Key Takeaways
- Together Money’s commercial-finance guidance requires ILA for personal guarantees, third-party charges, larger loans and vulnerable applicants.
- A Together Money ILA certificate confirms you understood the document and signed freely, not that the loan is affordable.
- Together calls it a Solicitors Advice and Witness Certificate and requires it before completion, retained on the file.
- ILA can take place by video call, but check with your broker or Together’s solicitor that remote advice suits your file.
- Without a compliant ILA certificate, the Together Money transaction cannot complete, so start once the final document arrives.
- Fast ILA is rated Excellent on Trustpilot and Google, 5 out of 5 from 1,400+ clients. Book your ILA appointment online or call 020 7459 4037.
Yes, if your broker or Together Money has asked you to get independent legal advice before signing. The request applies to directors, guarantors and other signatories who take on risk without being the main borrower.
Your signature can put your personal finances or property on the line. Together requires a compliant solicitor’s certificate before completion, so a missing certificate can hold up the whole deal.
Our solicitors review your Together Money document with you by video call and explain exactly what you are signing. Same-day ILA certificates are available. You can book your Together Money ILA appointment online or call 020 7459 4037 for a fixed-fee service from SRA-regulated solicitors.
What is Together Money and why does it require independent legal advice?
Together Money is a specialist lender. It offers bridging loans, buy-to-let mortgages, second charge mortgages and commercial finance. Its published guidance requires independent legal advice (ILA) in set situations, including where someone other than the main borrower takes on personal or property risk.
- Bridging loan:
short-term, secured finance that “bridges” a gap, such as a purchase before a sale or refinance. - Second charge mortgage: a loan secured on a property that already has a mortgage, ranking behind it.
- Buy-to-let (BTL): a mortgage on a property you rent out.
- Commercial finance: business lending, including Together’s Homeowner Business Loans.
Together deals can involve limited companies, company directors, family members and extra security. Each adds a person whose home, savings or credit is at stake without being the borrower.
ILA is how Together checks that each of those people understood the document before signing. If you are a director, shareholder, guarantor or non-owning party, expect Together to ask for a solicitor’s certificate before completion.
When does Together Money require independent legal advice (ILA)?
Together requires ILA in the situations listed in its published commercial-finance guidance, including any personal guarantee or third-party charge given by an individual. That guidance is written for brokers, so your offer letter and Together’s solicitor’s instructions are the definitive source for your own deal.
Together’s published ILA triggers
Together’s commercial-finance guidance states that ILA is required for:
- all new advances where the loan is over £500,000
- Homeowner Business Loans over £200,000
- an individual or non-borrower providing a third-party charge or personal guarantee
- a non-English-speaking applicant
- any transaction using a Power of Attorney (someone signing on another person’s behalf)
- anyone identified as vulnerable or potentially vulnerable
- any other case Together’s underwriting team thinks would benefit from ILA
The £500,000 and £200,000 thresholds apply to Together commercial finance. Together’s personal-finance products follow their own criteria.
Documents where ILA commonly arises
A personal guarantee is a promise to repay a borrower’s debt yourself if the borrower does not. A third-party charge is security over your property for someone else’s loan. Together deals can also involve:
- JBSP mortgages: a joint-borrower sole-proprietor arrangement, where you share the mortgage debt but not the ownership.
- Occupier consent: an adult living in the property agrees the lender’s rights rank ahead of theirs.
- Deed of postponement: an agreement that your claim or loan ranks behind Together’s.
If one of these sits in your file, the offer conditions will state whether a certificate is needed. You can read more about personal guarantee ILA for directors and JBSP mortgage advice.
That certificate has a defined scope, and knowing it shapes what you ask on the call.
What does a Together Money ILA certificate confirm, and what doesn’t it?
A Together Money ILA certificate confirms that an independent solicitor explained your document to you, and that you understood it and signed freely. Together’s guidance calls this a “Solicitors Advice and Witness Certificate” and requires it before completion, retained on the file.
| The certificate confirms | The certificate does not confirm |
|---|---|
| You met an independent solicitor | That the loan is affordable |
| The legal effect of the document was explained | That the interest rate is fair |
| The risks and your obligations were explained | That the deal is commercially wise |
| You understood and signed voluntarily, without pressure | That the borrower will repay |
Why the boundary matters
Our solicitors certify understanding and voluntary consent, meaning you chose to sign without pressure from the borrower or anyone else. We do not judge whether the Together deal is a good one. Many signatories assume a certificate means a lawyer approved the loan. It does not.
The certificate protects the lender’s position. If a signatory later claims they were pressured, Together can rely on the certificate to show the signatory received independent advice.
A missing certificate does not create debt by itself. The guarantee or charge creates the liability. Without ILA, however, that guarantee or charge may be unenforceable if undue influence (improper pressure from the borrower or someone else) is later established.
This is also why a weak certificate causes problems. If the certificate names the wrong document or omits a required statement, Together may treat its condition as unmet.
With the boundary clear, the practical question is how the advice and signing actually happen.
How does the Together Money ILA process work step by step?
Our Together Money ILA process is fully remote and runs in six steps, from online booking to an electronic certificate. Each step has a point where delays happen, so here is what to expect and what to prepare.
The six steps
- Book and pay online. Choose your appointment at our booking page. The fee is paid at booking, before the call.
- Upload your documents securely. Upload the exact Together document you must sign: the guarantee, third-party charge, JBSP declaration, occupier consent or deed of postponement. Add the offer or facility letter if you have it.
- Verify your ID online. You complete identity checks before the call.
- Video call with our solicitor. Our solicitor reviews the document with you, explains its effect and risks, and answers your questions.
- Sign the document. You sign by the method Together’s instructions require. Our solicitor confirms that route on the call.
- Receive the certificate electronically. We issue the certificate to you and to the party nominated to receive it, such as Together’s solicitor.
Where Together deals stall
Delays usually come from preparation rather than the advice itself. Common causes include:
- uploading a draft instead of the final document
- not knowing who must receive the certificate
- the lender requiring its own certificate form, which nobody sent
- two guarantors trying to share one appointment when separate advice is needed
Can I use remote ILA for Together?
Our service is delivered entirely by video call. Ask your broker or Together’s solicitor to confirm that remote advice suits your file before booking, especially where a deed needs witnessing.
Getting these steps right is what makes a fast certificate possible.
How long does Together Money ILA take and when should you start?
Our solicitors offer a same-day ILA certificate, with same-day, evening and weekend appointments. The fastest route still depends on you having the final document and ID ready when you book.
Three terms matter here:
- Turnaround: the time from booking to the certificate reaching Together’s solicitor.
- Completion: when the loan legally completes.
- Drawdown: when Together releases the money.
Together requires the certificate before completion, so the certificate controls the timetable.
Why bridging timing is unforgiving
Together bridging loans are short-term and tied to a fixed event, such as a purchase or a refinance. A missing certificate on completion day can push back completion and drawdown.
Start the ILA as soon as you receive the final version of the document. You do not need to wait for a completion date. The certificate refers to a specific document, so a later change to that document can mean fresh advice.
Once the timing is planned, the next question is cost.
What does Together Money ILA cost and who pays?
Fast ILA offers fixed-fee ILA from £200, and every fee is all-inclusive, covering VAT, postage and disbursements. Each appointment lasts one hour.
Our fixed fees cover four appointment types:
- Individual ILA (£200): one signatory, such as a single guarantor.
- Urgent / Same-Day ILA (£230): for a Together deadline that cannot wait.
- Couples / Joint Signatories ILA (£300): two signatories in one appointment.
- Group ILA, 3 signatories (£400):
for three signatories.
You choose the appointment type and pay when you book at our booking page.
Who pays: me or the main borrower?
The person who books pays online at booking. Whether the borrower reimburses you is a private arrangement between you and the borrower.
Who pays does not change who we act for. Even if the borrower covers the fee, our solicitors advise only you, the signatory.
The fee is fixed, but the risks behind each Together document differ sharply.
Together Money ILA for bridging, personal guarantees and JBSP: what’s different?
Each Together document puts a different risk on the signatory. Our solicitors tailor the call to that specific risk.
Personal guarantee for a Together bridging, commercial or BTL loan
The key risk is personal liability. Unless the guarantee sets a cap, you can be liable for the full debt, interest and costs. If the guarantee is payable on demand, Together can call on you directly once the borrower defaults.
Bridging adds exit strategy risk. The exit is the planned repayment route, such as a sale or refinance. If the exit fails, the short-term loan keeps accruing interest, and your guarantee covers the shortfall (what is still owed).
Our solicitors walk through the cap, the demand clause and what happens if the exit fails. See our bridging loan ILA and directors’ personal guarantee pages.
Second charge mortgage with third-party security
The key risk is subordinate security. A second charge ranks behind the first mortgage, so on a sale the first lender is paid first. If the borrower stops paying, the property you offered as security is at risk. Our solicitors explain the ranking and what default would mean for your home or asset.
JBSP mortgage for buy-to-let
The key risk is liability without ownership. As a non-owning borrower, you are fully liable for the whole mortgage. You are not on the title and have no right to the rent. Missed payments can also affect your credit record.
Our solicitors confirm you understand that signing gives you debt, not property. Read more on our JBSP advice page.
Whatever the scenario, the certificate only helps if Together accepts it.
Will Together Money accept a Fast ILA certificate?
Our ILA certificates are accepted by banks, lenders and solicitors across England and Wales. Lenders set their own ILA requirements, however, and Together’s guidance refers to an England and Wales solicitor panel. Confirm with your broker or Together’s solicitor that an independent firm suits your file before you book.
Some providers decline Together matters altogether. Our solicitors advise on Together documents and work to the certificate form Together’s solicitor supplies.
Why a certificate is rejected
A Together ILA certificate may be rejected if it:
- names the wrong document or the wrong parties
- omits wording the lender requires
- is incomplete or unsigned
- comes from a solicitor who is not independent of the borrower
- does not show genuine understanding and voluntary consent
Our solicitors are regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority, whose standards cover independence and conflicts of interest.
What to do if Together rejects your certificate
Get the exact reason in writing from Together’s solicitor. Send it to us with any required template. Common causes include a missing form, a changed document or a wording point. The transaction cannot complete until Together holds a compliant certificate.
The Fast ILA advantage: our approach to Together Money ILA
Fast ILA gives signatories on Together deals a fixed-fee, fully remote route to a compliant certificate:
- Together documents: our solicitors advise on bridging guarantees, third-party charges, JBSP declarations, occupier consents and deeds of postponement.
- Fully remote: book and pay online, upload documents securely, verify ID online and receive advice by video call.
- Same-day ILA certificate available, with evening and weekend appointments.
- Fixed-fee ILA from £200, all-inclusive, paid at booking.
- SRA-regulated solicitors serving England and Wales.
- Lender acceptance: our ILA certificates are accepted by banks, lenders and solicitors across England and Wales.
- Rated Excellent on Trustpilot and Google, and 5 out of 5 from 1,400+ clients.
Related guides
- Together Commercial Mortgage Legal Advice | Fast ILA | Certified Advice for Guarantees & Consents
- Together Money Bridging Loan ILA: Fixed-Fee Solicitor Certificate |
Frequently asked questions about ILA for Together Money transactions
Book your Together Money ILA with Fast ILA today
Fast ILA offers same-day ILA certificates for Together Money deals, delivered fully remotely by SRA-regulated solicitors. Appointments are fixed-fee ILA from £200, all-inclusive and paid online at booking. Our ILA certificates are accepted by banks, lenders and solicitors across England and Wales.
Have your final document, ID and any certificate template ready. Our solicitors will explain exactly what you are signing and issue a certificate addressed to the Together document in your file. If your Together completion date is close, book your Together Money ILA appointment online or call 020 7459 4037.
