Almost two thirds of regulated firms believe hard copy documents provide reassurance a customer is genuine, latest anti-money laundering data has revealed. Despite questions of validity, nearly half of all firms questioned still use hard
Simply Conveyancing has appointed Heather Keates as Head of Quality and Compliance. Bringing over three decades of conveyancing experience to the role, this new appointment is part of Simply’s continuing commitment to provide clients with
Fines for these breaches have totalled over £500,000 HMRC has announced 68 estate agents have been fined for not complying with anti-money laundering regulations. The announcement on the 11th of October revealed that 68 estate
Lenders account for 71% of the £250bn worth of property sold in the last 12 months Over the last 12 months, the property market across Great Britain has seen just over £251bn worth of property
Research has revealed that British home sellers are willing to cut their asking price expectations by as much as £150,000, in order to attract a cash buyer for a smoother sale in what remains a
10 reasons why you should contact LawCare Legal mental health charity LawCare is asking the legal community to tell ten friends or colleagues about their support service this World Mental Health Day. The charity, which
The New Homes Quality Board (NHQB) has been launched to ensure new build home buyers are granted more protections on their purchases. The NHQB has introduced a new Consumer Code which includes a broad range
Plans aim to facilitate surveyors assessing residential buildings The government has announced a new professional indemnity insurance scheme for property surveyors assessing cladding. The aim is for the scheme to streamline the process for leaseholders
Liz Truss breaks Conservative pledge in 2019 to allow fracking despite safety concerns and opposition Backbench Conservative MPs are set to provide their opposition to the government’s plan to lift a ban on fracking, despite
Research has shown that as the UK property market starts to cool, buyers and sellers are having to negotiate a £8,000 reality gap, as a result of downvaluations. The average UK house price is currently
This week, the Bank of England announced an interest rate rise from 1.75% to 2.25%, and are expected to keep rising. It is widely accepted that this will have a profound impact on the UK
Smoove launches digital onboarding platform Smoove Start Following its pilot launch, Smoove announces the full market roll out of its digital onboarding platform, Smoove Start, which aims to help estate agents and their clients streamline
The Law Society of England and Wales has launched a diversity and inclusion (D&I) framework to serve as a roadmap for workplaces to develop and deliver a strategic approach to D&I. Law Society president I.
It has been announced today that Private Banker Finance – a new Master Broker for high end mortgages – is to sponsor the Mortgage Broker categories at this year’s ESTAS Awards. Chris Bland, Co-founder of
Invasive plant consultancy Environet UK is hosting a webinar on 21st October, 2022 at 10am aimed at property professionals including estate agents, conveyancers and surveyors, to provide the latest insight into Japanese knotweed and its
The Head of Conveyancing at South Worcestershire law firm Quality Solicitors Parkinson Wright has been crowned Worcestershire Law Society’s Solicitor of the Year 2022. Sarah Phillips, Residential Property Partner at the firm, was announced as
Latest figures show boom in mortgage approvals, reversing pattern shown in previous months Following a week of turmoil for the property industry the latest figures from the Bank of England (BoE) have shown that approvals
Average time to buy now stands at 153 days compared to 124 days in 2019 The average time taken to complete a house purchase now takes longer than five months on average, according to research
Five fastest and slowest areas in England and Wales to complete property purchases A new index has highlighted the fastest, and slowest, areas in the country for transaction times. The index calculates the average time
According to Zoopla’s House Price Index (HPI) for August 2022, the housing market is transitioning to a buyers’ market as higher mortgage rates are set to cut buying power by up to 28%. It is
Twenty7tec has released mortgage market figures to identify precisely how busy the mortgage market has been so far in 2022. The findings show that the total number of remortgage searches so far 2022 overtook the
The very best of the paralegal profession was celebrated at the annual National Paralegal Awards hosted by the Professional Paralegal Register on Thursday 22nd September 2022. The awards ceremony, which is now in its fourth
The Welsh Government has announced an increase to the Land Transaction Tax (LTT) threshold for houses to £225,000. The Welsh version of stamp duty follows the UK government’s announcement last week which also raised the
Market analysis reveals that the total value of bridging loan lending in the UK has increased by 22% in the past year alone, with the purchase of an investment property being the most common motivation
DLUHC figures demonstrate the highest recorded figures for new build homes during second quarter of 2022 Official government figures show that record numbers of new housing developments were started during the second quarter of 2022.
An explicit requirement on licensed conveyancers to treat customers fairly has been proposed as part of a new statement of ethical principles by the Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC). The specialist regulator also plans to
Cheshire based Rowlinsons Solicitors have announced that they have been accepted as a member of the Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners (ALEP). Leasehold enfranchisement covers lease extensions, purchasing the freehold of a house or, as
AIIC Group rebrand comes at time of significant transformation for the consumer-focused legal services group AIIC Holdings (“AIIC”), the holding company behind leading independent law firm Taylor Rose MW, today announces a full rebranding setting
The UK Household Finance Review for the second quarter has been released. According to the review, house purchase activity is reverting back to pre-Covid levels with Q2 of 2019 and this year showing similar results.
The National Paralegal Awards, hosted by the PPR is taking place on Thursday 22nd September at the Iconic Grand Hotel Birmingham. This year there are 18 hotly contested categories with trophies up for grabs. This
Numerous complaints have been made by Simpson Millar’s clients after the firm closed its conveyancing department, leading to the firm making a public apology Simpson Millar has apologised to clients who were affected by the
New research has revealed that alternative law firms (ALF)s are growing at a faster pace than their traditional counterparts – and there are even suggestions that up to a quarter of lawyers could work at