Due to the continued uncertainty caused by the Coronavirus situation, the Inside Conveyancing Conference and Awards has been put back until the 3rd March 2021. The Inside Conveyancing Conference and Awards, formerly known as the LFS Conference and Awards, is the largest and most prestigious event in the conveyancing calendar. Held annually in Birmingham, the […]Read More
Monday New guidance was issued this morning – a Variation Agreement to cover those who have already exchanged contracts and are now unable to complete due to the Government restrictions. It is so stressful for people moving house at the best of times but in these uncertain times, it is important to be aware of […]Read More
The four worst performing weekdays for searches and loans documented in March took place between Tuesday and Friday last week. Friday March 27 represented the lowest value of loans documented in March, down 21.75 per cent on two weeks ago, and 25.24 per cent lower than the week previous. The value of loans documented has […]Read More
Developers in the residential property sector are calling on the government to provide greater clarity on what is deemed a ‘critical home move’ under the new Guidance released last week. Critical Home Moves are exempt from the police’s new powers to sanction non-essential movement if an alternative date is unable to be amicably reached. However, […]Read More
Bernadette Bennett, Commercial Manager – Legal at Moneypenny, explains why it’s a good call for organisations to focus on answering the phone – and doing it well – during unprecedented times. Over recent years, we’ve seen huge investment in digitalisation. The options for communicating with legal professionals have diversified to include platforms such as Instagram, […]Read More
Friday I had two completions today – both were completed quickly – one was the purchase of an empty house by a first time buyer, the second the sale of an empty house. In the current climate, these are the best transactions you can have. The purchase of the empty house was interesting in that […]Read More
The following press release was written bu The Conveyancing Association (CA) and offers fresh advice for conveyancing professionals concerning transactions whilst the UK is on lockdown. The Conveyancing Association (CA), the leading trade body for the conveyancing industry, has today endorsed industry-wide guidance to conveyancing firms advising clients on house moves during the Coronavirus crisis. […]Read More
The surveying community is the latest sector urging the government to suspend housing transactions until government restrictions are lifted. Surveyors are calling on the government to provide clarity on their situation after recent grants and advice have left them vulnerable both financially and the outbreak. In a letter to the government, the Residential Property Surveyors […]Read More
In the past month property fall through rates have increased by 45 per cent. Between February 17 and March 16, the number of aborted property sales has increased from 5,114 to 8,364, according to a recent client briefing from TwentyCi. Unfortunately, this figure is expected to rise unless the government suspend activity in the sector […]Read More
It was announced on the 23 March 2020 that various organisations, that represent over 130,000 skilled professionals in the property sector, have signed a letter to the government offering their help in the Coronavirus crisis. This week saw a sea of support wash over the NHS in the form of a scheduled clappathon. Whilst the […]Read More
The Legal Sector Workers Union (LSWU) has stated that in the current circumstances home-working should not just be for fee-earners, and that those who are working at home should “show solidarity” with their administrative staff who have not been allowed to work from home. The Union expressed outrage last week at the “classist allocation of […]Read More
In the recent case of Beaumont Business Centres Limited v Florala Properties Limited (Beaumont Business Centres Limited v Florala Properties Limited [2020] EWHC 550) the High Court reiterated that the court can and will grant an injunction to protect a right to light, rejecting any suggestion that a poorly lit room wouldn’t benefit from this […]Read More
Thursday As I sat at my desk this morning, I looked across the road and saw that the firm, directly opposite my offices, had their blinds closed. I had heard from a friend who worked there that they would be closing the offices and working from home, but it shocked me. It reminded me of […]Read More
The government has issued a plea for stakeholders in the home buying and selling process to do all they can to delay home moves until restrictions to reduce the spread of the coronavirus are lifted. Robert Jenrick has stated that, even if the legal exchange has taken place, both parties should ‘amicably agree’ a new […]Read More
At a time when the Prime Minister has announced a nationwide lockdown, with people working from home where possible and to only go to work “where this is absolutely necessary and cannot be done from home”, the government are still debating whether conveyancing is an essential process. In the property sector, construction workers have been […]Read More
Search volume has now decreased by over a third within a two week period of time. The overall volume of searches on Wednesday March 25 was 24.02 per cent down on the same time last week and 33.36 per cent lower than the number of searches two weeks ago. The volume of documents prepared on […]Read More
The Legal Services Consumer Panel has recommended that there are more use of fixed-fees and an increase in the Solicitor Regulation Authority’s fining powers as well as a comparison style website giving customers an indication of service each firm provides. These recommendations have come on the back of the Competition and Markets Authority’s (CMA) 2016 […]Read More
Leading online news publication Today’s Conveyancer is pleased to announce the addition of LawCare to its roster of partners. LawCare is an independent charity offering emotional support, information and training to the legal community in the UK and Ireland and will offer some much needed support to our community during this difficult time. The charity […]Read More
Almost two thirds (63 per cent) of builders feel as though the government are letting them down by failing to provide clear instructions about the sector whilst the UK is on lockdown. The majority of building companies and their employees feel as though the government should provide declarative guidance for the sector and open up […]Read More
INTRODUCING ONESEARCH TRANSACT: PROVIDING PROPERTY SEARCHES CERTAINTY AMID CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK OneSearch Direct, the largest local search data company in the UK, has today announced the launch of OneSearch Transact; a data-led transaction solution that provides property solicitors with access to required residential conveyancing searches and environmental reports, backed by insurance to safeguard new and existing […]Read More