Levels of lending “unlikely to be sustained in the medium to long term”
UK Finance figures show the scale of the stimulus provided by the SDLT holiday as home movers sought to take advantage of the savings on offer but warned that the current levels of lending would not be sustainable in the medium to long term. The latest Household Finance Review which covers Q2 2021 points to […]
SQE: Landmark new route to qualifying as solicitor launches
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) will today introduce the Solicitors Qualifying Exam (SQE), marking the beginning of the biggest change to how aspiring solicitors can enter the profession for almost 30 years. Aspiring solicitors will now be required to take two sets of centralised assessments designed to evaluate competence for entry to the profession, as […]
New legal job site launched for property lawyers
A new legal job site has been launched to help conveyancers advertise and recruit for their teams. Propertyjobs.legal is a new UK platform that connects Law practises to conveyancing talent. The platform has been launched by Shane Hennessy. Hennessy has a background in launching niche recruitment websites to serve growing needs. “We felt there was […]
Air pollution search launched for conveyancers and home movers
A new report aimed at educating home movers on air quality around their prospective new home has been launched. This month, Air Pollution Services launched their AirChecker™️ which will make it easier for consumers and their property professionals to get the information they need to make the right decision. The Air Pollution Services’ (APS) report is […]
Property search firm keeps the housing market moving during the pandemic
X-Press Legal Services, the UK’s largest independent search provider, has witnessed one of its busiest years in its two decades of operation as the housing market boomed during the pandemic. The firm has seen a 50 per cent increase in the number and value of orders year on year as consumers rushed to take advantage […]
HMLR Practice Guide updates
HM Land Registry has released details of changes to the following Practice Guides in its latest update. Charities: advice for applications sent to HM Land Registry (PG14) This guide is aimed at conveyancers and legal advisers to charities and to those acquiring land from charities. Change made: Section 6.5 has been amended to confirm HM […]
SDLT holiday may not be responsible for property market surge
Influential think tank the Resolution Foundation has suggested that the temporary stamp-duty was not the “overwhelming driver” behind the surge in property market activity and that underlying factors instead responsible for driving house prices up, indicating that the stamp-duty holiday may have been a waste of taxpayers money. Data from the Resolution Foundation’s quarterly Housing […]
“Marketing and advertising” remains leading cause of home moving complaints
The benefits of providing greater information up front have been laid bare in the latest The Property Ombudsman (TPO) Annual Report which has again highlighted “Communication and record keeping” and “Marketing and advertising” as the leading causes of home moving complaints. 2020 also saw a significant increase in enquiries with a record 39,285 reported, up […]
SQE: Qualifying work experience will offer trainees greater flexibility
Ahead of the 1 September launch of the Solicitors Qualifying Exam (SQE), the Law Society has today unveiled guidance to answer common queries for law firms and organisations on qualifying work experience (QWE) for trainee solicitors. Under the SQE, candidates must complete two years QWE in order to qualify as a solicitor, as well as […]
£40m Government loan supports new retirement living homes
Hundreds of older people are set to be provided with new homes thanks to a £40m funding injection from Homes England, the Government’s housing agency. The loan from the £4.5bn Home Building Fund will accelerate the construction of 255 mid-market retirement homes in Audley Group’s Mayfield Villages portfolio, in a segment of the market that […]
New Deputy Vice President for Law Society
Nick Emmerson has been announced as the new Law Society of England and Wales 2021 deputy vice president (DVP), following the recent election. He takes office as DVP on 14 October 2021 – becoming vice president in 2022 and president in 2023. Nick has been a Law Society council member since 2015 as the constituency […]
Housing market shows signs of increasing stability
An estate agency membership body has predicted the housing market could stabilise in the coming months, following the surge in activity generated by the SDLT holiday. NAEA Propertymark has released its July Housing Report in which it identifies a slight increase in supply of properties coming to market, and a reduction in the number of […]
Sole practitioner model “dying” according to research
Solicitors operating as sole practitioners and partnerships are a dying breed, according to a new analysis from Arden Partners plc revealing the changing shape of the solicitor market. Analysis of Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) data reveals that the number of sole practitioners operating in England and Wales has decreased by 47% in the past 10 […]
The Conveyancing Foundation donates vital funds to SANDS and the Epilepsy Society
The Conveyancing Foundation has donated funds from its innovative Charity Lotto to help two national charities, the Stillbirth and Neonatal Death Society (SANDS) and the Epilepsy Society. Both charities have received £1000 each after they were nominated by staff at Convey Law, whose clients raised the funds by taking part in the Foundation’s Charity Lotto. […]
FREE WEBINAR: Discover powerful digital onboarding with eCOS from InfoTrack
eCOS provides a digital solution for tackling the key onboarding processes within a single, unified platform. Connecting firms with consumers, you gain access to bank-grade digital verification tools, including verification of identity and source of funds, access to Law Society TA forms and onboarding questionnaires, as well as client care letters with electronic signatures through […]
HMLR Practice Guide updates
HM Land Registry has released details of changes to several Practice Guides in this week’s update. Notices, restrictions and protection of third-party interests (PG19) This guide gives advice about how to apply for a notice or a restriction to protect a third-party interest in a registered estate or charge. It explains the effect of existing […]
“Lawyer certification” could help HMLR submissions
HM Land Registry has released its 2021-2024 Business Plan in which the plan to move further toward automated registrations, is outlined. The plan identifies 4 key elements in automating the process digital applications trust in the application information register data must be machine readable application processing must be automatable it also suggests a pilot “lawyer […]
Should conveyancers answer the phone?
Should your conveyancer answer the phone? According to Bernadette Bennett, head of legal at Moneypenny and Claire Yates, consultant and conveyancing founder of CY Training Works, the answer is unequivocally no. “Technical conveyancing skills and client handling skills are two very separate things, yet many practices still expect their conveyancers to be on the front […]
Active conveyancing firms recover to pre-pandemic levels
The number of property transactions registered in England and Wales climbed 20% over the last quarter, rising to 290,248 in Q2 2021, up from 241,916 in Q1 2021, according to the latest edition of the Conveyancing Market Tracker from Search Acumen, the property data insight and technology provider. This is the highest number of quarterly […]
Equity release activity nears pre-pandemic levels in Q2 as existing customers return
The Equity Release Council has published its Q2 2021 equity release market statistics which show that lending is nearing pre-pandemic levels as existing customers return to the market. Statistics show an increase in consumer confidence as 20,352 new and returning customers accessed property wealth between April and June, up from 16,527 in Q1 2021 and […]