The teething issues for the conveyancing industry in dealing with the implications of the Building Safety Act continue, but there is possibly some relief for those whose clients are using Nationwide or The Mortgage Works to fund their purchase.
Nationwide and The Mortgage Works have made an update to their previously hugely restrictive UK Finance Mortgage Lenders Handbook requirements in relation to the Building Safety Act to clarify their position:
“Where we have not provided you any information or documentation regarding Building Safety, you can assume that no checks or further information are required. However, should you receive any documents, or the promise of any documents, in answer to questions 8.19 & 8.20 on the LPE1 Form then you are required to refer back to the Issuing Office with sufficient time for review prior to Exchange.”
This provides some much-needed clarity for purchasers of properties in smaller blocks or maisonettes to whom the Building Safety Act protections would not apply: if the lender does not supply copies of any documents, then you can ignore the Lender’s requirements in relation to the Building Safety Act unless any documents are supplied as part of the conveyancing process.
It would be hoped, therefore, that buildings over 5 storeys or 11 metres to which the Building Safety Act would apply would be automatically picked up as part of the lender’s application process and the relevant documents obtained. However, property professionals should be aware that the lender may not obtain all their required information and, indeed, Leaseholder’s Certificates should be served as part of the conveyancing process and/or may be demanded by a Landlord on notification of the owner’s intention to sell, so there may nonetheless be a notification procedure to be followed in respect of these lenders – which will cause a necessary delay to the transaction. Lender requirements are constantly changing, which is why at Galloway Hughes we continually monitor those changes to ensure we are able to get ahead of any changes introduced during the course of a transaction to minimise those delays as far as possible.
As ever, proactivity is key and the earlier in the process that relevant properties are identified and documents obtained, the quicker the transaction will ultimately be.
For more information about when and how the Building Safety Act applies, please contact Aisling Deehan on 01372 237070 or by email at aisling@gallowayhughes.co.uk.
