Just had the solicitor contact us & not sure what this means. Advice?

JustAnotherSaver

Not sure if this should be in the mortgages section or house buying, so sorry if the wrong spot.

The solicitor who's been instructed through our IFA has contacted us today & they sent us some literature. I just want to check the meaning of one paragraph i've just read...

I must also mention that we will be acting for your Mortgage Lender to ensure that their interests (as well as your own) are properly protected. You should be aware that I have a duty to reveal fully to the Lender all relevant facts about the proposed mortgage. This includes any differences between your mortgage application and information I receive during the transaction and also any other payments to you from a third party.

What's this third party business all about then?

If a friend/relative/stranger gives me a few £100, the solicitor needs to inform the lender?

Or does it mean something else?

I could ask the solicitor, but then i'd need to wait until my break tomorrow, so i'm seeing if anyone on here knows what this means.

maas

Yes, although £100 is unlikely to trigger any questions.

I think its basically saying, if you fill out your mortgage form and say all the money is yours, and then during your dealings with your solicitor it is revealed that 50k is coming from Uncle Jim in Russia then they are required to inform the lender.

Its in relation to the ML regulations which require solicitors/accounts etc to carry out due diligence on their customers and 3rd party persons.

sulphate

This is quite a common clause to read when you are in the process of buying a house.

The third party bit means that if a relative is gifting you a deposit they will need to disclose this to your mortgage lender. Some solicitors are more thorough than others - ours merely glanced at a bank statement to check we had the money and then accepted a letter from my mum to confirm the amount she had given us. From other posts on here, some solicitors will go through your bank statement with a fine toothed comb to find out where the money came from.

JustAnotherSaver

This may sound like a silly question, but....

the solicitor is wanting a few things - they want us to sign off their paperwork which is no problem. They want us to pay an amount right now which is no problem. They want bank statements which is no problem.

They want identification - either passport or driving licence, which in itself is no problem.

However it's bloody hard getting time off work to go in & i'm wondering whether we need to submit all this in person, whether one of us can submit it all, or whether we can get someone to hand it in for us.

I would've thought that we'd need to submit our ID in person, but part of their email made me question this:

The Money Laundering Regulations also require Solicitors to make compulsory checks on their clients’ identity. Please therefore provide some form of identification such as your current signed passport or photocard driving licence and a recent bank statement or household utility bill. If you cannot provide the specific identification requested, please contact me as soon as possible to discuss other options. If you are able to call into the office we can copy the documents and hand them straight back.

The bit in bold.

It says "IF", which suggests to me if we can't call into the office, then even just emailing them through would be ok, posting them off would be ok.

Which makes me wonder if we'd likely be ok to get someone to hand these in for us if they're out that way anyway.

maas

JustAnotherSaver wrote: »

Which makes me wonder if we'd likely be ok to get someone to hand these in for us if they're out that way anyway.

Im fairly sure they can only accept certified copies (scanned or photocopied).

Else the person will need to call in themselves so that certified copies can be taken there and then.

I made this mistake last week when I went in with my mothers ID (she is providing some of the deposit) and they couldnt take it without seeing her or receiving certified copies even though I was standing there with the original.

I suppose I could have just mugged some old lady outside who happens to have the same name and stole her passport

JustAnotherSaver

Yeah i thought that we'd both need to go in, but the email they sent, or the wording they gave, didn't make it very clear. It suggests you don't have to go in with it in person, simply due to the way they say "IF....".

I'll email them anyway & ask. We can give my mum the passports & we can keep the driving licences & if she can hand it in then great. If not then we'll have to try & get time off work (AGAIN!) which is difficult.

maas

Well you dont have to go in, but you have to send certified copies in if you cant call in yourself.

See
gov.uk/certifying-a-document

Like you, the instructions I got simply said "we'll need their ID" it wasnt until I got to their office I realised I wasted a trip!

JustAnotherSaver

We could've posted them in or whatever was the answer. In the end we got them certified & they were handed in no bother.

Thanks guys.