Find a Law Firm
approved by Foundation

It would not be wise to jump to that conclusion. There are all sorts of perfectly reasonable explanations. A recent report by the solicitors regulator indicated 76% of law firms surveyed had been removed from at least one lender panel. The top 3 reasons are as follows: (1) lack of transactions (2) the lawyer is a sole practitioner (3) as part of the HSBC panel reduction (4) regulatory contact by SRA (5) accidental removal. If you are concerned you should simply call the firm and ask them why they are no longer on the approved list for Foundation Home loans.

A precondition to being on the Foundation Home loans approved panel is to comply with the CML Handbook requirements (last updated for this lender on Foundation Home loans)which states that a local authority search be not more than half a year old. You should nevertheless ask your lawyer to check whether something called ‘search validation’ indemnity insurance is acceptable to Foundation Home loans.

Whereas this was necessary ten years ago, most lenders no longer require their conveyancing panel solicitor to witness the borrowers signature. You will still be obliged to provide ID Documents and there are still distinct advantages to using a local solicitor, in your case a conveyancing solicitor in Newcastle .

There is nothing to stop you using your solicitor but Foundation Home loans will insist on their interests being represented by a firm on their conveyancing panel. There is much more potential for delays and confusion with an additional lawyer added to the mix, and it will undoubtedly be more expensive too.

Enquire of Foundation Home loans for conveyancing panel firms in your area. Lenders have them all over the country. You can also use our search tool at the top of this page to search for a lawyer on the Foundation Home loans conveyancing panel based on location. If you particularly like the sound of one of the local lawyers that you have spoken to ask them if they would go onto Foundation Home loans conveyancing panel as it may only take about 2-3 weeks. As long as they meet Foundation Home loans’s requirements it can be a very simple job for the solicitor. Other stuff will be going on in parallel (as you are at an early stage) so it may not delay matters.

It is probably the case that Foundation Home loans have referred the matter to their valuer. The reason why Foundation Home loans may not want to accept indemnity insurance is because it does not give them any reassurance that the double glazing correctly and safely installed. It merely protects against enforcement action which is very unlikely anyway.

Foundation Home loans will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Foundation Home loans will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey. You may wish to consider appointing your own surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller. or Your lawyer will not organise the survey but they may be able to put you in touch with a local one that they recommend. RICS offers a find a surveyor service (just google it) where you can search for a qualified surveyor by postcode. As you are getting a mortgage with Foundation Home loans you could contact your them to see if they have a list of approved surveyors.