Martin is a Senior Content Writer for Today’s Conveyancer, Today’s Wills and Probate, Today’s Legal Cyber Risk and Today’s Family Lawyer
Having qualified as a teacher, Martin previously worked as a Secondary English Teacher that responsible for Head of Communications.
After recently returning to the North West from Guernsey in the Channel Islands, Martin has left teaching to start a career in writing and pursue his lifelong passion with the written word.
In the opening six months of 2019, law firms reported that £731,250 worth of client money was lost to cyber crime, prompting the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) to deem cyber crime to be one of
Soaring house prices, political uncertainty and stagnant wages for created a difficult market for people trying to purchase UK property in 2019. As the year draws to an end, and the Government look for more
Since the 2017 Money Laundering Regulations came into force, conveyancers and key stakeholders in the property sector have struggled to prevent property from being purchased with illicit finance. Over 400 UK properties, worth in excess
17 properties worth in excess of £8 million have been seized by the National Crime Agency (NCA) following a civil recovery and tax investigation. Four members of the Davies family; Shane, his wife Rhianna, mother
Severe weather and flooding plagued the UK over the last night, culminating in transport disruption, home evacuations and extensive property damage. At the weather’s peak force, six severe weather warnings, indicating a threat/danger to life,
In August 2019, the Law Society published its latest thinking on the Government’s proposals to reform the process of residential conveyancing, based on the results of a consultation paper published in 2017. Most recently, the
UK construction work fell for the sixth consecutive month, slumping to the lowest output levels since the financial crisis in 2009. According to respondents of the IHS Markit/CIPS UK Construction Total Activity Index, optimism for
A National Audit Office (NAO) report has claimed that plans to build 200,000 affordable homes specifically for first-time buyers has failed in spectacular fashion with no homes being built. Despite the ‘starter homes’ idea and
Recent research into the amount of indoor radon concentrations in our homes suggests that the planet’s need to create more energy efficient living is also leading to increased radon related cancer deaths. UK Radon Awareness
Over half of home buyers and sellers believe Boris Johnson does not consider the housing sector to be a Governmental priority as he heads out on his campaign to win the December 12th election. Overall
A £250 million investment into vital infrastructure has been announced. The investment, announced by the Chancellor, will attempt to unlock over 20,000 homes nationwide. The money will be used to pay for schools, roads and
Legal technology specialists have created an app which accurately assesses the conveyancing readiness of a property. An app which Teal legal hope will create a smoother conveyancing process consumers will begin to enjoy. The product
Property transactions have increased by 14% between the second and third quarters of 2019. The 268,400 transactions in the second quarter of the year were dwarfed by the 305,100 transactions completed between June and September.
The Labour Party has announced radical plans to ensure all new build homes are ‘zero carbon’ and all existing homes are upgraded to become more energy efficient by 2022. This vision would come to fruition
Following the news that the average loss to a law firm suffering a fraudulent attack last year was over £173,000, the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is conducting a thematic review into the impact of cyber
Levels of people in support of more homes being built in their local area has plateaued in 2018. 57% of the population are looking for more new homes being built in their local area, according
![At the start of October, the 1,000th digital mortgage deed was registered with HM Land Registry (HMLR) with many heralding the accolade as promoting the property sector’s digital future. HMLR claim that the digital process, which is currently restricted to remortgaging, is speeding up the process, making it a lot more convenient and efficient for consumers. Some customers have boasted 3-day turnaround times on their remortgaging completions, shattering the average 18 days it takes to finalize the paper process. In part, reduced delays are avoided because paperwork trails are minimized with the portal system able to track the journey, highlighting any outstanding work and reminding key stakeholders of their obligations in the process. Furthermore, the online process allows for work to be completed at any point in the day and is not slowed by the postal service; offering instantaneous communication for all stakeholders. However, some people view this service as dangerous and a potential harbinger of online threats and increased property fraud with some viewing the system as a ‘fraudsters charter,’ offering information to potential criminals. In fact, recent data suggests HMLR are becoming a lot more adept at preventing fraudulent applications before they are completing. During the financial year 2017/18, 25 fraudulent applications were stopped, protecting property worth £15,684,000. However, between 2018/19, 47 properties were saved from criminal clutches by HMLR, according to recent freedom of information data. The number of indemnity claims made for fraud and forgery have also declined from 26 in 2017/18 to 18 in 2018/19, with payments also declining from £2.6 million to £0.4 million. Others also suggest it could be used to the detriment of vulnerable homeowners or occupiers, citing the Royal Bank of Scotland PLC V Etridge (No. 2) [2002] UKHL 44 case which found eight cases of undue influence between married couples where homeowners mortgaged their properties to secure loans used by the husbands to help support their businesses. The court found that lenders are obliged to make sure all parties obtain independent legal advice if the remortgage or loan will only benefit one person and concerns the matrimonial home with some anxious that the digital system could be manipulated to circumvent past laws. As HMLR look to roll out the digital mortgage process to all areas of mortgaging in the near-future, insurances of a robust safeguarding protocol is vital to protect all stakeholders from property fraud. Peter Frost, Chief Operating Officer at Coventry Building Society, said: “We’re delighted that this industry leading initiative to speed up property transactions has reached such a fantastic milestone. “Feedback from remortgagors has been very positive, with customers finding the process simple, quick and secure. “We’re proud to have worked with HM Land Registry and Enact Conveyancing on this initiative and are excited about the potential for it to be extended to purchases in the future.” Is the digital process vital to ensuring a customer-centric, efficient and swift mortgage process? Or, does it present a heightened level of cyber risk?](https://todaysconveyancer.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Digitisation-Of-The-Mortgage-Process-Increasingly-Appealing-To-Consumer-2.jpg)
At the start of October, the 1,000th digital mortgage deed was registered with HM Land Registry (HMLR) with many heralding the accolade as promoting the property sector’s imminent digital future. HMLR claim that the digital
Just 6 months to go until another unpopular tax change, in this case concerning amendments to principal private residents (PPR) relief from capital gains tax (CGT), comes into force. Following the 2018 Autumn Budget, the
Mortgage prisoners should be feeling more confident in finding a better deal after onerous and unfair barriers have now been removed. Earlier this week, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) announced that many mortgage customers trapped
An SRA review has highlighted a deep issue of anti-money laundering non-compliance entrenched within the legal sector. Over a fifth of firms reviewed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) have failed to create the required
Key mortgage market indicators suggest continued stability in the sector, at least in terms of committed buyers entering the market. Net mortgage borrowing remained consistent with previous months, falling slightly from £3.9 billion to £3.8
421 properties worth over £5 billion were bought in the UK using suspicious wealth. Stakeholders responsible for the prevention of money laundering through property transactions have been accused of struggling to stem the flow of
Over a million UK homes will be affected by new Environment Agency regulations from 1st January 2020. From this date, all people residing, building, owning or buying a property which is not attached to the
The Legal Services Board (LSB) is encouraging more legal services regulators to promote the uptake of Blockchain technology by regulated firms. Research conducted by the LSB has found that only 2% of legal service providers
The UK mortgage sector enjoyed huge approval and lending increases when compared with 2018, but floundered when compared with stronger summer lending levels. Remortgage approvals by high street banks increased by almost a quarter in
Whilst political turmoil continues to stifle UK residential and commercial construction, cradle and grave living construction remains strong. Purpose-Built Student Accommodation (PBSA) in the UK has enjoyed record levels of growth in 2019, rising by
Despite the Government passing legislation requiring councils to publish information with regards to how contributions made by developers are spent, huge amounts of money within the City of London remain unaccounted for. According to research,
New build home construction has fallen considerably in the third quarter of 2019. According to newly released figures from the National Housing Building Council (NHBC), during the last three months, the number of new homes
An overwhelming majority of the construction industry attributes political uncertainty and Brexit fears for the delay and cancellation of UK development projects. Overall, the construction sector is fearful that constant Brexit delays will lead to
The alleged Help to Buy premium on housing has been questioned following recent statistics claiming first-time buyer prices have increased in line with the home-buying average since the scheme’s launch in 2013. UK wide house
One of the UK’s housing association giants has suffered a serious data breach in recent days. The Home Group has advised 4,000 of their tenants and stakeholders that their personal details could have been siphoned
Transaction data released by HM Land Registry indicates a resilient and improving property market despite a barrage of Brexit uncertainty. The 1,709,120 applications to change or query the land register, are the highest recorded figures