Strange conveyancing process…. Or lack of

chrmc

So today we signed our contract with our solicitor and he diligently took us through the mortgage offer, all the searches, the deeds, fixtures and fittings in great detail.

we had not yet provided any proof of ID or proof of funds and today all that we were asked for was to email a screenshot of our savings account showing the deposit and a copy of our driving licences.

I’m not complaining at all as they’ve been superb and there have been no issues and the work seems to be sound and thorough.

my question is, I’ve heard of people having to supply months of bank statements. Is the above normal?

our deposit is about £20k and is made up of savings. We were fully prepared to show full bank statements and the money trail so a bit surprised we didn’t have to do this. 

canaldumidi

There are no hard and fast rules that solicitors have to follow, just that they have to be satisfied you're not money laundering. If your solicitor is happy that's fine.

user1977

It's possible you'll be asked when you actually send the funds. They ought to see the whole paper trail until the money hits their account, so not much point getting some of the evidence early on and then having to ask for more later.

But if you're curious - why not simply ask them?

kasqueak

“we had not yet provided any proof of ID or proof of funds and today all that we were asked for was to email a screenshot of our savings account showing the deposit and a copy of our driving licences”

isn’t this sending proof of ID and proof of deposit funds? 

All solicitors will do things slightly differently. But you have sent ID and proof of funds so not sure of the problem. 

Slithery

kasqueak said:

...and proof of deposit funds? 

It's proof that they have the money, but it may not be sufficient proof for the solicitors money laundering regulations checks.
The OP may be asked for more documents further down the line.

UnderOffer

So you visited your solicitors office and met in person, provided your photo ID and address which matched previously provided information? I think the fact you were face to face probably satisfied the ID checks more than when those of us who just make contact and correspond via email with a solicitor miles away who we never meet. We had to get our ID verified and provide several pieces but it was all remote and never met in person, so our solicitors were more diligent with that process. 

chrmc

Thanks everyone. I think I was more expecting at least three months of bank statements to be requested and checked but as mentioned above the solicitor must have been satisfied.

In any case, we’re officially exchanged this morning hooray!

badger09

chrmc said:

Thanks everyone. I think I was more expecting at least three months of bank statements to be requested and checked but as mentioned above the solicitor must have been satisfied.

In any case, we’re officially exchanged this morning hooray!

Your solicitor works Saturdays?
As does your vendor's solicitor?
Wow. 

chrmc

badger09 said:

chrmc said:

Thanks everyone. I think I was more expecting at least three months of bank statements to be requested and checked but as mentioned above the solicitor must have been satisfied.

In any case, we’re officially exchanged this morning hooray!

Your solicitor works Saturdays?
As does your vendor's solicitor?
Wow. 

Yes - they’re both Monday - Saturday which is amazing. They’re definitely one of the good ones