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Is my firm on the Birmingham Midshires Conveyancing Panel? How does my firm apply to be on the Birmingham Midshires Conveyancing Panel? How can my firm be reinstated onto the Birmingham Midshires Conveyancing Panel?Find an Approved Solicitor on the Birmingham Midshires Conveyancing Panel
Birmingham Midshires Conveyancing Panel : Questions and Answers
Am I correct in assuming that the fact that my conveyancer is not identified on the Birmingham Midshires Solicitor panel that there is a problem with the standard of her conveyancing?
It would not be wise to jump to that conclusion. There are all sorts of perfectly reasonable explanations. A recent report by the solicitors regulator indicated 76% of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The top 3 reasons are as follows: (1) lack of transactions (2) the lawyer is a sole practitioner (3) as part of the HSBC panel reduction (4) regulatory contact by SRA (5) accidental removal. If you are concerned you should simply call the firm and ask them why they are no longer on the approved list for Birmingham Midshires.
My wife and I intend to remortgage our maisonette with Birmingham Midshires. We have a son 19 who lives with us. The solicitor on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel has asked us to disclose any adults other than ourselves who lives in the flat. The solicitor has now sent a form for our son to sign, giving up any rights in the event that the flat is repossessed. I have two concerns (1) Is this document specific to the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel as he did not need to sign this form when we remortgaged 3 years ago (2) Does our son by signing this giving up his rights to inherit the property?
First, rest assured that your Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel solicitor is doing the right thing as it is established procedure for any occupier who is aged 17 or over to sign the necessary Consent Form, which is purely to state that any rights he has in the property are postponed and secondary to Birmingham Midshires .This is solely used to protect the Birmingham Midshires if the property were re-possessed so that in such circumstances, your son would be legally obliged to leave.
It does not impact your son’s right to inherit the apartment. Please note that if your son were to inherit and the mortgage in favour of Birmingham Midshires had not been discharged, he would be liable to take over the loan or pay it off, but other than that, there is nothing stopping him from keeping the property in accordance with your will or the rules of intestacy.
Having used your search tool I can't find the lawyer I was hoping to instruct as being on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel. My lawyer has said that they are on the Birmingham Midshires approved panel. How can I be sure given that they are not listed on your directory?
Not all firms are yet listed on our lender panel search tool which is still relatively new. Law firms are listing on a daily basis and it is probably the case that your lawyer is on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing lawyer and you should probably take them at their word. Please do feel free to suggest that they completing their listing on our site as it would only cost them £1 a month to list themselves as being on the Birmingham Midshires solicitor panel.
Please explain the implications if my solicitor is removed from the Birmingham Midshires Conveyancing panel in advance of completion?
First, 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.
Is the case that all CQS (Conveyancing Quality Scheme) solicitors on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel?
Some major banks and building societies now use the accreditation scheme as the starting point for Panel membership such as HSBC and Santander. The Law Society’s CQS accreditation however gives no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. That being said,the CML have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for firms wishing to remain on their panels.
Do conveyancing lawyers on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel work on a no sale no fee basis?
In the main 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
In what circumstances might Birmingham Midshires amend or withdraw their mortgage offer?
Banks and Building Societies such as Birmingham Midshires can revoke their mortgage offer although this is unusual. In the unlikely event that Birmingham Midshires withdraw their offer they may or may not inform you or the lawyer as to the reasons why. There are various possible reasons but here are 5 examples:
- If the borrower informs Birmingham Midshires of a change in the loan amount agreed
- Situations where information provided by the borrower that enabled the lender to make a lending decision is fraudulent, incorrect or misleading.
- Where the lender is on notice of a restriction or a right of pre-emption which is not at market value
- If the lender reasonably believe that the applicant, borrower, mortgagor or guarantor is insolvent or is about to become insolvent or has or will have a petition presented or if any one or all enter into any arrangement with their creditors generally or if any one or all should suffer a material change in their financial circumstances
- If the solicitor on the Birmingham Midshires conveyancing panel acting for the applicant, borrower, mortgagor or guarantor cannot comply with Birmingham Midshires ‘s instructions
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Transfer of Equity for Birmingham MidshiresPlease note that Lexsure Ltd is in no way associated with nor affiliated with Lexsure Solicitors