Leaseholders worried by ‘excruciatingly slow’ progress on reform, says expert
‘Excruciatingly slow’ progress on leasehold reform is creating unnecessary costs and delays for leaseholders, an expert has warned. Linz Darlington, founder of leasehold extension specialists Homehold, says the lack of progress on the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act – which remains largely unenforced despite receiving Royal Assent over a year ago – is a worrying […]
Material Information guidance withdrawn but the responsibilities remain for conveyancers
The recent withdrawal of the National Trading Standards’ Material Information (MI) guidance has understandably created some confusion and concern across the property industry. While the guidance that helped clarify agents’ obligations under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 has been removed, it is essential for conveyancers, estate agents and other stakeholders to understand […]
As the Law Society marks its bicentenary, president Richard Atkinson reflects on 200 years of diversity
A letter from Richard Atkinson, president of the Law Society of England and Wales At a time when it feels equality, diversity and inclusion policies in law firms and elsewhere are under attack from across the pond, the Law Society of England and Wales is celebrating 200 years of diverse voices in law. By no […]
Conveyancers role is not ‘to do nothing’ on climate change – reaction to Practice Note
Many thousands of hours have gone into the Law Society’s Climate Change Practice Note (PN) which has been ‘deeply considered’ and recognises the ‘limited’ role conveyancers have to play in climate change. The note itself highlights ‘solicitors are not qualified to advise on physical risks’ adding professional indemnity insurers may not cover such advice to […]
Climate change obligations hotting up for property lawyers
In the wake of the much anticipated Climate Change Practice Note published by the Law Society this week Dan Montagnani, former CEO of Groundsure and an advisor and consultant to the geospatial, sustainability and conveyancing search industries gives his thoughts on the implications for property lawyers Publication of The Law Society Climate Change Risk […]
Diary of a High Street Conveyancer – Would you want this client?
I come back to one of my favourite topics this week – fees! Here is an outline of a telephone conversation I had with a prospective client this week Client: Hello; you wanted me to call you so that you could discuss the costs and the services you can provide so go ahead, tell me […]
What is meant by ‘modernising’ the home move?
Since Labour came to power 12 months ago they have made home ownership one of their key messages. The headlines have focused on their ambitions to build 1.5m new homes over the course of this Parliament and in February they announced they would be ‘modernising’ home buying and selling process to make it fit for […]
Consolidated councils risk search delays
The Government’s drive to consolidate councils could lead to house buyers waiting longer for local searches. Merging or reorganising councils to form a single governing body is seen as a way to improve efficiency and streamline administration. For example, in 2023 four district councils – Mendip, Sedgemoor, Somerset West & Taunton and South Somerset merged […]
Conveyancing: The Cinderella Service of the UK Property Market
Conveyancing is a key component of the UK property market, yet it’s often overlooked. Once a cornerstone of legal work, its role has morphed over decades, with increasing responsibility laid at the conveyancers’ door. Add to that, today, fewer professionals remain, frequently managing stress and unremitting downwards pressure on fees. In the 1960s, conveyancing was […]
With the SDLT dust settling, what about post-completion?
This latest Today’s Conveyancer Podcast welcomes conveyancing post-completion specialist Priscilla Sinder to discuss the importance of investment in post-completion to avoid costly mistakes. In the wake of March 2025 when SDLT thresholds prompting a sizeable increase in demand and transaction volumes, post-completion work is under scrutiny. Post-completion, says Priscilla, is one of those jobs that […]
Transaction Tips – Scoping the Retainer
The first of a new series of discussions on the Today’s Conveyancer Podcast, host David Opie is joined by expert legal trainer Ian Quayle of IQ Legal Training, to explore a range of topics around conveyancing. “Transaction Tips” will draw on Ian’s extensive experience in and around the property sector discussing important topics conveyancers need […]
Developing better time management skills
Facing the daily challenge of managing multiple cases, clients and deadlines is an easy road to Overwhelm and Stress central. If you don’t find a solution, spending time feeling like this really can affect your productivity, quality of work and most of all, your mental health. Learning some essential tools from a friendly guide could […]
Transforming Conveyancing; a faster, smarter approach
For years, the UK property market has faced one persistent challenge: the slow and often frustrating conveyancing process. Lengthy delays, unclear communication, and high fall-through rates have made buying and selling property more stressful than it needs to be. The average UK property transaction takes around 16–20 weeks to complete, with many taking even longer […]
Half of conveyancers confident market stability here to stay
55% of conveyancers say they are ‘confident’ in the current stability of the property market; one third were neutral, and 12% lack confidence according to the first results of a new Confidence Tracker launched by the Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC) to gauge the views of the profession on the current state of home buying […]
Stamp Duty Changes and the Impact on Law Firm Compliance
Starting April 2025, new UK stamp duty thresholds will come into effect, reducing the limit for first-time buyers to £300,000 and for other homebuyers to £125,000. This means higher costs for many buyers and challenges for firms who must remain the right side of compliance during this busy period. My Key Takeaways The upcoming decrease […]
Why It’s Our Responsibility to Solve the Challenge of Home Buying
Everyone’s Ambition Should Be to Fix This The home buying process in the UK is broken. It’s a statement that won’t surprise anyone in the property industry, but it’s one we can no longer afford to ignore. For too long, buying a home has been synonymous with stress, delays, and unnecessary expense. The average transaction […]
Slashing planning red tape; reaction to Government planning reform proposals
Further details of plans to streamline the planning system and prevent developments from being unnecessarily blocked have been confirmed ahead of the introduction of the Planning and Infrastructure Bill this week. The bill includes ‘significant measures introduced to speed up planning decisions to boost housebuilding and remove unnecessary blockers and challenges to the delivery of […]
The case for stronger collaboration between estate agents and conveyancers
With over 50% of conveyancing business stemming from estate agent referrals, it’s time for conveyancers to rethink their approach to these partnerships. Estate agents are not just lead sources—they are critical stakeholders in the transaction process, influencing both the listing and sale stages. As the first point of contact for buyers and sellers, agents often […]
Diary of a High Street Conveyancer – Expect the unexpected
Well, what a week! I have always been of the view that the life of a conveyancer can change within an hour and this week just illustrated how true that was. The news that Nationwide had changed their Part II requirements hit us on Tuesday afternoon, but it had all changed by Friday morning. And […]
Putting the Pieces in Place: Cost and Risk in Your AI Strategy for Conveyancing
In our first article, we introduced the six-pillar AI strategy framework—Vision, Value, Cost, Risk, Adoption, and Transformation—and highlighted why a structured approach is crucial for conveyancers. In our second article, we drilled deeper into the first two pillars, Vision (defining a clear AI purpose) and Value (measuring ROI and ROE). Now, we turn to the […]
