... I'd paid something like £275 a month for 11 months and I now owed them £39,750!! I was shocked!!! Yes, my parents had warned me, but I was still not prepared for the fact that in a year I had only paid off £250 of the original loan!!
The following year - around August I spotted the Virgin ... Read review
Advantages: it will save you thousands on your mortgage/debts Disadvantages: none
...around August I spotted the Virgin One account. The idea was, you put all your money (debts, earnings and savings) into one account and they all go together to give you one "current" account that you can control with ease. The biggest plus however was still to come - the interest on your debt is calculated daily!!
I asked my parents what they thought - and they pointed out that I was old enough to make my own decisions - ... ...statement!! It said I owed Virgin £40,500. My god - I owed them more money than before I started!!!
However, now, 18 months on as I get my statement from May telling me I owe them £29,000 I realise I had done the right thing. When I started I paid £205 a month interest on the debt - because the interest is calculated daily and my debt has decreased I paid just £167 in May!!!
This has to be the best financial move I have ... more
This has to be one of the greatest finds of the 20th Century (I found it in 1999 before you start arguing!!).
The history - at 25 I decided to buy a flat in sunny Worcester. The flat cost £51,000 and I needed a mortgage of £40,000. Having gone through the estate agent I was buying from to find a mortgage I eventually ended up with a mortgate from Northern Rock Building Society. They gave me £1000 cashback and everything was hunky-dory!!.
Then in December of 1998 I got my first mortgate statement. I'd paid something like £275 a month for 11 months and I now owed them £39,750!! I was shocked!!! Yes, my parents had warned me, but I was still not prepared for the fact that in a year I had only paid off £250 of the original loan!!
The following year - around August I spotted the Virgin One account. The idea was, you put all your money (debts, earnings and savings) into one account and they all go together to give you one "current" account that you can control with ease. The biggest plus however was still to come - the interest on your debt is calculated daily!!
I asked my parents what they thought - and they pointed out that I was old enough to make my own decisions - a sure sign that they didn't approve but didn't want to say so! I did it anyway.
I filled in the forms, got a valuer round my flat (which cost me £150), got a solicitor (another £150) and changed my mortgage. Northern Rock were suitably outraged and insisted I give them their £1000 "gift" back.
Finally in December I got my chequebook, visa and switch cards and my first statement!! It said I owed Virgin £40,500. My god - I owed them more money than before I started!!!
However, now, 18 months on as I get my statement from May telling me I owe them £29,000 I realise I had done the right thing. When I started I paid £205 a month interest on the debt - because the interest is calculated daily and my debt has decreased I paid just £167 in May!!!
This has to be the best financial move I have ever made. Every month I can see the debt decreasing and the interest going down. The are other perks too ...
Because I am so far ahead of my payments (I said I'd pay it off in 25 years) I could write a cheque for £10,000 and Virgin would honour it!!! Plus they alter the interest rates the day the Bank of England does. This combined with an interest rate of 3-4% for credit balances (also calculated daily), the fact that they did all the work in switching my accounts over (direct debits, etc) and the occasional Virgin perks (money off Virgin mobile phones) means that I simply can't lose.
All I can say is that Richard Branson is giving the people what they want - maybe he should run for Prime Minister!!! My advice is get in touch with Virgin and see if they can save you money!!
Advantages: Flexibility, Daily interest, Online/Phone banking Disadvantages: Strict control over your finances
...of their customers. Then Virgin came along. I was sceptical at first, why should I swap my capped rate mortgage for a variable rate and pay my existing mortgage company a hefty sum to move my mortgage. The answer…Saving money.
At first the idea of collecting all my accounts, savings and credit cards, loans and my mortgage into one account was daunting, did I really want to be able to see my mortgage balance every time I checked my current ... ...you may ask – The Virgin One account is simply a current account with a large overdraft, you are given a limit which is usually up to 95% of the purchase price of the property (subject to your income of course) which once your existing mortgage has been added, the balance up to your limit can be used to pay off other debts, home improvements or to leave there and save you interest. The interest rate is variable, so can go up as well as down ...
TLCK9 10.03.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Virgin Money Mortgages
Advantages: easy to use, very good customer service Disadvantages: overspenders beware!
...(I say normal banks because Virgin are open 365 days of the year). No hassles at all. Virgin will arrange to write to all your direct debit companies to change the details over so you do not have the hassle of that. What you will ned to do though is advise your employers of the new account details for your salary.
The balance is reduced by payments into the account and therefore so is the interest you pay, because the interest is calculated daily ... ...use.
I would recommend Virgin to anyone looking to reduce the amount and term of their mortgage - but beware! Do keep a watch on your spending - it can be all too easy to forget that the whole purpose is to reduce the mortgage, not increase it!
For further information, or to do a calculation to see how much you could save, take a looka t the website - www.virginone.com ...
jools30 05.09.2001 (08.11.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Virgin Money Mortgages
Advantages: superfriendly staff, great online interface Disadvantages: Not the most competitive rate at the moment
...I would no longer recommend Virgin One due to the rediculously inflated rates charged. I am currently paying 6.7% on a 40% loan to value! Compare that to the likes of Abbey or HBoS and I will be saving several hundred pounds per month in interest when I move the mortgage.
I previously wrote that "I wouldn't change from Virgin even to take advantage of a reduced rate", but I will now be changing mortgage provider within the next few months.
Unfortunately, ... ...had a Virgin One Account for nearly five years now and would heartily recommend it.
When I chose this account as a first-time buyer there was nothing else like it on the market. The choices were between "interest only with endowment" and "repayment" with various elaborations on those key themes. The concept behind the account is so simple that it very quickly caught on and it seems to be quite a common choice now.
The idea is this. Instead of juggling ...
christine_g_hall 10.10.2002 (09.05.2005)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Virgin Money Mortgages
Advantages: Save money, Relevant Discounts Disadvantages: n/a
...process of applying for a Virgin One account. I've really must share what a revelation it has been.
I was captured by the advertising reminding me that I throw good money after bad with traditional banking practises. Have seen quite a few adverts, I visited the virginone.com information website. Here the difference approach to flexible banking was explained along with samples of how their ebanking system works and illustrations of typical savings. ... ...In using the account, Virgin will allow loans of upto 95% of the value of your house, which mean you can use equity available in your house as a loan, or alternatively save money. Both pay interest - that same rate as your mortgage account. The interest rate is a little higher, but this may not sound attractive, remember that high-taxpaying savers nearly half of that interest - e.g. 6%APR account really only pays at 3.6% after tax. With the Virgin ...
stephbu 16.02.2001 (24.02.2001)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Virgin Money Mortgages
Advantages: Good Customer service, control over your money Disadvantages: Not for anyone who is bad at managing their own money
This has to be the future of mortgages. As long as you pay the interest every month, you can pay as much or as little as you like on top of it, as long as it’s all paid off at the end of 25 years. It operates as a bank account into which you have to pay your salary. Say you borrow £70,000 – it’s effectively like having a £70,000 overdraft which you gradually repay. If you come into a bit of money you can put it straight in and it will immediately ... ...few grand in an emergency you can take it out and repay it at a later date.
If you’re a hopeless spendthrift, this might not be for you – you could be tempted to dip into it too often, but for born savers and anyone whose income varies, this is an ideal system.
The account is managed by phone or internet and the customer service is downright superb. Every time you call, the phone is answered immediately by a REAL LIVE PERSON who actually knows ...
Caro_R 29.07.2000
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Virgin Money Mortgages
Promptness of service
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Advantages: You're in control; you can save thousands in interest Disadvantages: You need to be able to overpay to make it really work for you
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