National Paralegals Awards 2019 Winners Announced
On 29th March 2019, 200 people gathered together at The May Fair Hotel in London for a glamorous gala dinner to celebrate the achievements of Paralegals from across the UK. This is the first awards to take place in the UK which focuses on rewarding the Paralegal Sector. The winners from the 12 categories, covering […]
English Property Prices Tumble For First Time Since 2012
House price growth has fallen in England for the first time since 2012. English property is now 0.7% cheaper than it was in March 2018. According to the Nationwide House Price Index, the UK has enjoyed an overall annual property increase of 0.7% and a monthly change of 0.2%. In particular, UK house prices are […]
Majority Of New-Build Properties Hit With Significant Snags Or Defects
New-build property developers are facing calls for immediate improvements after the majority of owners found snags and defects with their property. According to a recent survey, conducted by New Homes Review (NHR), 91% of new build owners said they found at least one significant snag or defect after moving into their property. However, 75% of […]
Conclusions From Land Registry Requisition Data
13.3% of all applications by top 500 law firms put to HM Land Registry (HMLR) between April and December 2018 resulted in a requisition. Back in 2017-18 HMLR set out it’s business strategy aims for 2017-including, providing transparency for home buyers. HMLR have claimed that by publishing a clear list of the top 500 companies […]
Cox & Hodgetts Solicitors speed up SDLT submission by 2 weeks
John Madge at Cox & Hodgetts Solicitors explains how switching to tmconvey’s Post-Completion services has helped him to speed up SDLT submission in his firm by 2 weeks. “It used to take at least a fortnight for any SDLT5 forms to be returned. “Before using tmconvey’s Post-Completion services, my firm relied on posting paper SDLT […]
Majority Of Buyers And Sellers Unconcerned By Brexit Fears
A recent survey suggests that both sellers and buyers are undeterred by the impact of Brexit with only 10% of buyers delaying their purchase and 12% of sellers anxious about placing their home on the market until a definitive outcome is announced. According to the Legal & General Mortgage Club Survey, over two-thirds of potential […]
FCA Seek Remedies To Free Mortgage Prisoners
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) have released information on the ways it can help ease the burden for mortgage prisoners that are unable to switch because they are with defunct lenders or in negative equity. According to the Mortgages Market Study, the FCA have released suggested amendments that would alter the way lenders assess a […]
Prospective Buyers Plummet Whilst Stock Levels Plateau
Demand for housing is now at a six-year low as house hunters delay searching for their new home in the current uncertain property and political climate. According to February’s NAEA Propertymark Housing Report, the number of registered house hunters per average estate agent branch have fallen by 46% since the result of the referendum in […]
UK Housing Stock Quality, Gazundering And Leasehold Property Deeply Concerning
The cracks in the housing market have been splintering and expanding in recent months. Now, 32 million people are in agreement that UK homes are ‘not fit for purpose.’ The HomeOwners Alliance 2019 Annual Survey, completed by over 2,000 members of the public, expressed concerns over the systematic failings in many areas of the housing […]
If The Police Are Vulnerable To Cyber Attacks, How Safe Is Your Firm?
The Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW) have been exposed to a significant malware attack in March. The ransomware attack was picked up by a PFEW alert on March 9. It is thought that the attack was nullified and isolated quickly so that it was unable to spread throughout the 43 police forces in […]
Widespread Support For Freehold Management Enquiries Form
Industry experts have expressed widespread support for a new Freehold Management Enquiries form (FME1) that is being launched in order to ensure buyers of a property, where a service charge or estate rent is likely to be charged, are fully aware of this fact before the conveyancing process is complete. Following The Housing, Communities and […]
£354 Million Lost To Authorised Push Payment Fraud In 2018
Financial fraud losses, both authorised and unauthorised exceeded £1 billion in 2018, and increased by 16% compared with 2017’s figures. Staggeringly, the UK Finance report ‘Fraud the Facts 2019’ emphasises the immense power cyber criminals and fraudsters have in persuading us to hand over our money to them. In 2018, authorised push payment fraud (APP) […]
SLC And Key Industry Suppliers Line Up To Support The ESTAS Customer Service Awards
The ESTAS Group which runs the Customer Review platform and Awards for conveyancers has announced new partners as it gears up for its 2019 conference & awards event. The Society of Licensed Conveyancers has been named as the ESTAS ‘Industry Association Partner’. Simon Brown Founder of The ESTAS Group explains “We are delighted to welcome […]
ESTAS Awards Can Improve Your Client Testimonials And Brand Recognition
On October 18, the ESTAS will celebrate the achievements of the UK’s most impressive conveyancing firms. Based entirely on customer satisfaction results, these publicly voted awards highlight the firms that are able to offer incredible service, unrivalled expertise and unparalleled understanding of the property sector. The service provided by the ESTAS is significantly more than […]
Regulatory Changes Insist Lexcel Firms Should Be Cyber Essentials Certified
All Lexcel accredited firms ‘should’ be Cyber Essentials certified according to the updated regulations. Certify with Lawyer Checker and enjoy a 48-hour turn around. Following the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) that came into force in June 2018, the importance of ensuring your firm is protected against persistent and sophisticated cyber criminality has never been […]
New Freehold Property Form Offers Increased Information To Confused Buyers
A new Freehold Management Enquiries form (FME1) is being launched in order to ensure buyers of a property, where a service charge or estate rent is likely to be charged, are fully aware of this fact before the conveyancing process is complete. 14 cross-industry trade and representative bodies, including the Law Society of England & […]
House Builder Shares Plummet With House Prices
Following the most recent Land Registry data that found property growth at its slowest recorded level in five years, shares in house builders plummeted. Four of the top ten worst performing shares belonged to house builders when the FTSE closed on Wednesday evening. Barratt Development shares fell by 3.03% with Berkeley falling by 3.2%. The […]
SRA Updated Regulations Launching In November
The Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) have confirmed that their new regulations will come into force on November 25 2019. The SRA have claimed to have streamlined the rules, making them shorter and more specifically targeted towards to main issues of concern for those working in the legal sector. The new regulations will solidify rules on […]
SRA Increase Pressure On Solicitors To Comply With AML Regulations
The Solicitors Regulatory Authority (SRA) is set to write to 400 firms reminding them of their obligations to remain compliant with the 2017 changes to money laundering regulations. Following this, non-compliant firms could face significant sanctions in the future. Approximately 7,000 law firms are required to adhere to money laundering regulations and should have an […]
House Prices And Sales Transactions Continue To Flatten
The most recent UK House Price Index Summary from HM Land Registry has found that as the property market entered the new year, January’s figures showed signs of a subdued market. Even though January is usually a quiet month for housing sales, the average UK property price in January, was £228,147. This is the lowest […]