Conveyancer's obligation to the buyer

GES_2

I'm a first time buyer, I have secured a mortgage and instructed a solicitor to act as my conveyancer.

I have had minimum communication from the solicitor and was notified this morning by my mortgage broker that my mortgage has been cancelled due to information provided by my solicitor.

The information provided was that a finder's fee was applicable to the property.
This was an error on the part of the vendor's solicitor and no finder's fee is applicable, a standard sales commission is payable to the estate agent which should not adversely affect my mortgage.

I do not understand why my solicitor would provide information to the mortgage lender that has not been verified or that is in question. Surely he is under some obligation to ensure that any information provided is accurate??

What happens next? As I understand it will then be up to the lender if they choose to re open my mortgage or not?

I'm concerned that I will have to pay for another mortgage application and additional charges from the solicitor.

Worried and confused.

picklepick

Surely you just need your conveyancer to call the mortgage company and set them straight?

GES_2

Thanks
I'm more concerned that that the conveyancer is providing inaccurate information. My mortgage broker advised that I may have to re-apply for a mortgage and that it is up to the lender to decide if the mistake is genuine or if corrected information is provided only to secure the loan.

At this point my view is my conveyancer is less than competent.

rpc

If the sellers solitictor told yours that a finder's fee applies, why would yours doubt it? They are both professionals and the only mistake yours seems to have made is trusting another professional.

Why would your conveyancer doubt the information? Did they have any reason to?

picklepick

I agree with rpc.
Your solicitor is obliged to pass on any information to the lender that could effect their decision to lend. If he isn't given the right info from another professional, that isn't his fault.

kingstreet

+1

Solicitor entitled to rely on information provided by vendor's solicitor.

Purchaser's solicitor also acting for lender and must disclose any relevant information which may affect the lending decision or security.

What's this "finder's fee" thing all about?

JimmyTheWig

Sounds like you need to get on to your solicitor to get them to check the details with the other solicitor then get back to the mortgage company straight away.

Richard_Webster

Solicitor really shouldn't have provided information like this that could have resulted in your mortgage being withdrawn without your informed consent.

If you refused to give that consent he would not tell the lender but would have to cease to act for both you and the lender.

Obviously if he did consult as mentioned above you then you would have had the opportunity of telling him that the information was inaccurate so it does look as if you have a legitimate cause for a complaint in that you were not consulted.

GES_2

Thank you all for your responses.

I do understand that he is obligated to give the information to the lender, however there was reason to believe that the information was incorrect.

I was not consulted till after the fact.

It looks like a waiting game at the moment to see if this will be resolved.

Richard_Webster

I do understand that he is obligated to give the information to the lender, however there was reason to believe that the information was incorrect.

I was not consulted till after the fact.

That's the point.

rpc

You need to sort of imagine that this is one person doing two totally different jobs.

There is a solicitor that works for the lender.

There is a solicitor that works for you.

They are normally the same person, but they have responsibilities toward two different parties.

If your solicitor knew that the declaration was likely false, that is one thing. If you knew, the solicitor had no reason to check with you. You do not get to vet the information he passes to the mortgage company - when he does that he is worked for the lender and not for you.