Principality Building Society Conveyancing Panel Information

In the same way that there is a unique Principality Building Society conveyancing panel most building societies, operate a conveyancing panel for solicitors and other conveyancers that the lender will instruct. Terms and Conditions and criteria for inclusion on a building society conveyancing panel vary from lender-to-lender. Having CQS accreditation may be a requirement. Institutional lenders, such as a building society, is a client and is entitled to instruct the solicitor or conveyancer of its choosing (who, in turn, is free to accept or refuse instructions). Therefore, if lender and borrower cannot agree which solicitor or conveyancer should represent them jointly, they would usually proceed on a separate representation basis. The BSA have not published the equivalent of the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook Part 3s.

You will be aware of the trend in recent years for lenders such as Principality Building Society 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 Principality Building Society panel. The situation that you find yourself in is where your client’s purchaser has his/her own lawyer and Principality Building Society 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 Principality Building Society’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 Principality Building Society. You will no doubt be required to undertake directly to Principality Building Society’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 Principality Building Society conveyancing panel.

Principality Building Society approved panel lawyers have to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook instructions relating to Transfer of Equity. These are set out in Section 16.3. First, your firm must approve the form of Transfer of Equity (which should be in the Land Registry's standard form) and, if Principality Building Society require, the deed of covenant on their behalf. You will need to check Principality Building Society CML Part 2 conditions to see if Principality Building Society have standard forms of transfer and deed of covenant. Please note that this requirement can change from one transaction to another so do check! Second,When drafting or approving a transfer, you should bear in mind that: although the transfer should state that it is subject to the mortgage (identified by date and parties), it need give no details of the terms of the mortgage; the transfer need not state the amount of the mortgage debt. If it does, the figure should include both principal and interest at the date of completion, which you must check ; there should be no statement that all interest has been paid to date. Further obligations are set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook which have to be followed by all firms on the Principality Building Society conveyancing panel

On the basis that your firm in is on the Principality Building Society conveyancing panel and you are acting for them in relation to a leasehold property, you must report to them if it becomes apparent that the landlord is either absent or insolvent. If Principality Building Society are to lend, they may require indemnity insurance. In any event,you will need to check Principality Building Society’s specific requirements. Notwithstanding whether Principality Building Society will lend in such circumstances you still need to advise the borrower (unless you are acting for Principality Building Society alone) as to the risks of buying a property with an insolvent or absentee landlord.

The best placed professionals to answer this question are your insurance brokers. The chances are that on the basis that you have not been removed for fraud or negligence reasons that there will be little or no impact. The main reason why a firm would be removed off of a lender panel is due to low volume of conveyancing cases although there may be a number of criteria for Principality Building Society solicitor panel membership. Please remember that it is always important that you complete your insurance forms accurately.

You would be advised to get in touch with Principality Building Society to obtain standard documents. The The Council of Mortgage Lenders Handbook has a specific question for banks to reveal who to contact to obtain standard documents. Principality Building Society in their Part 2’s state: It is likely that you will need to quote your Principality Building Society conveyancing panel reference.