St James Place Conveyancing Panel Information

Many estate agents are suffering if their clients start out on the conveyancing process using a conveyancer who is not on the panel with the purchaser’s chosen lender. Many conveyancing firms are only discovering when they begin working on a case that they are no longer able to work with that lender. Given the inevitable resultant delays in the transaction the chances of an abortive deal increases dramatically. in the circumstances there is understandable anguish on the part of the estate agent as a result of the lost time should the client have to change solicitors .

The Council of Licensed Conveyancers has begun dialogue with banks and their representative bodies to see whether and how the risks that lenders wish to mitigate could be addressed through the regulatory framework rather than via ad hoc arrangements that can differ from lender to lender. It is likely that that the CLC have been in touch with lenders such as St James Place since 2008 which is when lenders started being more restrictive.

You have a number of obligations in this regard which you need to follow if you wish to comply with your lender client’s instructions as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook. First, You must take reasonable steps to verify that there are no discrepancies between the description of the property as valued and the title and other documents which a reasonably competent conveyancer should obtain, and, if there are, you must tell St James Place immediately. (II) You should take reasonable steps to verify that the assumptions stated by the valuer about the title (for example, its tenure, easements, boundaries and restrictions on its use) in the valuation and as stated in St James Place’s mortgage offer are correct. If they are not, please let St James Place know as soon as possible as it will be necessary for St James Place to check with the valuer whether the valuation needs to be revised. St James Place conveyancing panel solicitors are not expected to assume the role of valuer. St James Place are simply trying to ensure that the valuer has valued the property based on correct information. (c) St James Place recommend that you should advise the borrower that there may be defects in the property which are not revealed by the inspection carried out by their valuer and there may be omissions or inaccuracies in the report which do not matter to them as a lender but which would matter to the borrower. St James Place recommend that, if we send a copy of a valuation report that St James Place have obtained, you should also advise the borrower that the borrower should not rely on the report in deciding whether to proceed with the purchase and that he obtains his own more detailed report on the condition and value of the property, based on a fuller inspection such as a homebuyers survey or structural survey. If you do not receive a copy of the valuation you can always ask for a copy of one from St James Place or the borrower. You still need to comply with the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook Requirement relating to valuation reports even if you don't receive one directly. Failure to comply not only runs the risk of facing a claim by the lender but also being removed from the St James Place conveyancing panel

On the basis that your firm in is on the St James Place conveyancing panel and you are instructed by 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 St James Place are to lend, they may require indemnity insurance. In any event,you will need to check St James Place’s specific requirements. Notwithstanding whether St James Place will lend in such circumstances you still need to advise the borrower (unless you are acting for St James Place alone) as to the risks of buying a property with an insolvent or absentee landlord.

It would be advisable to supply details of the date of removal, information on the reason for removal, date of appeal and any reason given for reinstatement. This should not adversely impact your firm’s application but gives the CQS team a complete picture of what has occured.

You should get in touch with St James Place to obtain standard documents. The CML Handbook incorporates an explicit inquiry for banks to cite who to contact to obtain standard documents. St James Place in their Part 2’s state: It is likely that you will need to quote your St James Place conveyancing panel reference.