Stafford Railway Building Society Solicitor Panel Assistance:
What are the Stafford Railway Building Society 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:
The Society uses Legal Marketing Services Ltd (LMS) for its panel arrangements.
You must also comply with the terms and conditions of your Stafford Railway Building Society solicitor panel appointment.
What obligations do I have,
being on the Stafford Railway Building Society conveyancing panel, to carry out an Lender Policy search?
Stafford Railway Building Society make no specific obligation to carry out
any of the searches listed. The BSA Mortgage Instructions simply
states that ‘you must ensure that any other searches which may be
appropriate to the particular property, taking into account its
locality and other features are carried out’.
Please note that most ‘less usual searches’ (as described in the Law Society’s Conveyancing Handbook) are not optional as far as Stafford Railway Building Society are concerned if they are ‘appropriate’. Most lenders will not require environmental searches (you should Check the Stafford Railway Building Society Specific Requirements of BSA Handbook to be sure), but you are obliged to explain risks and availability to the borrower.
Ground stability, Plansearch,flood searches as well as the searches listed in the question are optional – but only to the extent that you have allowed the borrower client to make an informed choice. Regardless of whether there is a mortgage, If you have not advised the client that these (and other) searches are available and what risks they cover, then you will be liable if the client suffers loss through not conducting one.
I am hearing that agents are using online checkers to see if a firm is on a lender panel. Why?
The fact of the matter is that estate agents are suffering if their clients start out on the buying process using a solicitor 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 lawyers.
Why did the Building Society Association introduced its own instructions?
The Building Society Association introduced it’s Mortgage Instructions in 2010 to ensure that licensed conveyancers or solicitors on a building society conveyancing panel had full access to a complete set of standardised mortgage instructions.
Are there conditions,outside the BSA Mortgage Instructions, that a firm should be aware of when on the Stafford Railway Building Society conveyancing panel?
In order to be on the Stafford Railway Building Society conveyancing panel solicitors have to complete an application form and agree Terms and Conditions. A sample of 5 conditions that we see amongst many lenders Terms (but not necessarily Stafford Railway Building Society) are as follows:
- To carry out our instructions with reasonable care and skill, ensuring that all employees carrying out mortgage work on our behalf are qualified and competent to do so
- To forward the title deeds and documents to another solicitor within 24 hours of an instruction from us requiring you to do so. On forwarding the deeds as instructed you will confirm to us that you have done so. Upon receipt of your confirmation, we will release you from all undertakings relating to your holding the title deeds.
- To keep us informed of the reasons for any delay in your being able to send the title deeds and documents we require to us within 3 months of completion or evidence of proof of registration within that period. (We will send reminders if the deeds have not been received but will not acknowledge receipt of deeds.)
- To quote on all communications with us relating to registration issues, whether by telephone or in writing, the panel number that we provide for each practising address and the mortgage account or application number for the mortgage concerned.
- To be responsible for the reconstitution of the title deeds (whether the title is registered or unregistered, at your own cost), where any deeds in your possession, or were last known to be in your possession, go missing.
I rarely receive a copy of a valuation from a lender these days. Does the extent of my Stafford Railway Building Society conveyancing panel obligations extend to checking the valuation details where I am acting on a purchase with Stafford Railway Building Society as the lender?
You have a number of obligations in this regard which are to be followed if you wish to comply with your lender client’s instructions as set out in the BSA Mortgage Instructions. First, You must take reasonable steps to verify that there are no discrepancies between the description of the property as compared to an address that is no longer valid.
JLT’s PII renewal form questions if my practice had been removed off any lender panels in the last 12 months . I recently found out that the practice is no longer on the Stafford Railway Building Society conveyancing panel? Will that impact my PII cover?
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 Stafford Railway Building Society solicitor panel membership. Please remember that it is always important that you complete your insurance forms accurately.
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 Stafford Railway Building Society Approved Conveyancing Solicitors Panel
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Average number of days to register title including a charge in favour of Stafford Railway Building Society
This information relates to purchase only and not remortgages.
| Year | Days* |
|---|---|
| 2024 | [no data] |
| 2023 | [no data] |
| 2022 | [no data] |
| 2021 | [no data] |
| 2020 | [no data] |
| 2019 | [no data] |
* Data aggregated from sources including COMPLETIONmonitor
Other related topics:
- CQS policy templates and procedures for accredited Stafford Railway Building Society Firms
- Draft Report on Title precedent for Stafford Railway Building Society borrowers
- Draft Anti Money Laundering PolicyTemplate for Stafford Railway Building Society panel firms to consider
- Dealing with Lender Policy Template panel for CQS accredited firms on the Stafford Railway Building Society lender panel
- Buy-to-Let help for Stafford Railway Building Society
- Consent-to-Let help for Stafford Railway Building Society
- Contractor Mortgages with Stafford Railway Building Society
