Superman Sam tackles the Artic Circle for children’s charity
A principal of a conveyancing firm based in Wales is raising money for a children’s charity by attempting to walk and run 500 kilometres across the Arctic circle in just five days. Sam Hawking, principal of Sam Hawking Property Lawyers, is taking part in the Lapland Arctic Ultra Challenge in the Swedish Arctic and […]
Conveyancers call for wider industry support in the wake of PM Law closure
The personal stories of the impact the PM Law closure has had on home movers has been widely publicised in the national press with families in limbo, and many left paying two mortgages as redemption funds were caught up in the fallout from the stricken firm. A Facebook group set up by those affected now […]
‘Significant digital change just around the corner’, CA annual conference hears
Significant digital change and improvement is happening and will gather momentum throughout 2026, according to a number of speakers at this year’s Conveyancing Association Annual Conference, where the representative body celebrated its 25th anniversary. With the theme of Conveyancing Under the Spotlight, participants heard analysis, viewpoints and input from property industry figures, consumers and digital […]
‘Demand remains resilient’, ONS housing market figures suggest
Average UK house prices increased by 2.5%, to £271,000, in the 12 months to November 2025, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics. The annual growth rate is up from 1.9% in the 12 months to October 2025. “UK annual house price inflation slowed in December following the rise in November with the average […]
SRA confirms ‘potential fraud and missing client money’ at PM Law
The Solicitors Regulation Authority has formally confirmed it is investigating “potential fraud, including the misappropriation of client money” at the Sheffield-based law firm PM Law after it unexpectedly closed on Monday 2nd February. In a statement published on the SRA website, Jonathan Peddie, executive director of legal and enforcement, confirmed the regulator is looking into […]
Nationwide accepts first QES on mortgage deed in HMLR, Veyco and Your Conveyancer collaboration
Nationwide has become the first lender to allow a mortgage deed to be signed electronically using a Qualified Electronic Signature (QES). Any Nationwide customer purchasing a property or remortgaging will now be able to sign their mortgage deed electronically if their conveyancer or solicitor uses QES. The development is the result of a collaboration between […]
UK Finance defers launch of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook
UK Finance has deferred the launch of its new Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook, which was due to be live from 2 March. Last week, the trade association for the UK banking and financial services sector dropped plans to introduce a £50 fee for conveyancers to register to use the new handbook. The organisation has now pushed […]
MoJ client account interest consultation premise ‘fundamentally flawed’, says conveyancing membership body
The underlying premise to the Ministry of Justice’s (MoJ) consultation on using client account interest to fund access to justice is “fundamentally flawed”, says the Conveyancing Association; a membership body representing the top 200 solicitors and licensed conveyancers by volume in England and Wales. Proposals to introduce an Interest on Lawyers’ Client Accounts (ILCA) scheme […]
Temporary recruitment page launched for those affected by PM Law closure
Today’s Conveyancer has launched a temporary recruitment page to list conveyancing roles for those affected by the closure of PM Law and its subsidiaries. The Sheffield-based firm closed on Monday leaving its 650 staff seeking new employment. Speaking to Today’s Conveyancer, employees explained they were told not to come into the office on Monday, or […]
Silence from Sheffield firm following widespread office closures
A Sheffield law firm and its subsidiaries appears to ceased trading with notices placed on office doors and former employees taking to social media to advise of their availability for work. In a widely shared image on social media Butterworths Solicitors in Carlisle placed a notice on its front door on the morning of 2nd […]
Research reveals property transactions now averaging 123 days
A new report reveals that property transactions took longer in 2025 than the previous year, with instruction-to-completion times averaging over 17 weeks (123 days). The report, An industry aligned: Moving towards certainty, underlines that this equates to an 18% increase since 2019 and a 64% increase since 2007. Consumers say that their ideal time from […]
UK Finance drops plans to charge conveyancers for using Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook
UK Finance will no longer proceed with plans to charge conveyancers £50 to access the Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook, following a widespread backlash from the industry and what conveyancing bodies said were “frantic” behind-the-scenes discussions. “Following further engagement with our members and users of the Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook, we have decided to retain the current approach […]
Property sector reacts to draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill
The government released its draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill last week, and the property industry has shared some very mixed reactions. The government said the bill is a “game-changing shake up” of the leasehold system – but some housing market experts disagree. Yesterday, Today’s Conveyancer shared reactions from conveyancing bodies and leasehold campaigners. While […]
Transaction times could be halved without the need for government or regulatory intervention, report finds
A new report estimates property transaction timescales could be drastically reduced without the need for major home buying and selling reform or legislative change. The current timescales of 126 days from mortgage application to completion could be halved, the Future Property Transaction (FPT) Group suggests, if the market were able to operate at the speed […]
Conveyancers coming back? Licence renewals suggest so
There could be more conveyancers coming into the profession than leaving, the Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC) suggested at their latest Futures Roundtable. Figures revealed at the event showed more people qualifying and fewer leaving the profession in 2025. The exodus from the profession has been widely reported: according to data from the Law Society, […]