Zoopla, the UK’s fastest-growing property website, is considering a float which according to The Sunday Times could see it valued between £1bn and £1.3bn. Zoopla has appointed Credit Suisse to “explore further strategic opportunities as
The LFS Conveyancing Conference is nearly upon us. This is the only major conference of 2013 specifically designed for those who run major Conveyancing departments. Richard Mathias of LFS says — “ Its been a
The National Landlords Association (NLA) has revealed that students are amongst the most reliable tenants, with only 38% of student landlords having experienced arrears in last year. This is compared to 59% of landlords letting
The latest government figures show that over 25,000 new homeowners have been created by government-backed schemes. 3,749 people have taken up the industry-led NewBuy scheme since its launch in March 2012. During the first four
Leading economic think tank The Adam Smith Institute has warned that Help to Buy will not end the housing crisis. The institute believes that the government’s plans to increase liquidity in the housing market
There were 26,100 sales to first-time buyers in July, the highest level since November 2007. According to the latest First Time Buyer Monitor from LSL Property Services, the number of first-time buyers rose 45% year-on-year
The Financial Ombudsman Service has released the latest six-monthly complaints data relating to individual financial businesses. The data details complaints handled by the ombudsman service between 1 January and 30 June 2013. Two types of
A new scheme hopes to bring England’s 710,000 empty properties back to life by offering loans up to £15,000 to their owners. The National Empty Homes Fund (NEHLF); a joint initiative between the charity Empty
Samantha Barrass has been appointed chief executive of the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission and will leave the SRA in February. The move makes a return to financial services for Ms Barrass, who had a successful
Move with Us Partner Network member, Newton Fallowell, has earned more than £2 million of revenue from corporate property sales and conveyancing transactions. Newton Fallowell, an independently owned group of estate agents in the Midlands,
The Council for Licensed Conveyancers has submitted its response to the review of regulation of legal services being run by the Ministry of Justice. Their submission focuses on changes that could be made in order
Zoopla Property Group Ltd (ZPG) announced yesterday that it has acquired Trinity Mirror Digital Property Ltd (TMDP), from Trinity Mirror plc. Trinity Mirror Digital Property owns a portfolio of property websites including SmartNewHomes.co.uk, HomesOverseas.co.uk, Email4Property.co.uk
A licensed conveyancer at a Kent law firm has become the first in his profession to be promoted to partnership. Alan Johnston, joint head of property at Stephens & Sons in Chatham, has worked for
A new type of insurance, “Residential Abortive Transaction Insurance”, has been launched which covers if a property transaction fails to complete for any reason beyond your control, during any part of the transaction chain. Northcott
The Society of Licensed Conveyancers (SLC) has announced that places for its late summer road shows are filling up fast. Anyone who has not yet booked is advised to do so now. The regional road
The CLC has today announced that it is proposing to make no changes to licence and practice fees for the year beginning November 2013. The methods for calculation of fees and the levels of fee
The first half results for Co-operative Legal Services show a £3.4m loss in the first half of 2013. Losses were put down to the “start-up nature of the business”, however the figure is in comparison
According to the Nationwide House Price Index house prices increased by 0.6% in August, a 3.5% from the same time last year. August was a slightly flattering month for comparison, however the three month on
According to research from estate agent Marsh & Parsons the average price of a two-bedroom property in London could hit £1m by next March. Their research shows that following a 14% appreciation over the last
Over the last 12 months to June the number of estate agent insolvencies increased 57%, from 49 to 77 firms. According to research from accountancy firm Wilkins Kennedy LLP the increasing number of estate agents
The Law Society has unveiled Chancery Pii, a joint venture between the Society and Miller Insurance Services LLP, which will provide PII cover for firms with between one and four partners. Chancery Pii will provide
11,200 loans for house purchase were granted to first-time buyers in London in the second quarter of 2013, the largest quarterly figure since the end of 2007. According to new data from the CML, these
The government has launched a new online resource which will house all national planning practice guidance. Planning Minister Nick Boles announced yesterday that the new system would add simplicity and clarity to the planning process.
The Society of Licensed Conveyancers (SLC) has announced their annual conveyancing conference will take place on the 20th November at the Riverside Centre in Derby. It is the third year the conference has run, offering
In July remortgage lending rose 12.7% from £3.7bn to £4.2bn, the highest gross lending figure for this time of year since 2008. Remortgaging now accounts for 25% of the total market according to the latest
The Law Society of Scotland (LSS) released the results from their separate representation consultation last week. The consultation generated 279 responses with 49% in favour and 51% against the proposed rule change. The results clearly
Total gross mortgage lending in July increased to £16.6 billion, up 12% from £14.8 billion in June. The figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders showed an increase of 29% from the total of £12.9
The latest figures from the Department for Communities and Local Government show that 2,149 properties were sold between April and June this year. Compared to the 443 sold during the same period in 2012. The
Former chancellor Lord Lamont has warned ministers to be wary of the growth in the buy-to-let market. Speaking to The Observer he expressed concern that the bubble of buy-to-let could collapse causing widespread problems. His
A new buy-to-let property hotspot heat-map will give investors insight into which areas in England and Wales offer the best rental yields. The Move with Us produced map shows that whilst prices continue to grow
Five months after floating on the stock exchange Countrywide’s shares have taken a nose dive as two backers sold off large numbers of shares in the company. Buyout firms Oaktree and Apollo sold 35 million
According to the latest National Housing Market Monitor from haart confidence has returned. However, the housing market is constrained by a shortage in supply. Whilst total new buyers have increased by 27.9% annually, new properties for