Looking for information about your firm's panel status?
Astra Mortgages Conveyancing Panel Assistance:
What are the Astra Mortgages conveyancing panel arrangements?
Unlike the CML the Building Society Mortgage Instructions deal with this. Section A.12 states ‘In order to act on our behalf your firm or company must be a member of our conveyancing panel provided we are a society that operates one – see specific requirements for details of our arrangements.
The Special Requirements state:
To be a member of our conveyancing panel you must be CQS accredited, must have submitted an application form, be registered on www.lawsociety.org, produced your current Practising Certificate together with evidence of professional indemnity insurance cover for a minimum of £2m (£3m if the firm is a Limited Liability Partnership or a company). Any panel application is subject to individual assessment and approval.
You must also comply with the terms and conditions of your Astra Mortgages solicitor panel appointment.
my firm is on the Astra Mortgages conveyancing panel. Can I get an archived copy of Astra Mortgages Specific Requirements from the BSA?
The BSA, as is the case with the CML do not retain historic of Specific Requirements. We would recommend you contact Astra Mortgages direct.
Can a practice make a complaint to the BSA about being removed excluded suspended from the Astra Mortgages conveyancing panel?
The BSA is not a regulator and therefore cannot investigate complaints against lenders. You can of course contact Lexsure to see if we can assist.
Do you have any idea what Lenders such as Astra Mortgages are asking for when it comes to applying to be on their approved solicitor list?
Criteria differ from lender to lender.
We do not hold specific requirements relating to the questions raised as part of the application to be on the Astra Mortgages conveyancing panel. Typically lenders need to have full knowledge of a firm including (but not limited to):
- Number of lender conveyancing panels the firm is currently on
- PII Cover details, including, if relevant, whether the firm is or has been in the assigned risks pool and structure of cover – top-up split and history of any refusals
- List of all those who can sign off the Certificate Of Title
- Full career history for each solicitor including admission date to the relevant Law Society
- Whether the firm is able to operate in other jurisdictions
- Whether the firm has ever applied for accreditation and the outcome of the application
- Charge registration history
- List of all solicitors within firm
- Areas of Law covered by the firm
- Full disciplinary history for each licensed conveyancer
My practice have never been on the Astra Mortgages solicitor panel among other lenders . My clients, who have applied for a mortgage with Astra Mortgages wish use my firms conveyancing services regardless of the fact that we are not on the Astra Mortgages panel. Is it fine for me to use a firm down the road to represent Astra Mortgages on mortgage aspect of the transaction?
Please tread carefully here as what you are intending may not be acceptable to the lender.
It is possible that you (as a non-panel firm) or the mortgage applicant are not at liberty instruct a panel firm of your choice. An increasing amount of lenders are making it clear to their panel firms that where a non-panel member firm is instructed by one of their mortgage applicants, the lender will appoint a panel firm to carry out its instructions and to liaise with the borrower's conveyancer.
You also need to make the costs implications and potential for delay very clear to your client.
I have read a number of legal articles recently about firms being sued for non-compliance with BSA Mortgage Instructions. I am on the Astra Mortgages conveyancing panel. Can you tell me how many Specific Requirement changes took place by Astra Mortgages during 2013?
During this period 49 sections of the BSA Mortgage Instructions were changed by Astra Mortgages. Some changes are more important than others but as a firm on the Astra Mortgages conveyancing panel you are of course obliged to comply with individual lender requirements. Locktons have recently pointed out in an article that non-compliance with lender requirements account for a number of high value claims, and it is therefore important to be aware of any particularly onerous terms that an individual lender may impose.
Remember: BSA requirements are not guidelines; they are the lender client’s instructions.
We had our Astra Mortgages panel membership terminated but we have not yet been given a reason as to why . I am completing a CQS application form what information should I put forward?
In this situation please clarify on the form what action you have taken to find out the reasons behind cancellation of your Astra Mortgages panel status . In particular please provide details if you have received communications from the lender. E.G. before cessation of your panel membership did you receive any letters or calls from the lender informing you as to why they reached this decision?
What lender panels do you receive the most questions about?
BSA lenders do not come within the top 20 lenders in terms of
frequency of questions. The most popular lender panels in terms of
questions are as follows:
Find a Lawyer on the Astra Mortgages Conveyancing Panel
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Average number of days to register title including a charge in favour of Astra Mortgages
This information relates to purchase only and not remortgages.
| Year | Days* |
|---|---|
| 2026 | [no data] |
| 2025 | [no data] |
| 2024 | [no data] |
| 2023 | [no data] |
| 2022 | [no data] |
| 2021 | [no data] |
* Data aggregated from sources including COMPLETIONmonitor
Other related topics:
- CQS policy templates and procedures for accredited Astra Mortgages Firms
- Draft Report on Title precedent for Astra Mortgages borrowers
- Draft Anti Money Laundering PolicyTemplate for Astra Mortgages panel firms to consider
- Dealing with Lender Policy Template panel for CQS accredited firms on the Astra Mortgages lender panel
- Buy-to-Let help for Astra Mortgages
- Consent-to-Let help for Astra Mortgages
- Contractor Mortgages with Astra Mortgages
