Gross mortgage lending reaches £15 billion
The latest figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders show that gross mortgage lending increased 2% from £14.7 billion in May to £15 billion in June. This was up 26% from £11.9 billion in June 2012 and the highest monthly estimate for gross lending since October 2008. CML chief economist Bob Pannell said: "Improvements in […]
CML releases response on Scotland sep rep
The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has urged Scottish solicitors to reject their proposal to introduce mandatory separate representation. The Law Society of Scotland (LSS) will be voting in September on a potential law change that will make it mandatory for lenders and buyers in the same property transaction to be represented by separate solicitors. […]
Regulated Personal Searches – what’s driving their increased uptake and what does this mean for the industry?
There’s no denying that over recent years we have seen a significant increase in the number of conveyancing firms ordering Regulated Personal Searches opposed to the more traditional, Council searches. This summer we conducted a survey among our many subscribers to explore just how many conveyancing firms were now routinely favouring searches from personal search […]
TM Group Extends Compliance Portfolio with Jet Flight
New product increases efficiency, reduces risk and ensures compliance in residential conveyancing London, 18th July 2013 – TM Group, the largest provider of property searches in conveyancing, has extended its suite of compliance products with the launch of Jet Flight. Jet Flight is a unique product that is the first to come to the market. […]
Don’t Get Trapped by Bogus Lawyers and so much more……………………
Three months ago ETSOS added the Lawyer Checker portfolio to its platform — thereby advocating its use. This enables the conveyancer to make further checks as to the true identity of the other firm’s solicitors to avoid transferring client money to bogus solicitors.This service is already available to ETSOS clients and new clients can get […]
Stamp Duty crack-down by HMRC
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) have released new guidance on the stamp duty land tax rules for pre-completion transactions. Their guidance explains how the new rules work and provides examples of how they apply to various scenarios. The rules are set out in Schedule 2A of the Finance Act 2003, and will apply to pre-completion […]
ABS Licence for Convey Law
Convey Law, a firm specialising in residential conveyancing, joined the ranks of those who have achieved the Alternative Business Structure (ABS) certification from the Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC). Convey Law were subject to an 18 month process where the CLC reviewed all of their internal procedures, processes, estimates and documents. Attaining ABS certification […]
CLC review finds “no regulatory case for referral fee ban”
The Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC) has revealed that they have submitted proposals for increasing transparency around referral fees to the Legal Services Board (LSB). After conducting research they concluded that there is no regulatory case for an outright ban on referral fees. The CLC revealed that they have determined the biggest threat to the […]
Bristol firm closed by CLC
Bristol based licensed conveyancers, Michael Prout & Co, were yesterday closed by the Council for Licensed Conveyancers. The CLC have assured existing clients that they are “working to ensure outstanding conveyancing transactions can proceed with minimal inconvenience.” Firms who are dealing with transactions where Michael Prout & Co are involved should contact the CLC at […]
Forty MPs call for stamp duty to pass to sellers
A group of Conservative MPs representing marginal seats has called for the cost of stamp duty to transfer from seller. The Prime Minister David Cameron has welcomed the suggestion which is part of a wider Forty Group report, which is being touted as a “moderate manifesto” for the Conservative party ahead of the next election. […]
Survey reveals selection of bizarre concerns of house viewers
A survey has shown consumers are worried about dealings with the other side in a slightly different way to that conveyancers might expect, with 19% of questions viewers asked estate agents being about ghosts. Research, conducted by Move with Us, surveyed 200 independent estate agents to find out the most unusual questions they had been […]
GroundSure on our television sets
GroundSure has been featured in current BBC3 series "Cherry Heaney’s Property Virgins", which follows the fortunes of a number of first time buyers. In the most recent episode, Ailsa was looking to buy her first property but was unsure of the various surveys and searches that she needed to ensure that all is well with […]
Conveyancing Awards hope to raise huge sum for charity
Law Firm Services has already received offers of a number of auction lots for the charity auction they will once again host at the Conveyancing Awards in September. GroundSure is the latest to get involved, having just generously donated four Club Wembley tickets to next year’s FA Cup final. Richard Mathias of LFS said: “It’s […]
July Weather Trigger for Increased Subsidence
The risk of a full blown subsidence event this year has been upgraded to ‘moderate’ according to a new report from leading UK arboriculturist OCA UK Ltd 1 in 5 homes in the UK* (approximately 6.5 million properties) are at risk of subsidence each year with an average estimated £200-250 million spent on subsidence claims […]
Ayishah Khalil joins the Legal Eye team
Legal Eye expand their team of Associates with new addition Ayishah Khalil. Ayishah, a qualified solicitor who has eight years experience working in the legal sector, started her career at a major UK law firm before moving to a regional, Legal 500 Firm. With experience in various areas of law including Conveyancing, Matrimonial law […]
Land Registry makes e-DRS sign up easier
All Land Registry customers who lodge paper applications with them will now be able to lodge certain applications electronically using e-DRS, regardless of whether they are a conveyancer. The Land Registry announced the change as part of a number of simplifications to the terms and conditions that govern their electronic Document Registration Service (e-DRS). The […]
Recruitment drive for conveyancers at Pannone
After seeing a 400% increase in new instructions over the last year law firm Pannone is rapidly expanding its conveyancing team. Their conveyancing department has recently recruited four additional solicitors, four conveyancing assistants and is taking on a further six conveyancers and assistants in the coming weeks. Partner Daniel Hickey said: “We have worked extremely […]
Shulmans QCAS adds to team
Leeds-based QCAS, a division of Shulmans LLP, has responded to its busiest period for three years by recruiting two new solicitors. The firm has also recruited three new assistants, and further appointments are on the cards for later in the year. Victoria Mortimer, Head of QCAS, said: “The market has really grown in the past […]
Entries welcomed for Conveyancer of the Year awards
Entries are open for the Conveyancer of the Year Awards 2013 in association with The Sunday Times and The Times. The Conveyancer of the Year Awards 2013 form part of the Estate Agency of the Year Awards which will take place on 6th December 2013 at the Lancaster Hotel in London. The day will also […]
Zoopla blog advises avoiding small firms
A recent blog from property website Zoopla looks at how you can speed up house sales. They say that in an ideal world a freehold sale could complete within six weeks, but said the current market was far from ideal. The piece includes expert opinions on various aspects of the process. One looks at the […]