Rents show an annual rise of 3.9 per cent
According to the latest Buy to Let Index from LSL Property Services Plc rents have risen, in February, by 0.2 per cent to £684, an annual rise of 3.9 per cent. Tenant arrears, however, have risen to 12.6 per cent as renters continue to feel the pinch of from the ever increasing cost of living […]
Administration for Peverel unavoidable say Zolfo Cooper
Zolfo Cooper Partners, Simon Appell, Alastair Beveridge and Anne O’Keefe, were appointed Joint Administrators of Peverel Ltd, Peverel Group Ltd, Aztec Opco Developments Ltd and Aztec Acquisitions Ltd on 14th March. The four are holding companies within the Peverel Group, which is billed as the leading property management company in the UK residential sector, managing […]
Update on the changes to SDLT submission
HM Revenue & Customs have made a further announcement regarding submissions of form SDLT1, including the supplementary forms SDLT3 and SDLT4, online screens will also be changing. Previously the National Insurance number was not a required field but as from 4th July 2011 the lead purchaser’s National Insurance number and date of birth will be […]
Only 1 in 3 people are likely to buy property in 2011
Legal & General’s recently released Moving Intentions Survey results indicate that only 30 per cent of the adults who took part in the survey believe that they will be buying a property in the next twelve months. The first Moving Intentions Survey was published in the summer of 1996 and has since been carried out […]
Land Registry cause confusion with incorrect date on priority searches
The Land Registry have reported that results for Official Searches issued on 17th March 2011 are incorrectly stating that the priority period expires on 29th April, unless you have been living in a bubble this is the date that Kate and Wills marry and is also a bank holiday. The Land Registry are advising customers […]
Are Taxpayers set to foot the bill again?
The Telegraph recently reported that a controversial new mortgage deal is being launched by five local authorities and is being backed by Lloyds Banking Group. The scheme is reportedly being aimed at first time buyers who cannot raise the large deposits currently required. Read the full article here. Lloyds Banking Group just happen to be […]
Internet fraudsters targeting Lawyers
According to the SRA website cloning criminals are making minor changes to solicitors’ websites enabling the internet fraudsters to trick clients into entering a bogus site. They are then encouraged to hand over money on account which later disappears without a trace. The changes can be so minute, a missing letter or even a punctuation […]
Final approval for the SRA’s Handbook
The SRA’s Handbook, which recently received final approval, sets out new regulatory arrangements which support the introduction of outcome focused regulation, coming into force on 6th October 2011. The board have said that they are confident the Handbook ‘provides an effective framework for both the new regulatory approach and the safe licensing of ABS’. Legal […]
New Instructions “edge up” says RICS
The RICS Housing Market Survey for February 2011 has highlighted four key points: – Headline net price balance whilst improved remains negative – New enquiries stabilised following a fall during the second half of 2010 – Activity levels have stabilised – London is bucking the trend as the only region to record rising house prices […]
Record number of complaints made to The Property Ombudsman
A report recently carried out by TPO shows that, despite a reduced number of housing transactions, the number of cases relating to sales and lettings being referred to TPO were 40% more than was forecast for 2010. During 2010 TPO dealt with over 13,500 enquiries, a 6% increase on the figures for 2009 although Mr […]
Mortgage Fraud up slightly in 2010
CIFAS, the UK’s Fraud Prevention Service, aims to address such things as identity fraud, application fraud, and insurance fraud. Their latest Fraudscape report has now been released indicating that mortgage fraud in 2010 was up slightly, a rise in the number of application frauds exposed when compared to 2009 could be due to the stricter […]
A Question of Ethics
If you are wondering what you should do if an organisation asks for confidential information then you need to take a look at the SRA’s Question of Ethics pages here. Today’s Conveyancer, bringing you the latest conveyancing news and updates.
Conveyancers committed to improving standards in tough times
Cinnamon Property Lawyers, Rowlinsons and Your Conveyancer are just some of the latest firms to join the Conveyancing Association in a bid to show their commitment to improving industry standards. The Conveyancing Association was established because of a number of challenges that are now facing conveyancers in the UK one of which, The Legal Services […]
Prices and Transactions up says LSL Acadametrics House Price Index
The latest release of the LSL Acadametrics House Price Index has shown that February’s monthly house prices have increased by 0.3 per cent but the gains of early 2010 dropping out of the figures means that annual prices have fallen by 0.5 per cent. The level of transactions in February look likely to be in […]
Estate Agent fined for failing to notify with the ICO
Peter Quigg of PDQ Property Sales has been convicted under Section 17 of the Data Protection Act for failing to notify the ICO that his business processes personal data. The Data Protection Act 1998 requires that any organisation, or person, that processes personal information in an automated form must notify the ICO. Failure to notify […]
Adam Sampson speaks at the Legal IT Show
The Orange Rag (http://www.theorangerag.com) reports: This year’s Legal IT Show in Islington was unhampered by snow and significantly busier than last year, with plenty of activity on the stands and well-attended presentations. Joanna Goodman highlights the main themes from the keynote presentation by Adam Sampson, chief ombudsman and chief executive of the Legal Ombudsman, and […]
Arc Property Solicitors achieve Best Customer Focus Award
Arc Property Solicitors have received some fantastic news this week: “We’ve been awarded the Best Customer Focus award by BestBusinessAwards! following our development of innovative new ways to ease the stress of moving house”. Managing Director, Richard Chan, said: “I’m delighted that our company has been awarded the Best Customer Focus award. Client care is […]
Want to spend more time fee earning and less time identifying clients?
Katy Wilkins at 192business had this to say about Anti-Money Laundering legislation: We saw yet again another rise in mortgage and property fraud in 2010. According to the KPMG’s fraud barometer, mortgage fraud quadrupled during the first six months of 2010 and the National Fraud Authority’s 2011 Annual Fraud Indicator quoted a fraud loss figure […]
Law Society warns of unauthorised CQS “Consultants”
The Law Society has issued a warning, to all practices applying for membership of the Conveyancing Quality Scheme, not to incur unnecessary costs from unauthorised risk and compliance consultants who are charging practices to carry out an audit for the scheme. The Law Society warns that these so-called Consultants do not have any detailed knowledge […]
95% mortgage for part-exchange re-sales could boost the house building industry
The New Homes Group recently announced their launch of a 95% LTV mortgage for part exchange re-sales saying "it is the first nationally available deal of its type in over two years". The new product is available exclusively through the New Homes Part Exchange service via the New Homes Mortgage Helpline and is offered in […]
