Taylor Wimpey to remove ground rent increases
Housebuilder Taylor Wimpey has announced it will no longer subject leaseholders to ground rents that double every 10 years following an investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). Following action launched by the CMA in 2020 against four housing developers, Taylor Wimpey, Countryside, Barratt Developments and Persimmon Homes, over possible mis-selling and use of […]
New homes must show 30% cut in carbon emissions
All new buildings must reduce their greenhouse gases by nearly a third under new building regulations which will come into force in June. Under the rules, carbon emissions from new build homes must be 30% lower than current standards and other new buildings such as offices and shops must be 27% lower. Housing Minister Eddie […]
Cladding: RICS will not remove EWS1 requirements
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) says it will not remove EWS1 requirements for low-rise buildings. Previous guidance issued by the Government earlier this year stated that having consulted with lenders, low-rise buildings less than 18 metres in height would no longer be subject to EWS1 forms. Former housing secretary, Robert Jenrick said in […]
Mortgage trends and interest rates – what could happen in 2022?
Since the Bank of England raised the interest rate last week to 0.25% from an all-time low of 0.1%, industry commentary around 2022 mortgage trends continues to gather pace. Despite the emergence of the Omicron variant, which has caused concern in financial markets across the world, and the re-imposing of restrictions and travel bans, […]
Property market stabilising but stock remains low
HMRC’s November transaction figures indicate a return to stability for property sales, but stock levels remain low. Figures show that the provisional non-seasonally adjusted estimate for November 2021 sales transactions is 104,980, 13.4% lower than November 2020 and 22.7% higher than October 2021. After a significant decrease was observed for residential transactions completed in October […]
HMLR Practice Guide updates: PG9, PG10, PG50, PG62, PG64 & PG67
HM Land Registry has published details of changes to Practice Guides 9, 10, 50, 62, 64 and 67. Powers of attorney and registered land (PG9) This guide gives advice on the evidence HMLR needs when an attorney has executed documents lodged for registration. Change made: HMLR will now accept the summary sheet generated by the […]
CLC provide Simplify update
The CLC has provided an update regarding ongoing matters resulting from the Simplify Group cyber attack. The CLC today provided an update stating that it has been in constant touch with managers at Simplify since the incident was first reported. The regulated law firms within the Simplify group that were involved in the incident were […]
Case study: 5 reasons this firm uses Clio for case management
When it comes to choosing a case management software for your law firm, Clio knows that your time is precious and that every firm’s needs are unique. That’s certainly the case for one Middlesbrough firm, the Immigration Advice Centre. They switched to Clio after first trying a variety of software solutions to manage their caseloads […]
‘Twas the night before Christmas… Diary of a High Street Conveyancer
‘Twas the night before Christmas, and all over the land conveyancers closed laptops, turned off the broadband a large sigh of relief , looking forward to some fun one year is over, and a hard job well done. It started last year with Covid 19 the first full lockdown the country had seen but […]
HSBC fined £63.9m for AML failures
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has fined HSBC Bank (HSBC) £63.9m for failings in its anti-money laundering (AML) processes. HSBC used automated processes to monitor hundreds of millions of transactions a month to identify possible financial crime. However, the FCA found that three key parts of HSBC’s transaction monitoring systems showed serious weaknesses over a […]
Property industry reacts to “surprise” interest rate increase
The Bank of England has increased interest rates to 0.25% from 0.1%. The decision, which caught many experts by surprise, came just after the official rate of inflation reached 5.1%, the highest rate recorded in the last decade. But despite fears that the new Omicron COVID-19 variant will place additional pressure and uncertainty on the […]
How Australia avoided a conveyancer capacity crunch during Covid-19
Despite early fears that the coronavirus pandemic would lead to a downturn in activity, the Australian housing market – much like the UK’s – experienced something of a boom. A combination of Government incentives and resurgent buyer demand led to Australia seeing consistently high levels of activity. Our latest data showing transactions running 34 […]
British Conveyancing Awards – entries open until 11th Jan
The British Conveyancing Awards returns in 2022 to celebrate the cream of the conveyancing crop. With a new headline sponsor in Dye and Durham, the 2022 edition is a departure from the 2021 awards which were held virtually. The awards will be hosted on 15th March 2022 as a hybrid event, with an in-person ceremony at the stunning […]
Purplebricks faces investigation over tenant deposit failures
Online estate agency Purplebricks is reported to have set aside millions to cover a blunder which may have affected its lettings business tenants. The company has recently warned that its lettings management business may face claims for a historic failure over deposit registrations, and that it was finalising the amount it would need to cover […]
A guide to absence of easement legal indemnity insurance
An Absence of Easement does not sound like a serious issue to many vendors or purchasers but conveyancing solicitors appreciate how an Absence of Easement can prevent the sale of a commercial or residential property, or stop an owner from fully enjoying their property. In this article, we consider how specialist Legal Indemnity Insurance can […]
Administrative tasks in commercial real estate transactions will be fully automated by 2025, according to senior legal professionals
Study by SearchFlow discusses the evolution of the real estate transaction process with senior lawyers in the UK More than two thirds (67%) of senior commercial property law professionals believe it will be very likely that administrative tasks relating to the legal transaction process for commercial real estate deals will be fully automated within the […]
UKLTA launches brand new demo group
December saw the launch of the UKLTA’s brand new demo group, with a live products showcase from five specialist legaltech products, curated by Nigel Stott of Baskerville Drummond, Caroline Galek of vLex and Lisa McClory of Fractal Knowledge. With thanks to E3 Compliance, Arken, Estatesearch, Claim Technology and inCase, each short session provided a live […]
Covid isn’t behind us
As it’s becoming clear that the pandemic isn’t ending anytime soon, conveyancers across the UK are responding to a new wave of vulnerable clients… With the likelihood of a 4th lockdown looking possible and the idea of Covid being “behind us” unlikely, the whole country is in a state of constant change. While the housing […]
adoor partners with Thirdfort
We’re immensely proud to announce our partnership with Thirdfort. Thirdfort simplifies ID and source of funds checks for legal and property professionals, and removes risk so more people can move fearlessly. Thanks to our partnership, Estate Agents and Conveyancers using the adoor platform can benefit from Thirdfort’s best-in-class technology. Tracking the progress of their cases […]
New guide issued to stop property title fraud
The Fraud Advisory Panel, HM Land Registry (HMLR) and the Law Society of England and Wales have issued a guide to help homeowners avoid property title fraud. The guide, aimed at homeowners and conveyancing clients, details how and why property fraud occurs, and sets out the following precautions that can be taken to keep title deeds […]