FAQs : The Virgin Solicitor Panel from members of the public
The solicitor I had intended to instruct on a purchase said he will levy higher legal fees if my mortgage is with Virgin due to their unusual legal requirements. Am I likely to be frustrated using Virgin? Is Virgin conveyancing so much more difficult?
Virgin conveyancing requirements for their panel are no better or no more complicated than most lenders.
It is the case now the CML Handbook, the "bible" used by solicitors to establish lender requirements, is different for each lender.
It is not clear if your lawyer is on the Virgin conveyancing panel. If they are not, this does add further risk of delay as Virgin will appoint their own solicitors to look after their interest.
Please help. My conveyancer is advising me that he has to order a Local Authority search stemming from the fact that the firm are on the Virgin conveyancing panel. Is my lawyer correct?
Unfortunately both you and your lawyer have little choice here. Given that you are taking out a loan with Virgin your lawyer has to comply with their conditions as set out in their version of the CML Conveyancing Handbook. Your lawyer would have previously signed the Terms and Conditions of Virgin’s conveyancing panel appointment which obliges them to follow the CML Handbook requirements last updated Virgin. even if you were a cash buyer you would be ill advised not to carry out a local authority search.
I have been searching for competitive conveyancing fees. Can I be sure that all the practices that are listed on your website are on the Virgin conveyancing panel?
The law firms on our directory have advised us that they are on the Virgin panel and agreed to advise us to take down their listing in the event of removal off of the Virgin panel. To date we have not been informed by either a lender or a member of the public that the data about a specific firm being on the Virgin conveyancing panel is not accurate.
I was due to complete on my dream home last Friday. My lawyer’s firm is on the Virgin conveyancing panel but has changed address in the past couple of months and had not informed Virgin of their new address. Virgin has locked down the release of mortgage funds until such time as their systems are up to date with the correct details.
This is a rare situation indeed. Most lender Terms of Conveyancing Panel Appointment specifically oblige the solicitor to inform the lender of an address change. Your solicitor needs to treat this with the utmost urgency. Do speak with or register your concern with the senior partner (assuming he or she is not your direct lawyer). Most lenders would be reasonable in this situation and expedite the resolution of this issue. It may be prudent to enlist the help of your local Virgin branch or your mortgage broker to see if they can help.
We are getting a further advance on our mortgage from Virgin as we wish to carry out a loft conversion to our home. Do we need to appoint a solicitor on the Virgin conveyancing panel to deal with the paperwork?
Virgin do not ordinarily appoint firms on their conveyancing panel to deal with such a matter. If they did require any legal work then you would need to ensure that such a lawyer was on the Virgin panel
Planning on purchasing a flat with a mortgage with Virgin. I have received an online quote from a licensed conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Lender if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the Virgin conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.
They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that they are on the Virgin conveyancing panel
My ex -wife’s name is on the Virgin mortgage of my property but not on the land registry. The apartment was transferred to me on our divorce many years ago by way of a sealed court order. Does my ex still have a say on the sale even though the land registry showing the property in my name alone? Will I be required to take her name of the Virgin mortgage in order to sell?
As regards the Virgin mortgage, it is unusual that your ex-wife’s name remains on the mortgage but not on the title. It is conceivable that this is an oversight on the part of your conveyancers to ensure that her name was removed or even an administrative error on the part of Virgin in failing to update their data. In any event, it should cause difficulty providing her name no longer appears on the Land Registry title and you have a court order ordering that the property is transferred to you.