The recently published ‘number and types of transactions for value’ released by HM Land Registry (HMLR) suggest that HMLR failed to complete applications anywhere close to the average in April. Overall, the data indicated that just 440 AP1 applications on transfers for value were completed last month. In contrast, despite lockdown impacting the property market […]Read More

New research suggests that post-financial crisis regulatory changes have severely restricted many first-time buyers from climbing on to the property ladder over the past decade. According to the Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association’s (IMLA) ‘First-time buyers: is the growth sustainable’ report, the government should look to ease many of these restrictions to help more first-time buyers […]Read More

Wednesday Today was particularly exciting – well in the world of a conveyancer it was! I had a chain complete! I have only had one chain complete during lockdown and I had forgotten the wait for that email from the buyers’ solicitor to say that the monies were on their way, checking the client account […]Read More

The leading warranty and insurance provider for new build homes, the NHBC, has announced the appointment of Alan Rubenstein as new Chair. Currently serving on NHBC’s board as a nonexecutive director, Mr Rubenstein undertakes his new role with over thirty years’ experience in the insurance and investment banking sectors. Alan Rubenstein, incoming Chair of the […]Read More

The property market enjoyed its busiest day yesterday since lockdown was introduced. Purchase mortgage search volume was 25 per cent higher yesterday than any other time since lockdown restrictions were introduced, according to Twenty7Tec mortgage data. Overall, mortgage search volume has increased by 11.89 per cent when compared with the same day last week, up […]Read More

The majority of conveyancing firms surveyed by Today’s Conveyancer last week believe the market has shrunk to below 50 per cent of what it was at this time last year. Today’s Conveyancer wants to understand the market sentiment each week to provide a clear view of the conveyancing sector. Click here to complete our latest […]Read More

In our recent Ask an Expert series, Chris Harris interviews Rob McKellar, Head of Practice for Residential Conveyancing and Head of Strategic Growth for Consumer Legal Services at Slater & Gordon Lawyers. The pair discuss the reopening of the property market and the impact this is having on residential conveyancing. Slater & Gordon recently enjoyed […]Read More

A cross-industry group working within the property sector have written an open letter to the government imploring them to offer ‘greater flexibility’ in the furlough scheme. Currently, employers can only move their staff in and out of furlough every three weeks and the group believe this is overly restrictive and risky to businesses in the […]Read More

In our recent Ask an Expert series, Chris Harris interviews David Jabbari, CEO of innovative conveyancing provider Muve. The pair discuss the state of the market during the Covid-19 situation, the impact increasing mergers and acquisitions will have on the sector, the key conveyancing differentiators businesses need to consider and the importance of technology in […]Read More

The property freeze has been lifted but the sector remains in a strange no-mans land, caught between the extremes of pre-lockdown working and total market lockdown. Social distancing responsibilities now drive the way the sector operates which could forever change the way we buy and sell homes. As the market tentatively reopens, industry stakeholders have […]Read More

Homeowners struggling financially at the current time are able to extend their mortgage holiday by an additional three months from today. It is estimated that 1.8 million homeowners are already utilising the mortgage holiday to ensure they do not fall into arrears or default on their mortgage during the Covid-19 crisis. New homeowners who have […]Read More

The Law Society of England and Wales is asking the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) to extend the solicitors indemnity fund (SIF) cover beyond September’s intended cut off point. Although the SRA intended to close the fund this year, the financial plight of many firms because of Covid-19 is making it a lot more difficult to […]Read More

Despite some firms struggling to renew their PII in March, experts are assuring the sector that there are deals to be done, but firms must prepare. The spread of Covid-19 in the UK coincided with many law firms looking to renew their PII insurance with some claiming premiums have risen exponentially. At a time when […]Read More

Residential property transactions last month had more than halved since the recorded figures from April 2019. According to recent HM Revenue and Customs data, 46,440 residential transactions were completed in April; 53 per cent fewer than the same month in 2019. Similarly, the 5,930 non-residential transactions las month represented a fall of 46.1 per cent […]Read More

Early indications suggest that the property market is bouncing back with Rightmove site interactions above 2019 levels, new instructions rising and sales agreed increasing. Full property viewings on Rightmove are now stronger than 2019 levels, according to the portal. Rightmove indicate that a full viewing will involve potential buyers accessing all information provided on a […]Read More

The Government has conceded that deadlines to ensure all remediation work on the removal of dangerous cladding on buildings by June will not be met. Unfortunately, the recent lockdown has meant that many remediation projects were forced to halt, with many construction sites likely to have struggled regardless of the lockdown. James Brokenshire, Communities Secretary […]Read More

The mortgage slowdown during lockdown seems to have impacted prospective buyers more than homeowners. Those looking to purchase a property for the first time seem to have delayed their home move during lockdown or were forced to reconsider homeownership because of their changing circumstance. Applications made by first-time buyers reduced by 35 per cent in […]Read More

The property Ombudsman experienced a 20 per cent spike in formal complaints last year according to its annual report for 2019. Similarly to other years. communication and record keeping were the most complained about elements of a client’s legal service. These issues were followed by complaints handling with law firms, marketing or advertising concerns and […]Read More

The housing market has been open for a week and activity has been steadily increasing since the announcement that the sector was released from lockdown. In the past week we have had governmental updates on how to safely complete the home moving process and cross-sector guidance on how to safely operate within current social distancing […]Read More