Professional Consultant’s Certificates for Mortgage Lenders
An Architect’s Certificate – often referred to as a Professional Consultant’s Certificate (PCC) – is commonly required by mortgage lenders for newly built or recently converted properties.
If your lender has requested one, it forms part of their conditions before releasing funds. It’s most common on builds where there isn’t a 10-year structural warranty in place.
The certificate confirms that the property was designed and inspected by a qualified architect and constructed broadly in accordance with the approved drawings and Building Regulations.
When an Architect’s Certificate is required
Lenders typically request an Architect’s Certificate on:
- Self-build homes
- Newly constructed dwellings
- Conversions of existing buildings
- Smaller development schemes
It can’t be issued retrospectively once construction is complete. The architect must have been appointed during the design and inspection stages in order to certify the works.
What our involvement covers
If your lender requires an Architect’s Certificate, it needs to be considered before construction begins.
Where we’re appointed from the outset, we carry out inspections at appropriate stages during the build and review the works against the approved drawings and Building Regulation requirements. This makes sure the certificate can be issued without complication when requested by the lender.
At completion, we can then issue the Professional Consultant’s Certificate in the lender’s standard format.
If the project is already underway or complete, we would need to review the position before confirming whether certification is possible.
Not a warranty or guarantee
An Architect’s Certificate is often confused with a 10-year warranty, but it isn’t one.
It confirms that reasonable skill and care has been exercised in the design and inspection of the works. It doesn’t provide insurance-backed cover against defects.
Lenders understand that distinction. If a structural warranty is required instead, that needs to be arranged separately.
Working with D2
If you’re undertaking a self-build or conversion and know your lender will require an Architect’s Certificate, this needs to be considered early.
We can advise whether a Professional Consultant’s Certificate is appropriate and make sure the inspection regime is set up correctly during construction to avoid problems later.