Economic forecast could be ‘somewhat weaker’ as a result of Middle East tensions, says Nationwide
Economic growth is likely to be “somewhat weaker” with higher inflation than previously projected because of geo-political tensions in the Middle East, according to Nationwide Building Society in its latest appraisal of the UK housing market. The house price index reveals current market conditions have surprised the lender, given a weakening of consumer confidence. “Despite […]
HMLR offering free post completion training to ‘avoid easy errors’
HM Land Registry (HMLR) is offering a series of interactive workshops designed for post-completion specialists to support efforts to reduce errors and save time and money. The webinars explore some of the most common issues that conveyancers face, HMLR says, and provide a clear understanding of what common requisitions the agency receives and how to […]
‘Context is everything’ in latest HMRC transaction figures
HMRC figures for seasonally adjusted residential transactions in March 2026 are 1% higher than February 2026, up to 104,070 from 102,750 – the highest monthly transaction figure since March 2025. Seasonally adjusted transaction figures are 41% lower than in March 2025. The large year-on-year decrease is driven by elevated transaction levels in March 2025 ahead […]
Law Society publishes tax adviser registration Q&A
The Law Society has published a question and answer section on its website relating to the upcoming requirement for conveyancers to register as tax advisers with HMRC. Despite efforts to convince the government that conveyancers should not be identified as tax advisers under the Finance Act 2026 for the role they play in processing stamp […]
Leasehold ‘blighting lives’ says housing minister, as plans to introduce commonhold reaffirmed
The government has reaffirmed plans to introduce commonhold as the default tenure to “stop the renewal of the leasehold system” and give homeowners back control of their homes. Speaking at the Institute for Government, Matthew Pennycook , the minister of state for housing, communities and local government, described leasehold as a “blight” and a barrier […]
Renting cheaper than a mortgage for first time since June 2025
Higher average mortgage rates have pushed monthly repayments above the cost of renting a typical home in Great Britain for the first time since June 2025, according to a new analysis from Rightmove. The average advertised monthly rent across Great Britain is currently £1,547, compared to an average new monthly mortgage payment of £1,670. Rightmove […]
Demand rebounds to highest level since Middle East conflict began
The latest house price index from Zoopla reveals a resilient market in the face of ongoing conflict and higher mortgage rates. Buyer enquiries have rebounded to their highest level since the Middle East conflict began, running at just 2% lower than last year. Sales agreed are 3% lower, with house price inflation steady at 1.3%. […]
Landlords ‘rushing to offload entire portfolios’ ahead of Renters’ Rights Act deadline
Landlords are rushing to offload property ahead of the Renters Rights Act coming into force on Friday, claiming the legislation is “the final straw” in a market that is no longer commercially viable. Kent and London law firm Thackray Williams says its litigation team has had a wave of last-minute instructions from landlords who want […]
Stress and high costs ‘bringing housing market to a standstill’
Surveys from the Open Property Data Association (OPDA) and the Homeowners Alliance suggest moving home is such an unpleasant and expensive experience, it’s bringing the market to a standstill. A survey of 5,000 home buyers by OPDA found 66% are reluctant to go through another move, with one in five saying they’d been significantly put […]
Unrealistic asking prices ‘piling pressure on conveyancers’
A growing gap between asking prices and final sale values is creating an increasingly stressful environment for conveyancers, new research suggests. According to Access Legal, price negotiations that persist long after instruction lead to conveyancers being forced to manage the administrative fallout, resulting in an increased workload per case and reduced billable margins. The software […]
‘Hidden tax’ referral fees should be banned, says conveyancing action group
Referral fees are a hidden tax on home buying and should be banned, according to the Conveyancing Task Force, a group of practising conveyancers, law firms and representatives from regional law societies. In a position statement issued this week, the CTF said it recognises “the reality that referral fees are entrenched across the conveyancing market,” […]
Determined buyers sustaining demand, despite ‘fresh fog’ of rising inflation and house price slowdown
After Rightmove’s latest data offered a more optimistic picture of the housing market, ONS consumer price inflation figures and UK house price index bring what PwC UK described as “a fresh fog”. But despite the ongoing uncertainty over the Middle East conflict, other experts point out the house price index offers a backdated snapshot, and […]
A third of first-time buyers don’t understand the process, research finds
New research from Mortgage Advice Bureau (MAB) suggests there is a ‘confidence gap’ among prospective first-time buyers which is stopping them from buying. Despite more than half (52%) of the 1,001 renters surveyed by MAB saying they’re ready to purchase in 2026 and 75% feeling positive about their mortgage options, four in 10 of the […]
Fully digital homebuyer service launched by Lloyds Banking Group, LMS and Connells Group
Lloyds Banking Group, LMS and Connells Group have launched a fully digital home buying service, which the partners say will reshape the way homes are bought and sold across England and Wales. The digital homebuyer service has been developed to eliminate the points of frustration and cut weeks of waiting and uncertainty from the process, […]
Rightmove’s data shows a housing market holding up despite earlier fears
The latest data from Rightmove reveals a “surprisingly resilient” housing market, with the real-time market snapshot showing new buyer demand for April 7% below this time last year but consistent with this year’s trend of lagging behind 2025. First-time buyer demand is slightly stronger, down by 6% on last year. However, the last seven days […]
Post-pandemic property boom fuels remortgage market as five-year deals come to an end
A near 25% increase in mortgage activity in the first quarter of 2025 was driven by a 46% increase in remortgaging as “rafts of borrowers” continue to come off ultra-low pandemic era mortgage products, according to the latest Mortgage Market Briefing from Stonebridge. The brokerage network says the surge was due to large number of […]
‘Reform can’t come soon enough’, as time to exchange tops 19 weeks
The average time to exchange in the UK so far in 2026 is 134 days, or 4.4 months, according to the latest Property & Homemover Report from TwentyEA. The increase is backed up by data from Propertymark, whose member agents reported an average of 43% of housing transactions taking longer than 17 weeks to complete […]
Q1 property trends are encouraging for conveyancers, Landmark report suggests
Residential property data for Q1 of 2026 contains encouraging trends for conveyancers, the latest report from Landmark Information Group suggests. Although global pressures and affordability are constraining home moving activity, listing volumes rose by 3% year-on-year across Q1 2026, Landmark’s data reveals. A 6% uplift in January has resulted in consistently high levels of stock […]
‘Modest but meaningful’ drop in fall-through rates across UK
Fall-through rates have fallen slightly in 10 of the UK’s 13 regions, according to the latest report from property data analysts TwentyCi. The national rate fell from 24% in Q1 25 to 23.7% in Q1 26 – “a modest but meaningful” 0.3% percentage-point decline, TwentyCi said. The year-on-year reduction stands at 1.3%. The improvement was found […]
‘Tough times ahead’ in buy-to-let market as demand falls
Demand in the buy-to-let market has been largely fuelled by re-mortgaging, with new purchases falling slightly in Q4 of 2025 compared to the same period a year ago, newly released figures from UK Finance reveal. There were 59,489 new buy-to-let loans advanced in the UK, worth a total of £11.2 billion and up 18.2% on […]