Rishi Sunak confirmed as next prime minister
Rishi Sunak has been declared as the new leader of the Conservative party and therefore the next prime minister of the United Kingdom. This comes as Penny Mordaunt, the other Conservative candidate to officially announce an intention to stand to replace Liz Truss as prime minister, failed to reach the requisite 100 MP backers by […]
Conveyancing fees: What happens if case volumes fall?
With the data suggesting the affordability squeeze is taking its toll on the market, it is only natural that conveyancers ask the question: “what happens to our fees?” By many accounts, the conveyancing industry has “fallen into the price cutting trap” during previous downturns, making it difficult for firms to keep fees high while their competitors […]
Transactions remain above pre-pandemic levels despite slower September
The number of transactions slowed in September yet remained comfortably above pre-pandemic levels, the latest data from HM Land Registry (HMLR) has revealed. The provisional non-seasonally adjusted estimate of UK residential transactions in September 2022 is 112,370, which represents a 1.8% decrease from levels seen in August. Yet, compared with the 99,570 transactions seen in […]
CLC to step up enforcement in effort to be a better regulator
The Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC) is to “make greater use of its enforcement powers as it looks to ensure it is a proportionate regulator”, chief executive Sheila Kumar has said. Ms Kumar says that the post-lockdown conveyancing boom did not lead to a growth in compliance failures: “We were very clear with our advice […]
Digital by default: HMLR provides update on Digital Registration Service
Automation is at the heart of our plans to develop efficient and resilient land registry services, as set out in our new Business Strategy. By automating services, we expect to significantly improve completion of straightforward transactions with an ambition to return to same day applications for many. To achieve the end-to-end automation we are striving […]
50th local authority joins LLC Register
Knowsley joins LLC Register The LLC Register, which aims to give citizens and businesses instant access to LLC search results, now possesses 50 local authorities to join its scheme. Anyone requiring LLC searches in the Knowsley Council area will now need to obtain them from HM Land Registry or a search provider rather than going […]
“Secret property market” drawing in £31 billion of transactions per year
Research has revealed has revealed that Britain’s secret property market saw almost £30.9bn worth of property transactions last year, the highest annual market value in well over a decade. The research by Alliance Fund analysed the number of properties that were sold off-market across Britain over the last year, as well as the market value of […]
Diary of a high street conveyancer: 24th October 2022
It was interesting to see the results of the poll for the points I raised last week about conveyancing fees. I was pleased to note that most firms were not intending to reduce their fees even if the market slowed or dipped. However, it was disappointing to see that many who answered thought that firms […]
The Ombudsman’s Corner: 24th October
Release of file as a remedy to resolve a complaint We are often asked by complainants to direct their service provider to release papers to them – either specific documents, or their entire file of papers. There are a number of reasons for this – perhaps the complainant wishes to pursue an appeal or further […]
15 years at the coalface of conveyancing searches
In the latest Today’s Conveyancer podcast David Opie is joined by Scott Reece. With a background in the installation of technology in medical practices, Scott (by his own admission) was somewhat of a novice when he and his wife joined the X-Press Legal Services network in 2007 in a complete change of scenery. Their franchise […]
How to get paid your true worth in turbulent times
With soaring prices all around You must keep your feet on the ground Getting paid your true worth is absolutely key So you can look after yourself and your family It may be a bit naff but it’s mine. I thought it was a bit of fun with a serious message behind it. For best […]
Law Society raises concerns over SRA’s additional powers to combat economic crime
Law Society urges government to consider the “proportionality of additional regulation” The Law Society of England and Wales has raised concerns at how effective the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s (SRA) additional powers will be in combatting economic crime. Lubna Shuja, president of the Law Society, welcomed the second Economic Crime Bill’s intention of stopping money laundering […]
OneSearch partner with LMS, offering safeguarding law firm ID checker confirmly for clients
OneSearch, the largest local search data company in the UK, has today announced a new partnership with leading panel management specialist LMS to offer their identity checking solution, confirmly, to all its clients. confirmly was launched by LMS in February 2022 and is designed to reduce risk by safeguarding transfers of conveyancing funds and client […]
Property industry heavyweights call for action on climate change risk to the market
Experts from across the property industry have come together to highlight the impact of climate change and the need for a standardised industry-wide approach to climate change risks. Landmark Information Group, the UK’s largest source of property data, brought together industry experts including Birmingham Law School, The Lettings Industry Council and JBA Risk Management to […]
Investigation reveals Simplify data breach exposed employees personal information
Information that “could be used for identity theft or fraud” taken from firm’s database An investigation into an IT data breach at Simplify in November last year has revealed that personal information of its employees may have been exposed. The group was subjected to a cyber attack which temporarily forced the conveyancing firm to take […]
