just 'dabble' in conveyancing. Such firms were never going to meet the criteria of volume of transactions the lenders required.
Please assist. My lawyer is not to blame but, my purchase conveyancing has been going on for months. The Local Authority Search from Scottish Building Society was date stamped random date and we have agreed a date for me to move into the property on 6 months + 3. My lawyer informs me that as she is on the Scottish Building Society conveyancing panel she needs to reorder the searches as they are no longer valid.
One of the many conditions to being on the Scottish Building Society approved panel is to comply with the CML Handbook requirements (last updated for this lender on Scottish Building Society)which states 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 Scottish Building Society.
Do all the firms listed on your directory have online case tracking as I understood that this was a condition of being on the Scottish Building Society conveyancing panel?
No. There is no CML Part 2 or Building Society Association requirement relating to online case tracking. Some law firms operate such technology and some don't.
I am purchasing a right to buy flat and getting a mortgage with Scottish Building Society. How practical is it for me to do the conveyancing?
Leaving aside the complexities and merits of DIY conveyancing you will have to appoint a solicitor on the Scottish Building Society conveyancing panel to look after their interests. Most people therefore find it easier to let the solicitor act for them and the lender. Furthermore there is minimal cost savings to made in you doing to conveyancing for yourself and another lawyer conducting the conveyancing for the lender. Please feel free to use the search tool to find a lawyer on the Scottish Building Society conveyancing panel in your location.
When it comes to mortgage companies such as Scottish Building Society do solicitors have to be pay a fee to be on the list of approved solicitors?
We are not aware of any lender fees to be on their panel although some do charge an administration charge to deal with the processing of the conveyancing panel application.
Is it the case that all conveyancing lawyers on the Scottish Building Society conveyancing panel work on a no move no charge basis?
On the whole there are 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
I recently had an offer accepted on an apartment. My financial adviser suggested a solicitor I paid an upfront payment of 175. Soon after the conveyancers contacted me sheepishly admitting that they were not on the Scottish Building Society conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?
You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the Scottish Building Society panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.