Magellan Homeloans Conveyancing Panel Information

The majority of lenders do not operate a specific buy to let conveyancing panel but we are hearing about a few that do. We do not know what the position is with Magellan Homeloans as at todays date. If you're about to receive instructions from a client on a buy to let purchase with a mortgage from Magellan Homeloans we suggest that you call Magellan Homeloans to check the position.

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

There are various requirements are to followed 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 Magellan Homeloans immediately. Second, 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 Magellan Homeloans’s mortgage offer are correct. If they are not, please let Magellan Homeloans know as soon as possible as it will be necessary for Magellan Homeloans to check with the valuer whether the valuation needs to be revised. Magellan Homeloans conveyancing panel solicitors are not expected to assume the role of valuer. Magellan Homeloans are simply trying to ensure that the valuer has valued the property based on correct information. (III) Magellan Homeloans 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. Magellan Homeloans recommend that, if we send a copy of a valuation report that Magellan Homeloans 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 Magellan Homeloans 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 Magellan Homeloans conveyancing panel

In this situation please clarify on the application what action you have taken to discover the reasons behind cancellation of your Magellan Homeloans 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 putting you on notice?

You should contact Magellan Homeloans to obtain standard documents. The The Council of Mortgage Lenders Handbook includes an explicit inquiry for lenders to establish who to contact to obtain standard documents. Magellan Homeloans in their Part 2’s state: You will need to disclose the firm’s Magellan Homeloans solicitors panel reference.