Conveyancing Risk Factors
Conveyancing Risk Factors are the recognised red flags that elevate AML risk in residential or commercial property transactions. They include unexplained third-party funding of the purchase, gifts from non-disclosed donors, large cash elements, rapid resale or sub-sale patterns, no-search indemnity policies in place of standard searches, suspiciously high or low purchase prices vs valuation, and clients reluctant to evidence source of funds or attend in person.
every conveyancing matter should be risk-rated at instruction. A combination of factors — gift + unverified donor + no in-person meeting, for example — should trigger EDD and a partner-level review before the file proceeds.
Other terms that go with Conveyancing Risk Factors
Mortgage fraud is the criminal offence of obtaining a mortgage advance by deception — typically by misrepresenting income, employment, the purchase price, the identity of the borrower, or the nature of the transaction. Mortgage fraud is a predicate offence for money laundering and is one of the most common AML scenarios faced by conveyancing solicitors.
Source of funds refers to the origin of the specific money or assets used in a particular transaction or to fund a business relationship — for example, the proceeds of a property sale, a business loan, or salary income. Establishing source of funds is a key EDD step where a transaction is large, unusual, or involves a higher-risk client.
Enhanced Due Diligence is a more thorough level of client verification required when a relationship presents a higher risk of money laundering or terrorist financing. EDD steps typically include verifying the source of funds, establishing source of wealth, obtaining senior management approval before onboarding, and applying more frequent ongoing monitoring.
Put Conveyancing Risk Factors into practice with Certivus
Knowing the term is the first step. Certivus gives you the workflows — client intake, CDD, EDD, PEP and sanctions screening, audit-ready records — to apply it across every client.
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