Matt Joy leaves TM Group in January 2024
Matt Joy joined TM Group Management Team in 2018. He co-founded Conveyancing Data Service Ltd (CDS) in 2010 which he sold to TM Group in 2018, staying on to develop the two businesses even further. Within his responsibilities as group sales and marketing director he led the team through the integration of the two businesses, […]
Lee Rowley announced as 16th Housing Minister
This afternoon, Lee Rowley, MP for North East Derbyshire and current Local Government Minister has been appointed Housing Minister at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. Lee Rowley, replaces Rachel Maclean who earlier today was sacked, the day before the Renters Reform Bill was introduced at committee stage. Lee’s appointment as Housing Minister […]
15th Housing Minister since 2010 sacked!
At lunch time today, Housing Minister, Rachel Maclean announced via X (formerly Twitter) that she had been sacked as part of Rishi Sunak’s reshuffle. Despite being in the midst of a housing crisis, this leaves Rishi Sunak looking for the 16th Housing Minister since the Conservatives one the General Election in 2010. With many commenting […]
Diary of a high street conveyancer: 13th November 2023
When I started practising conveyancing thirty plus years ago, leasehold conveyancing was very different. One of my most distinct memories was being asked to go to a local firm of freeholders/managing agents in the town with a Notice of Assignment and two guineas (but in new money – I’m not that old!) within twenty eight […]
King’s Speech: Leasehold and Freehold Bill
King Charles has announced that a Leasehold and Freehold Bill will ban leaseholds for new houses, but not new flats, in England and Wales, and increase the standard lease extension period to 990 years. In the King’s Speech, the Conservatives have committed themselves to ensuring that all new homes in England and Wales will have […]
Modern leasehold: Restricting ground rent for existing leases
This consultation sets out a series of options for how the government could intervene to cap the ground rent leaseholders have to pay. The government has already legislated to ensure that new residential leases are restricted to a peppercorn ground rent. This consultation sets out a series of options to extend this protection to existing […]
Law Society says, ‘King’s Speech falls short on Justice Reforms’
Following the King’s Speech yesterday, the Law Society of England and Wales has responded to the legislation that was outlined and noting their disappointment that more hasn’t been done to invest in the justice system. Nick Emmerson, President of the Law Society of England and Wales, said: “We are disappointed the government chose not to […]
Leasehold Reform – how does this impact the profession?
Further to the widespread reporting in the mainstream press over the last week, the King’s Speech this week has provided a useful update on Leasehold Reform. Many conveyancers will have clients who are waiting for news on this reform, largely to better understand whether they should extend their lease now or wait for these changes. […]
CILEX proposals ‘fail to consider the wider regulatory context’, says The Law Society
The Law Society of England and Wales has expressed concern over the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives (CILEX’s) proposals for changes to the regulation of Chartered Legal Executives. CILEX is pushing for authorised Legal Executives to be regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), despite its own members objecting to the idea of regulatory change. […]
Buyers urged to ‘be vigilant’ for Japanese knotweed during winter
Homebuyers viewing properties during the winter months should be extra watchful for signs of invasive Japanese knotweed, which dies back in late autumn and becomes more difficult to identify – and easier for sellers to conceal. Invasive plant specialist Environet UK is warning homebuyers that by the end of November or early December, Japanese knotweed’s […]
Homeowners mortgage arrears rise 7% in Q3, surpassing 87k cases
Recent data from UK Finance Mortgage Arrears and Possessions has revealed that there were 87,930 homeowner mortgages in arrears of 2.5% or more of the outstanding balance in the third quarter of 2023, 7% greater than in the previous quarter. Within the total, there were 34,110 homeowner mortgages in the lightest arrears band (representing between […]
How technology will change the mortgage industry in 2024
Today’s first-time buyers may be forgiven for thinking that mortgage applications and conveyancing processes are archaic and slow. This new generation of mortgage applicants are accustomed to speedy transactions, but it can still take two to four weeks for a mortgage offer to come through, according to the Home Owners Alliance and the conveyancing process […]
What does “digitising the property market” actually mean?
John Reynolds, Chief Operating Officer at Coadjute joins host David Opie on the latest Today’s Conveyancer podcast to discuss the future of the conveyancing market, and what “digitisation” means to Coadjute. John identifies 5 elements to a digital property market Digital identity Digital signature Digital form of the title Digital form of the contract Digital […]