Independent Legal Advice Solicitors for Property, Mortgage and Guarantee Documents

Need independent legal advice before signing a mortgage, guarantee, occupier consent, transfer of equity or lender document? KLG provides clear, solicitor-led advice so you understand exactly what you are being asked to sign, what risks you are accepting, and what the document could mean for you in practical terms.

We offer remote appointments where suitable, explain the legal wording in plain English, and help you move your transaction forward with confidence.

• Advice from SRA-regulated solicitors
• Suitable for lender, property and guarantee documents
• Remote appointments available
• Clear explanation before you sign
• Certificates and witnessing handled where required
• Fixed-fee options available depending on the document

Speak to an Independent Legal Advice Solicitor

What Is Independent Legal Advice?

Independent legal advice, often called ILA, is advice given by a solicitor who is separate from the lender, borrower, company, employer or other party benefiting from the document.

The purpose is to make sure you are signing freely, understand the consequences, and have had the opportunity to ask questions before committing yourself. This is especially important where a document could affect your home, finances, borrowing obligations, ownership rights or liability for someone else’s debt.

A lender or solicitor may ask you to obtain ILA before they allow a transaction to complete.

When You May Need ILA

You may be asked to obtain independent legal advice if you are signing:

• A director’s personal guarantee
• A personal guarantee for another person or business
• An occupier’s consent form
• A third-party legal charge or mortgage
• A transfer of equity document
• Equity release paperwork
• Bridging finance documents
• Joint borrower sole proprietor mortgage documents
• A waiver or consent linked to property ownership or lending

If you are unsure whether your document requires ILA, send it to us and we can confirm whether it is something we can assist with.

How Our ILA Process Works

1. Send us your documents
   Forward the paperwork you have been asked to sign, together with any lender or solicitor instructions.
2. We review the requirements
   We check what advice, certificate, witnessing or signing formalities are required.
3. Your solicitor explains the risks
   During your appointment, we explain the key terms, your obligations, and the practical consequences of signing.
4. You sign where appropriate
   If you are happy to proceed, we guide you through the signing requirements. Some documents may require wet ink signatures.
5. We complete the certificate
   Once the signing requirements are satisfied, we complete the relevant solicitor’s certificate and return documents as required.

6. How Our ILA Process Works

   1. Send us your documents
      Forward the paperwork you have been asked to sign, together with any lender or solicitor instructions.
   2. We review the requirements
      We check what advice, certificate, witnessing or signing formalities are required.
   3. Your solicitor explains the risks
      During your appointment, we explain the key terms, your obligations, and the practical consequences of signing.
   4. You sign where appropriate
      If you are happy to proceed, we guide you through the signing requirements. Some documents may require wet ink signatures.
   5. We complete the certificate
      Once the signing requirements are satisfied, we complete the relevant solicitor’s certificate and return documents as required.

Documents We Commonly Advise On

• Director’s Personal Guarantees
  Where a company is borrowing money, directors are often asked to personally guarantee repayment. We explain what personal liability means and when the lender could pursue you.

Personal Guarantees
If you are guaranteeing someone else’s borrowing, we explain the financial risk, whether your assets could be affected, and what may happen if the borrower defaults.

Occupier’s Consent to Mortgage
If you live at a property but are not named on the mortgage or title, a lender may ask you to waive or postpone certain rights. We explain what rights you may be giving up.

Third-Party Legal Charges
Where your property is being used as security for another person’s or company’s borrowing, we explain the consequences before you sign.

Transfer of Equity
If ownership of a property is changing, we can advise on the legal effect of the transfer and any related lender requirements.

Bridging Finance
Bridging loans can move quickly and carry strict repayment terms. We explain the key obligations, risks, and lender requirements.

Equity Release
Before signing equity release documents, it is important to understand the long-term impact on your property, estate, inheritance position and future flexibility.

Why Choose KLG for Independent Legal Advice?

Independent legal advice is often needed at a time when a transaction is already moving quickly. Our role is to make the process clear, calm and efficient while ensuring you understand the document before signing.

With KLG, you can expect:

• Plain-English advice from an experienced solicitor
• A practical explanation of the risks and obligations
• Remote appointments where accepted by the lender
• Fixed-fee guidance where possible
• Prompt handling of certificates and paperwork
• Clear communication with you and, where appropriate, the referring solicitor
• Advice from an SRA-regulated law firm

Important note:
Some lenders have specific requirements about remote advice, video witnessing, certificates or original documents. You should check with your lender or conveyancer before booking to confirm what they will accept.

Case studies

Case study 1
Category: Independent legal advice
Services: Director’s Personal Guarantee

Anant and Taara started up a property development business together and in order to purchase their first development property within their limited company, they were required to provide Personal Guarantees as the lenders required security outside of the protection afforded by the company’s limited liability.
What did KLG do to help?

Both directors were required to sign a Deed of Guarantee, and KLG offered Independent Legal Advice in plain, jargon-free language to ensure that all the associated risks were completely understood by both parties. We provided solicitor’s certification and witnessed all document signatures. Following our advice, Taara and Anant and were able to swiftly purchase and proceed with their first property development project.

Case study 2
Category: Independent legal advice
Services: Joint Borrower Sole Proprietor

We were contacted by Chris, who was in the process of purchasing his first property. Like many first-time buyers, Chris had been struggling to afford a property on his own but was lucky that his mother, Sheena, was supportive and wanted to help. Having found a property and had his offer accepted, Chris needed to finalise his offer and mortgage, a Joint Borrower Sole Proprietor mortgage.

What did KLG do to help?

With a Joint Borrower Sole Proprietor mortgage, the parent may not be on the title deeds and therefore not directly benefit from the loan. In this situation, Independent Legal Advice is required to ensure there has been no “undue influence” has been applied. We discussed the situation with Sheena to ensure that no pressure was being applied to her by Chris to persuade her into an arrangement which would potentially benefit Chris and be detrimental to Sheena.

Case study 3
Category: Independent legal advice
Services: Occupiers Consent to a Mortgage

When Max purchased a flat where he would be co-habiting with his long-term girlfriend, his mortgage provider informed him that his girlfriend would need to sign an Occupier’s Consent form. This is because an occupier can obtain a legal interest in a property even when they are not a registered owner of it, which is of particular concern to a mortgage lender in the event that mortgage payments are defaulted upon. As condition of the mortgage, completion on the property could not be permitted until the document waiving Amanda’s rights was signed. Max contacted us at late notice for Independent Legal Advice on the matter.

What did KLG do to help?

Due to the urgency of the timings we arranged a same-day video call to make sure that Amanda was fully aware of the rights that Max had over the property, and that in the worst-case scenario she would be forced to move out if the mortgage lender had to repossess the property.  We advised Amanda of the benefits and risks of signing the document along with all obligations imposed on Max. This was important to ensure that everyone involved understood the situation so that there were no issues in the future.