National Conveyancing Week Special: Simplifying property due diligence and the future of searches
The latest Today’s Conveyancer podcast is an extended edition as part of National Conveyancing Week 2023. Host David Opie is joined by a panel of professionals from across the conveyancing sector to discuss the increasingly complex world of property due diligence and searches. Andrew Prismall, Chair of the Association of Independent Search Agents James Sherwood-Rogers, […]
ROE: Lessons for solicitors considering becoming a verification agent
Last year I wrote about whether it is too risky for solicitors to act as verification agents. I decided to find out first hand what the risk implications are, by signing up as a verification agent. Some solicitors and law firms have agonised over whether to provide verification as a service to their offshore clients. The […]
Online learning: The key to attracting and retaining talent
Property transactions have almost doubled in the last decade, but with fewer active conveyancing firms to do the increased work, the sector is experiencing a “conveyancing crunch”. However, all is not lost and with attitudes to online learning rapidly changing, virtual courses to retrain and level up the new and existing workforce might just be […]
Diary of a high street conveyancer: 20th March
Welcome to National Conveyancing Week! There are some very exciting events taking place and some really interesting online discussions. However, it makes me a little sad that we have to have a week to celebrate conveyancing and make others aware of what we do. When my children were younger, we were invited into the primary […]
3 years on: Looking back at the pandemic property market in March 2020
When conveyancers arrived in March 2020, there were no people to be seen on the streets, the shops were derelict, children were not at school, and the future was uncertain. Crucially, however, the property market had entered a period of unprecedented shutdown. Here, we look back at the pandemic property market three years on. The […]
Diary of a high street conveyancer: 13th March 2023
I was going to write about the effects of snow on house moves, but as the snow has now disappeared, I will follow on from last week’s Ten Commandments. My first commandment to the client was “thou shalt not select your conveyancer on price alone”. Well, if I were to write Ten Commandments to conveyancing […]
The real truth about review platforms
In this latest Today’s Conveyancer Podcast host David Opie is joined by Simon Brown and Ben Marley, CEO and Commercial Director of review specialists The ESTAS to discuss the ins and out of review platforms. Increasingly review and recommendation platforms dominate many of our buying decisions. Think about booking.com and TripAdvisor for holidays, Facebook and […]
Upfront information: We’re some way from where we need to be
We might think we have focused a lot on upfront information (UFI) in recent times and there has been considerable cut-through and understanding on this subject right across our industry. However, I wonder whether we are still where we need to be in terms of both comprehension and preparation? For instance, according to the recent […]
Diary of a high street conveyancer: 20th February 2023
I was going to write about the different types of names, titles, and job descriptions given to those who practise conveyancing – this week I have collated a list which ranges from conveyancing executive to my favourite, as told to me by a partner in a nearby firm: trainee specialist. That last one raises all […]
The straw that breaks the camel’s back?
This week’s Today’s Conveyancer podcast features a topical discussion about the growing complexity of conveyancing, and the expectations consumers, estate agents, lenders and brokers as to the role of the conveyancer. Is it fair, or right, that we face calls to add to the wealth of due diligence we already undertake? How can we be […]
Abolishing leasehold – is this the answer?
Leigh Shapiro, Residential Property Solicitor, Irwin Mitchell, looks at the implications of – and alternatives to – Michael Gove’s proposal to abolish leasehold Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, recently declared that in this parliament, perhaps even this calendar year, legislation intending to abolish leasehold will be introduced. What is […]
To rely or not to rely on a common-intention constructive trust?
To rely or not to rely on a common-intention constructive trust: an instance of the application of s. 53(1)(c) of the Law of Property Act 1925 | By John Clargo, Barrister, Gatehouse Chambers On 14th December 2022, the Court of Appeal overturned March’s High Court decision that detrimental reliance is not a necessary element of […]
We’re not pointing the finger of blame at conveyancers, says Land Registry
The Land Registry has insisted that its comments in a January blog regarding requisitions were not intended to point the finger of blame at conveyancers. The blog, authored by Mike Harlow, Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Customer and Strategy at HMLR, urged conveyancers to put a stop to “avoidable errors” in applications leading to […]
LGBT+ Month
When I started my legal career with a local firm, the firm hired a legal secretary. The partner at the time told the secretary “You do know she’s [meaning me] a lesbian?” prior to the secretary ever meeting me. I still do not know why the partner brought it up. I consider this a small […]
Diary of a high street conveyancer: 6th February 2023
So, Michael Gove made a statement last week to say that he was going to abolish leasehold. To be precise, he said: “I don’t believe leasehold is fair in any way. It is an outdated feudal system that needs to go. We need to move to a better system and to liberate people from it.” […]
Supreme Court backs residents against Tate Modern in viewing gallery case
The owners of flats adjacent to the Tate Gallery’s viewing platform have won their “privacy” case against the gallery. In fact, the case was brought under the law of nuisance rather than in privacy. By a majority of 3-2 and in a Judgment given by Lord Leggatt, the Supreme Court has comprehensively re-stated the law […]
Inspiring the leaders of tomorrow to be confident online
Most firms work hard to create a culture where employees feel encouraged to speak up internally, but this doesn’t always translate in the same way to professional forums online. When talking with many of my younger staff about engaging with the wider conveyancing industry online, they often either don’t have the confidence to join in […]
Mortgage payments could drop 25% by end of year – report
New research has suggested monthly mortgage payments could fall by as much as a quarter by the end of 2023. Wealth manager Quilter reports that an 80% LTV deal agreed in November 2022 at a 6% rate over 25 years would, taking into account the average property price of £294,910 at the time, cost £1,520 […]
Diary of a high street conveyancer: 30th January 2023
I had far fewer emails each day this week than I have had for ages. Is this a good thing? I did not have to work on Saturday which, when I thought about it, led me to realise that other than the holiday weekends (Easter, May and August Bank Holidays etc.), I have worked consistently […]
Tackling the data “vacuum” facing conveyancers
In this latest Today’s Conveyancer podcast host David Opie is joined by Richard Hinton. Known to many for his years in marketing and business development in the legal services sector, both in house and as a supplier, Richard discusses the “vacuum of market intelligence” that conveyancers face when it comes to using data to drive […]