Habito Conveyancing Panel Information

Paragraph 16.2.1 of the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook applicable to a solicitor on the Habito conveyancing panel reads ‘Our mortgage secures further advances. Consequently, when a further advance is required for alterations or improvements to the property we will not normally instruct a member of our conveyancing panel but if you are instructed the appropriate provisions of this Handbook will apply’.

The Council of Mortgage Lenders, along with Habito and other lenders developed a standard set of requirements where a conveyancer is acting for a lender such as Habito alone in a residential conveyancing transaction. These requirements are contained at Part III of the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook and are to be followed together with Parts 1 & 2. The CML have published an example requirements letter to the borrower’s conveyancing solicitor for adaptation by the lender's conveyancer, and sets out to the borrower's conveyancer, the documentary and information requirements of the lender's panel lawyer.

You will be aware of the trend in recent years for lenders such as Habito to take a much more pro-active approach in relation to the management and make up of their conveyancer panels. The knock on effect of this is that it is more likely that there will be a higher number of cases where a conveyancer is not on the Habito panel. The situation that you find yourself in is where your client’s purchaser has his/her own lawyer and Habito have appointed a separate lawyer to act on their behalf where the new CML Part 3 requirements apply. Section 11.1 of the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook Part 3 requires Habito’s panel solicitor to ‘ ...transfer the mortgage advance directly to the Seller’s conveyancer. The Seller’s conveyancer must be required to hold the mortgage advance on the terms of the required undertaking. The example borrower’s conveyancer’s undertaking letter includes a specific example of the seller’s undertaking’. You should expect to be advised to received the mortgage advance directly from the conveyancing solicitors for Habito. You will no doubt be required to undertake directly to Habito’s solicitors to discharge any charges secured on the property and to send directly to them the executed transfer and any other documents required to enable us to effect registration. Please remember to carefully consider undertakings in accordance with your firm’s protocol and record them in your undertakings logg. Please remember that as well as this breach of this undertaking having regulatory and compliance implications it’s breach could also result in your firm being removed off the Habito conveyancing panel.

The Law Society’s CQS membership gives no guarantee to lender panel acceptance. Nevertheless the CML have indicated that it is likely to become a prerequisite for firms wishing to remain on their approved list of firms. Some Lenders now use CQS as the starting point for Panel membership as is the case with Astra Mortgages.

You need to communicate with Habito to obtain standard documents. The The Council of Mortgage Lenders Handbook has a specific inquiry for banks to reveal who to contact to obtain standard documents. Habito in their Part 2’s state: You will need to disclose the firm’s Habito solicitors panel reference.