Solicitor asking for bank statements

pjs493

I've just printed out about 20 pages of bank statements for various accounts to send to my solicitor to demonstrate proof of funds. The estate agent also wanted balances from these accounts as I am a cash buyer. 

They just want to ensure I can afford to pay for what I want to buy. I felt much more comfortable sending everything to my solicitor, it felt a little weird sending it to an estate agent. But then again I used to feel really weird talking about finances when my husband and I had periodic appointments with our financial advisor. 

I guess it stems from a British sense of it not being normal to talk about one's finances in a general sense, so when it comes to situations like this it can sometimes feel strange to share this level of information. There really isn't really anything exciting in my bank statements though.

If you've accumulated savings over time by putting aside a set amount each month, they may feel six months worth of statements is sufficient to demonstrate the accrual of the money.

penners324

Why not just send the pdf?

My last Conveyancer had an online portal for such things

eddddy

I'm not sure that anyone has really addressed @Danni2121's question.


I think @Danni2121might be asking the following... (I'm using made-up numbers and dates)...

• @Danni2121 is paying a deposit for the property of, say, £30k - which is a gift (maybe from a parent)

• The parent transferred the £30k into @Danni2121's account on, say, 21st March 2024

• So it makes sense that the solicitor wants to see the March 2024 bank statement to see the £30k arriving in the account - from the parent

But why does the solicitor want to see bank statements for the 5 months before March 2024?

(I don't know the answer, so I'd be interested in the answer as well. Is the solicitor required to look for suspicious transactions that are unrelated to the property purchase?)

One poster seemed to suggest that the solicitor wants to do a mortgage affordability check - but that's not a solicitor's job.


And I can also understand why the solicitor will probably ask for 6 months of bank statements from the gift donor.

BarelySentientAI

eddddy said:

But why does the solicitor want to see bank statements for the 5 months before March 2024?

(I don't know the answer, so I'd be interested in the answer as well. Is the solicitor required to look for suspicious transactions that are unrelated to the property purchase?)

Sort of.  A single large cash transfer or deposit is easily explainable as a gift for the house purchase.  If on the earlier statements there was a whole series of large cash transfers then "this one was a gift for the house" starts to sound a little more tenuous. 

The solicitor is basically required to do whatever it takes to satisfy themselves that everything is legit.  It's easier to ask for more-than-needed from everyone than decide on a case-by-case basis which are worth the extra digging.

RHemmings

I LOL'd when I saw the title of this thread. Not at the OP, but remembering my own experience.  I bought my house with money from both the UK and overseas, in three different bank accounts. And with sudden lump sums appearing (inheritance) in accounts. 

I had to do a LOT of work providing bank statements going way back to satisfy my solicitor. And, I have made a promise (which I will keep) to provide more information should my solicitors get audited in the future. 

It's particularly difficult when you're dealing with online apps which only like uploading one file at a time. And bank apps that only let you download one month at a time. 

As others have said: anti money-laundering. 

user1977

eddddy said:

(I don't know the answer, so I'd be interested in the answer as well. Is the solicitor required to look for suspicious transactions that are unrelated to the property purchase?)

Possibly. I mean, there are no standard rules for exactly how solicitors ought to comply with anti-money-laundering regulations, so each firm will have their own procedures. But it's possible this firm does have a tickbox for "have we seen the last six months of statements for the account from which the funds are being transferred to us". And normally, even if there is a gifted deposit, some of the funds are going to be the client's own funds - perhaps that hadn't been made clear. But it would take the OP less time to produce the statements than for all of us to have this discussion about it...

artyboy

DullGreyGuy said:

theartfullodger said:

I'm confused:  What is the advantage you get by not sending statements to solicitor?  Something you wish to keep quiet about?

It's that strange situation where someone is comfortable with a firm holding hundred of thousands of pounds for them but dont want to show them that they spend £100 a month at LoveHoney. There are weekly posts in the Motor/Insurance form about credit hire companies asking for banks statements and quarterly posts in the Employment section about future potential employers wanting them. Some people resist sharing personal information unless its on pain of death

I've oft seen it advocated on the banking boards that it's helpful to have more than one current account. But I never realised the subtext was that so you could have a way to hide those gimp costume purchases  

Hoenir

BarelySentientAI said:

The solicitor is basically required to do whatever it takes to satisfy themselves that everything is legit.  It's easier to ask for more-than-needed from everyone than decide on a case-by-case basis which are worth the extra digging.

The solicitor also works for the lender. The solicitor is performing the Money Laundering checks on behalf of their client. Ultimately they'll report back with their findings and the lender will determine if they are happy or not. 

user1977

Hoenir said:

BarelySentientAI said:

The solicitor is basically required to do whatever it takes to satisfy themselves that everything is legit.  It's easier to ask for more-than-needed from everyone than decide on a case-by-case basis which are worth the extra digging.

The solicitor also works for the lender. The solicitor is performing the Money Laundering checks on behalf of their client. Ultimately they'll report back with their findings and the lender will determine if they are happy or not. 

And solicitors have to perform money laundering checks even if it were a cash purchase. With potentially severe penalties if they can't prove to the authorities that they have adequate checks in place (whether or not there was actually any criminal activity going on).

[Deleted User]

Standard AML Anti money laundering procedure.