Moving conveyancing ‘up stream’ – an opportunity not to be missed (again!)
Concerns about change are natural, but of course if you didn’t have them, you might think you don’t care enough about the work, and you’re prepared to allow change to happen without fully understanding what the consequences can be. I certainly get that. Change can be scary, particularly if it involves the changing of the […]
Three new ambassadors set to join The Conveyancing Foundation
Three new ambassadors are set to join The Conveyancing Foundation in it’s mission to ‘enhance the lives of those in the property industry’. The foundation have announced they will be adding Natalie Moore from Aconveyancing and ESTAS founders Simon and Sarah Brown to its Ambassadorial team. The new additions will join existing Ambassadors Rob and Lynne Hailstone […]
Over a third of home sellers won’t downsize to avoid repeating the home selling process
New research has revealed that 36% of recent home sellers would avoid downsizing in later life to avoid repeating an archaic home selling process riddled with stress inducing pitfalls. Home Sale Pack has commissioned a survey of 1,023 people who sold a home within the last 12 months to gain an understanding of how easy […]
Calls for ‘radical change’ to fix broken housing market
A new report from the Building Societies Association (BSA) has found that significant changes are required if we are to help prospective first-time buyers get onto the property ladder in the current housing market. It also warns that policy solutions that help today’s first-time buyers mustn’t compromise the homeownership prospects of future generations. This report, […]
Faster sales ‘should be the goal’
The government should do more to improve the home buying and selling process, according to Steve Richmond, General Manager UK&I at Reapit. In a recent submission to an enquiry by the Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Committee Commons Select Committee, industry technology provider Reapit highlighted several innovations from its other markets that could improve the […]
CMA outlines growing concerns in markets for AI Foundation Model
As the legal sector sees an increase in usage of generative AI such as ChatGPT, the Competition and Markets Authority(CMA) in the UK have expressed ‘concerns’ with the utilization of more diverse Foundation Model AI in a rapidly accelerating market. The authority has outlined risks to effective competition in AI Foundation Models(FM) and has set […]
Leasehold reforms: Ground rent caps set at £250, phased out over 20 Years
Michael Gove’s plans to abolish leasehold have been scaled back, with a compromise reached to cap ground rents at £250 annually. Despite Treasury resistance, Rishi Sunak overruled objections, signalling a partial victory for Gove. The decision, expected to be announced imminently, aims to alleviate the burden on leaseholders, who have long been trapped by escalating […]
Extension of Japanese Knotweed responsibilities ‘leaves vendors open to litigation’
The updated TA6 property information form, released by the Law Society in the past week, places a new onus on vendors to be clearer about the risks posed by the incursion onto the property of Japanese Knotweed, and failure to properly identify the risk could lead to more claims warns CLS Property Insight, who point […]
Demand for homes reaches new highs amidst market rebound, data reveals
Buyer activity is reaching unprecedented levels as the spring season unfolds, with a notable surge in demand for residential properties, according to Rightmove’s House Price Index. The market is witnessing a significant uptick in the number of new sellers, up by 12% compared to last year, indicating growing interest in property transactions, according to the […]
Starmer proposes development of ‘grey belt’ land for housing
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has announced plans to utilise “ugly” sections of the green belt for housing development, potentially freeing up land for hundreds of thousands of homes, as reported by The Times. In an interview with The Times, Starmer outlined his vision for creating a new category of “grey belt” land, designated for […]
Quarter of adults have shared sensitive personal information on email when moving home
A quarter of UK adults have shared their sensitive personal information, such as bank details and address, via email with a conveyancer, estate agent or mortgage broker when moving home, according to new research from client compliance platform Thirdfort. The survey of 2,097 UK adults conducted by YouGov also shows that 49% of adults are concerned about using email to share sensitive […]
March’s inflation rate stood at 3.2% – BofE
Today’s data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has revealed that March’s inflation rate stood at 3.2% – down from 3.4% in February. This news follows the Bank of England’s decision to continue holding interest rates at 5.25%. As inflation continues to fall, pressure is easing on the BoE to pursue further hikes to […]
Lawhive secures £9.5million to grow platform that combines AI with human lawyers
Legal-tech company Lawhive has raised £9.5 million in Seed funding, advancing its mission to streamline their services, one such venture combining AI with human lawyers. Led by GV, with participation from Episode 1 Ventures, the funding round follows a £1.5 million investment in April 2022 which enabled the business to achieve rapid growth in the […]
Two in three people across England and Wales have faced legal problems
New research by the Law Society and the Legal Services Board reveals that two thirds of adults in England and Wales (66%), have experienced at least one legal issue in the last four years. The Legal Needs Survey 2023 looks at the legal issues and needs of individuals across England and Wales and found: The […]
Data shows London’s affordability has declined rapidly, while wage increases don’t match up
New figures have shown the UK’s least attainable addresses with the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham declining in affordability over the last decade with house prices more than doubling to £380,000 and wages only rising by £2,182. Another London Borough, Hillingdon, ranked second in the study, conducted by the ONS and analysed by Getamover.co.uk. […]
Law firms agree to trial the efficiency of property logbooks
The assumption that a property with a logbook will improve the conveyancing part of the home buying process was challenged by nine law firms in a working group during the summer of 2023. In response, The Home Buying & Selling Group’s (HBSG) Logbook Working Group agreed to run a new pilot to test the concerns […]
Checkboard and PLS partner to ‘enhance conveyancing offering’
Onboarding and verification service Checkboard have announced a partnership with conveyancing search provider Progressive Legal Solutions (PLS). The tie up will enable firms ordering through PLS to access Checkboard’s suite of compliance and verification services. By combining Checkboard’s enhanced client due diligence checks which include Biometric ID (which is itself in line with HM Land […]
Industry boss calls on other estate agents to ‘combat material information issues’
In light of recent guidance from the National Trading Standards Estate and Letting Agency Team (NTSELAT), the owner of a leading agency is stressing the importance of providing material information upfront. Mark Ross, Co-Founder and Managing Director at Redbrik Estate Agent, said that presenting full material information early in the process will “avoid unexpected issues” […]
Estate agents must ‘enhance their skills’ to improve home buying and selling process
With the Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (LUHC) Committee launching an investigation into the property transaction process in England, Managing Director at Property Academy, Danielle Nash is calling for agents to consider ways they can help improve the system. Danielle believes the main way to ensure movers have a stress-free experience when buying or selling […]
Law firms remain resilient in tough economic times – The Law Society
Against a tough economic backdrop and with the cost of living rising sharply, law firms saw profits go only marginally down, according to the Law Society’s Financial Benchmarking Survey that provides an overview of the financial performance of the legal sector. The research shows that profits per equity partner continued the pre-COVID trend, with median […]
