Find a Lawyer on the Whistletree Conveyancing Panel

Anti-terror and anti-money-laundering rules require solicitors and licensed conveyancers to verify the identity of the person or body they are dealing with before they can accept their conveyancing business. The Terms and Conditions that you need to sign will no doubt confirm this. Your lawyer is right that Whistletree also require certain documents to be viewed. If a you refuse to provide ID verification documents, your conveyancer would not be able to accept instructions from you. Your lawyer also has obligations to obtain certain documents in accordance with Whistletree UK Finance Mortgage Lenders' Handbook requirements last updated on Whistletree

Unfortunately both you and your lawyer have little choice here. As you are taking a mortgage with Whistletree your lawyer has to comply with their conditions as set out in their version of the UK Finance Mortgage Lenders' Handbook. Your lawyer would have previously signed the Terms and Conditions of Whistletree's conveyancing panel appointment which obliges them to follow the UK Finance Mortgage Lenders' Handbook requirements last updated Whistletree. even if you were a cash buyer you would be ill advised not to carry out a local authority search.

One of the many conditions to being on the Whistletree approved panel is to comply with the UK Finance Mortgage Lenders' Handbook requirements (last updated for this lender on Whistletree)which states that a local authority search be not more than 6 months old. You should nevertheless ask your lawyer to check whether something called 'search validation' indemnity insurance is acceptable to Whistletree.

Your lawyer is obliged to check with Whistletree to make sure that they are aware that the balance of the purchase price is not from your own funds. Your solicitor can only report this to Whistletree if you agree, failing which, your lawyer must cease to continue acting.

First, rest assured that your Whistletree 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 Whistletree.This is solely used to protect the Whistletree 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 Whistletree 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.

Your lawyer being on the Whistletree conveyancing panel is duty bound to inform Whistletree of any changes to the purchase price. If you were to refuse your lawyers to disclose the reduction to Whistletree then they would have to discontinue acting for you and Whistletree.

The most common options here are as follows:

1. Complete the purchase with your existing solicitors but Whistletree will need to instruct a lawyer on the Whistletree conveyancing panel. This will result in additional cost and potential delay.
2. Get a new solicitor to act in the purchase, obviously checking they are on the Whistletree conveyancing panel.
3. Urge your lawyer to apply to join the Whistletree lender panel

Whistletree and other lenders normally restrict either the type or the number of conveyancing firms on their panel. A common example of such restriction(s) being that a firm must have two or more partners. In addition to restricting the type of firm, some have decided to limit the number of firms they use to represent them. You should note that Whistletree have no responsibility for the quality of advice provided by any member of Whistletree Conveyancer Panel. Mortgage fraud was a key driver in the rationalisation of conveyancing panels a few years ago and whilst there are differing views about the extent of solicitor involvement in some of that fraud. Statistics from the Land Registry reveal that thousands of law firms only carry out one or two conveyances a year. Those supporting conveyancing panel cuts ask why law firms should have the right to be on a Lender panel when clearly, Conveyancing is not their speciality? To put it another way; would you want a conveyancing solicitor to represent you if you were charged with a crime; probably not.

The best course of action for you to take is to contact your lawyer directly. It is reasonable to expect your lawyer to advise you of the situation. If they are not on the panel they may recommend you to a firm that is on the conveyancing panel for Whistletree.

That would more than likely be a wrong assumption to make. 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 most common reasons for removal are: (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 Whistletree.

You are best placed to get this information from your conveyancing lawyer. They should have a central record lender panel numbers including the Whistletree panel reference.

A survey recently commissioned by the Solicitors Regulatory Authority found that three quarters of law firms had been removed from a lender panel. The top reasons in order are:

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. We are not aware of the specific or common criteria for removal by Whistletree

The answer depends on whether you still have confidence in the said solicitors and how long it will take for the firm to be reinstated on the Whistletree conveyancing panel You may wish to enlist the help of your broker to check with the Whistletree as to how long they think it will take to get the firm to get back on the panel.

Whistletree conveyancing requirements for their panel are no better or no more complicated than most lenders. It is the case now the UK Finance Mortgage Lenders' Handbook, the "bible" used by solicitors to establish lender requirements, is different for each lender. It is not clear if your lawyer is on the Whistletree conveyancing panel. If they are not, this does add further risk of delay as Whistletree will appoint their own solicitors to look after their interest.

It is true that some banks and building societies now use the accreditation scheme as the starting point for Panel membership such as HSBC and Santander. CQS membership however gives no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. That being said, UK Finance have indicated that it is likely to become a pre-requisite for firms wishing to join their panels.

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.

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 package

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 Whistletree but by your lawyers. Some firms on the Whistletree will charge an 'acting for lender' fee and others do not.

Getting recommendations is a good start. Before you go ahead check if they offer a no sale no fee offer. Also you often get what you pay for - a firm which quotes more will often provide a better service than one which is cheap as chips. We would always recommend that you speak with the lawyer handling your transaction

Whistletree will only instruct licensed conveyancers or solicitor firms that are on their conveyancing panel. If you want your solicitor firm to be admitted onto the Whistletree conveyancing panel, they must apply to Whistletree directly and meet the lender's panel criteria.

Some lenders take longer than others. Have Whistletree done the valuation? Have you advised Whistletree as your lawyers details and checked that your lawyer is on the Whistletree conveyancing panel? It is not unusual for a mortgage offer to take a month to come through

If you are getting a mortgage with Whistletree involved you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Whistletree conveyancing panel. We would not encourage you to both use the same solicitors' firm. There are clear conflict of interest issues and it's not going to make a huge difference to the speed of the overall process. So as not to hold things us you should pass on your solicitors details to Whistletree. Feel free to use our search tool to look for a licensed conveyancer or solicitor on the Whistletree conveyancing panel.

Where information comes to Whistletree 's attention regarding the customers or the security that they were not aware of prior to offer that affects their original decision to lend

You will need to appoint solicitors independently although you'll need to choose one on the Whistletree conveyancing panel. The solicitor represents both you and the Whistletree through the process.

Ask Whistletree for conveyancing panel firms in your area. Lenders have them all over the country. You can also use our search tool at the top of this page to search for a lawyer on the Whistletree conveyancing panel based on location. If you particularly like the sound of one of the local lawyers that you have spoken to ask them if they would go onto Whistletree conveyancing panel as it may only take about 2-3 weeks. As long as they meet Whistletree's requirements it can be a very simple job for the solicitor. Other stuff will be going on in parallel (as you are at an early stage) so it may not delay matters.

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 Whistletree you will need to appoint a solicitor on the Whistletree conveyancing panel.

Whistletree must be informed of your intention before renting your property as this is likely to be a breach of Whistletree's mortgage conditions. In many cases banks or building societies will allow you to rent out your former home without needing to switch to a buy-to-let mortgage but some lenders will add a surcharge to your mortgage rate to reflect the higher risk. You should contact Whistletree directly. It should not be necessary to do this via a Whistletree conveyancing panel solicitor.

There is little point in complaining directly to Whistletree. All solicitors and conveyancer must have a complaints procedure. You can get information from the solicitor's or conveyancer's website or ask at their office. They must tell you about it if you ask.

The Legal Ombudsman will make sure that your complaint is properly dealt with by the solicitor. It can also advise you how to complain.

If a licensed conveyancer does not have a complaints procedure or will not tell you about it, contact the Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC), which will make sure that your complaint is properly dealt with by the conveyancer. Please see below for more information.

As long as the conveyancer is on the Whistletree panel she or he must comply with the UK Finance Mortgage Lenders' Handbook requirements for Whistletree. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that Whistletree will go ahead your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask Whistletree to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the remaining number of years left on the lease.

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 Whistletree conveyancing panel

In terms of the Whistletree 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 Whistletree 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.

The estate agent will want to know who your solicitors are (make sure these solicitors are on the lenders panel). Call up Whistletree or your broker and complete any relevant paperwork. Whistletree will tell you what documents they want. Whistletree will instruct a valuer. The valuer will get in touch with the estate agent or seller to book an appointment. Once conducted (assuming no problems) it takes about week to get a mortgage offer. Whistletree will issue the offer to you and your lawyer. The transaction will then take it's course according the nature and complexity of the conveyancing.

Leaving aside the complexities and merits of DIY conveyancing you will have to appoint a solicitor on the Whistletree 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 Whistletree conveyancing panel in your location.

There is nothing to stop you using your solicitor but Whistletree will insist on their interests being represented by a firm on their conveyancing panel. There is much more potential for delays and confusion with two solicitors involved, and it will undoubtedly be more expensive too.

The fact that your lawyer is on the Whistletree conveyancing panel is a help. It would almost certainly delay matters if they were not. However, no conveyancer should guarantee a time-frame for your conveyancing due to third parties outside of our control such as delays caused by lenders,conveyancing search providers or by the other side's solicitors. The time taken is often determined by the number of parties in a chain

This is a rare situation indeed. The majority of lender Terms of Conveyancing Panel Appointment specifically oblige the solicitor to inform the lender of an address change. Your solicitor needs to treat this with the utmost urgency. Do speak with or register your concern with the senior partner (assuming he or she is not your direct lawyer). Most lenders would be reasonable in this situation and expedite the resolution of this issue. It may be prudent to enlist the help of your local Whistletree branch or your mortgage broker to see if they can assist.

If you have an estate agent involved then let them know straight away 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 Whistletree 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 assist

Feel free to make use of the find a conveyancing panel tool on this page. Please choose the lender and your location and you will see a number of lawyer located nearest you. Alternatively you can type in the name of your proposed law firm and see if they are listed as being on the Whistletree solicitor panel.

Our service is a directory service for firms who wish to be listed as being on the approved conveyancing panel for Whistletree. We don’t recommend any particular firm.

We are a listing service only for law firms wishing to communicate if they are on the Whistletree conveyancing panel or other lender panels. We do not charge referral fees to the any conveyancer that you subsequently appoint.

As opposed to ten years ago, most lenders no longer require their conveyancing panel solicitor to witness the borrowers signature. You will still be obliged to provide ID Documents and there are still distinct advantages to using a local solicitor, in your case a conveyancing solicitor in.

We do not recommend specific firms as the right firm for you depends on where your priorities lie. For example you may require a local firm with local knowledge or you might be looking for the low cost conveyancing. We recommend that you speak to 3 or 4 lawyers listed before you make your choice..