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Ready to buy a new home? Failing to check that a lawyer is on the Virgin list of approved solicitors can put your transaction at risk of delay or failure.
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Virgin Conveyancing Panel : Questions and Answers
My financial adviser has says he needs my law firm’s panel member for the Virgin conveyancing panel. What is the best way to discover this. I have contacted my local Virgin branch but they have not got back to me yet.
You are best placed to get this information from your conveyancing lawyer. They should have a central record lender panel numbers including the Virgin panel reference.
My lawyer has uncovered a discrepancy between the assumptions in Virgin’s valuation report and what is in the legal papers for the property. My solicitor says that as he is on the Virgin conveyancing panel he must ensure that the bank is with this discrepancy and is still content to lend. Is my lawyer’s course or action correct?
A precondition to being on the Virgin approved panel is to comply with the CML Handbook requirements (last updated for this lender on Virgin) which do require that your lawyer disclose any incorrect assumptions in the lender’s valuation report and the legal papers. Should you refuse to allow your lawyer to make the appropriate notification then your lawyer will have no choice but to discontinue acting for both parties.
Do I need to have a meeting at the offices of the Virgin conveyancing panel solicitor to execute the legal charge? If so, I will instruct a firm who offer conveyancing in Leeds
so that I can attend their offices when needed.
Most conveyancing panel lawyers for Virgin undertake all of the work via the post, internet or over the phone. This means that they can undertake your Conveyancing Transaction no matter where you live in England or Wales. However you should check if you can still book an appointment to go into appointed conveyancing lawyer if you prefer.
My house is up for sale and I have a buyer. Does my solicitor have to be on the Virgin conveyancing panel in order to deal with redeeming my mortgage?
Ordinarily, even if your lawyer is not on the Virgin conveyancing panel they can still act for you on your sale. it might be that the lender will not release the original deeds (if applicable and increasingly irrelevant) until after the mortgage is paid off. You should speak to your lawyer directly before you start the process though to ensure that there is no problem as lenders are changing their requirements fairly frequently at the moment.
We have agreed to purchase a house.One unusual aspect is that the roof has a solar panel. Virgin have issued a mortgage offer so presumably this is not a concern to them. Why is my solicitor raising questions about the panel?
As your lender is Virgin your lawyer must to check the Virgin conveyancing instructions contained in the Part of CML Handbook for Virgin . The CML Handbook contains minimum requirements for solar panel roof-space leases, and solicitors are required to report to Virgin where a lease does not meet these requirements. The requirements relate to the installation of panels on properties in England and Wales. Requirements for Scotland are due in the near future.
I was told three weeks ago that my mortgage has been agreed
to by Virgin. Is it usual for Virgin to only issue the offer once my
solicitor is approved on their conveyancing panel?
A lender would not issue an offer until they have details of a lawyer on their panel. It can take a few weeks for Virgin to deal with your lawyers application to be on the Virgin conveyancing panel. There's no guarantee that your solicitors will be accepted.
I have instructed a lawyer having checked that they are on the Virgin conveyancing panel. Does my lawyer arrange the survey of the property?
Or
Having digested plenty of house buying,I note that it is considered advisable to get your house surveyed prior to buying it. When I asked my solicitor - who is on the Virgin conveyancing panel - on this she said they don't do this and I need to contract an independent surveyor. is that correct?
Virgin will need an independent valuation of the property. Your lawyer will not arrange this. Usually Virgin will appoint their own surveyor to do this, and you will have to pay for it. Remember that this is a valuation for mortgage purposes and not a survey.
You may wish to consider appointing your own surveyor to carry out a survey or prepare a home buyers report on the property. It is up to you to satisfy yourself that the property is structurally sound before you buy it. If the survey or report reveals that building work is needed, you should tell your solicitor. You may wish to renegotiate with the seller.
or
Your lawyer will not organise the survey but they may be able to put you in touch with a local one that they recommend. RICS offers a find a surveyor service (just google it) where you can search for a qualified surveyor by postcode. As you are getting a mortgage with Virgin you could contact your them to see if they have a list of approved surveyors.
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Transfer of Equity for VirginPlease note that Lexsure Ltd is in no way associated with nor affiliated with Lexsure Solicitors