enquiries@gilroysteel.com
Brackley: 01280 709426Northampton: 01604 800500Buckingham: 01280 815538
Checked for accuracy and updated on 09 May 2024
Clients are at the forefront of everything Gilroy Steel Solicitors do. We pride ourselves on providing all clients with an approachable, professional, and efficient service whilst we assist them through their later life lending journey.
The following is the later life lending process from a solicitors viewpoint and details the steps involved from receipt of you instructing Gilroy Steel Solicitors to conduct the legal conveyancing on your behalf.
Gilroy Steel Solicitors conduct file risk assessments at the outset and during the matter. We appreciate clients have an expected positive outcome and we achieve this. During our home visit our clients are put at ease and everything is explained. Enhanced due diligence is also conducted in during the home visit. If at any time during the matter we feel it should not proceed we will discuss this with all parties concerned.
We are regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, the Law Society, and accredited security compliant by the Payment Card Industry with Cyber Essential being signed-off shortly. As a full-service law firm we abide by all legal requirements however, later life lending focuses us on the Prevention of Financial Crime and Fraud including but not limited to:
To best support you and your clients we have dedicated teams in the following roles:
Upon instruction, Gilroy Steel Solicitors will contact the client and issue a Client Introductory Pack within 24 hours. The pack will contain the following:
Clients and Advisers of Gilroy Steel Solicitors can access their online portal for milestone updates which include dates for the following:
Clients are also updated at each stage of the transaction by either telephone or email (following their preferred communication).
All files are tiered in accordance with complexity:
Tier 1 – Standard later life lending - where Title Deeds are correct, the property is freehold, encumbered or unencumbered.
Tier 2 – Leasehold Properties - the lender usually requires confirmation ground rent and service charge are paid up to date. We liaise with the management company/freeholder’s solicitor to satisfy lender’s requirements.
Tier 3 – later life lending with a Purchase - When acting for later life lending clients to aid a Purchase, we prefer to act for the client in connection with both transactions as we have full control of the Purchase. When a client instructs a third party to act on their behalf for their conveyancing and we act for the later life lending only, we are effectively the “middleman” between the Conveyancing solicitor and the lender’s solicitor. We find this causes unnecessary additional work, delays to the transaction. Gilroy Steel Solicitors with our multiple offices can act on behalf of all parties.
Gilroy Steel Solicitors has its own matrimonial department and can fully assist in these matters.
Our aim is to maintain and improve our exceptional client satisfaction results. We request feedback from our clients to be provided.
Upon receipt of the offer, we contact the client within 24 hours to ascertain their availability for a home visit appointment; booked by our scheduling team.
During the appointment, our Solicitor will verify the client’s ID, review all documentation, and ensure they understand our written advice. The Solicitor will also verify that the client is not under any duress or undue influence, is not vulnerable, and is satisfied the client has mental capacity to proceed with the later life lending transaction. Any exceptions are raised with a Director.
The client’s ID will also be checked and scanned during this appointment, while the original signed documents are returned. The lender’s legal pack is then prepared, double-checked, and approved before being forward to the lender’s Solicitor via email to expedite a completion date, with the originals sent by special delivery.
Gilroy Steel Solicitors actively chase the lender’s Solicitors to achieve completion dates as soon as possible on behalf of the client.
Once the lender’s solicitors are satisfied and are happy to proceed to completion, they will email the completion statement to us. When we’ve received the completion statement, our invoice is prepared and the client is contacted to confirm a full breakdown of the figures including any redemption due to any current lender (including any early repayment charge if applicable) together with confirmation of our legal fees, and advisers fees which are deducted from the proceeds and paid on the day of completion. Once the client is satisfied we obtain their authority to proceed to completion.
What does final completion look like:
On the day of completion, the funds are released to us by the lender’s solicitor’s. Upon receipt we will deduct our fees and the advisers fees and send the balance to the client. We then call the client to confirm completion has taken place and also confirm in writing and send the invoice and completion statement for their retention.
What happens following mortgage completion:
Once completion has taken place, the lender’s solicitor’s deal with the registration formalities and submit their application for their clients charge to be secured against the title. Once registration formalities have been completed the lender will provide the up to date Office Copy Entries which we forward onto the client together with any original documents held on our file. The file is then closed, scanned, and archived.
Thank you for reading and call for any further help.
