Think tank predicts one million families to move
Ernst & Young’s Item Club has predicted that the Chancellor’s ‘Help to Buy’ measures will trigger a sharp increase in house moves. In good news for conveyancers, they believe levels will be boosted from their current low level leading to increased housing-related spending and construction. The Item Club think one million families will move house […]
Flood insurance – No further forward in a deluge of model arguments and alternatives
With less than three months to go until the expiry of the Statement of Principles, it seems that government, MPs, insurance companies and their associations are still at loggerheads on the best way to fund and prioritise protection for vulnerable homeowners. Insurance giant Marsh unveiled an alternative model at the second Environment, Food and Rural […]
SRA reassures those using Balva Insurance
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has reassured firms using Balva Insurance for their professional indemnity cover. Balva was told on 1 March that it cannot underwrite any new business in the United Kingdom. This restriction does not however affect existing policies, so the SRA has written to the 1,300 or so firms that use Balva […]
SRA thematic review results published
Concern about financial stability was one of the key issues identified in the latest thematic review by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). Whilst financial stability was seen as the biggest risk to firms undertaking conveyancing, the risk of removal from lenders panels was seen as the biggest risks for the conveyancing activities specifically. Conveyancing was […]
One in three could lose homes if lost jobs
35%, or 8.6 million people, would be unable to pay their rent or mortgage from their savings for more than a month. According to statistics released by charity Shelter 18%, or 4.4 million people, would not be able to pay their rent or mortgage at all if they could not secure a new job immediately. […]
SDT slam solicitor firm for misleading cost information
Last month we reported that Andersons Solicitors had been removed from a number of lender panels ahead of a Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal hearing. The hearing was to consider whether they had misled their clients regarding cost information. We now know that the firm had been removed from at least eight conveyancing panels and that it’s […]
Title Interrogation Report launched by CLS
Conveyancing Liability Solutions Limited (CLS) has announced the launch of TitleChecker, a new title interrogation report that examines Land Registry records and the relevant sections of the CML Handbook Part 1 and Part 2. TitleChecker automates the process of reviewing a title and produces a report to identify which areas require attention or further investigation. […]
Legal Eye expands team
Legal Eye announced today that two new Associates have joined the team. Lawyer and businessman Robin Marcus and Rhonda Hales, Account and Business Development Executive. The appointment follows recent expansion at Legal Eye, which advises legal practices on compliance and risk management. In their new roles Robin and Rhonda will strengthen Legal Eye’s compliance offering. […]
New approach to qualifying approved
The Legal Services Board has approved a new route to becoming a chartered legal executive. Currently, to become a chartered legal executive (also known as a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives – CILEx), applicants are judged on an outline they provide of their examinations and work experience, normally supported by a reference […]
Consumers expect house prices to rise
45% predict the average UK house price will rise in the next twelve months according to the latest Halifax Housing Market Confidence tracker. Only 12% felt prices were likely to decline. The survey revealed that the headline House Price Outlook balance (the difference between the proportion of people that expect house prices to rise rather than […]
Green Deal progess report
According to the latest figures from the Department of Energy and Climate Change over 9,000 Green Deal (GD) assessments have been lodged since the scheme launched in January. The Green Deal (GD) was launched on 28 January 2013 in England and Wales (and on 25 February in Scotland) will the intention of taking away barriers […]
79% hope to own house within 10 years
The Council for Mortgage Lenders have published the results of an extensive YouGov survey into attitudes to home ownership. The survey found that 79% of British adults would like to be home-owners in 10 years’ time. This is one of the lowest figures from the last 30 years and down significantly from a year ago […]
Majority of home owners think home valued correctly
70% of UK homeowners believe the current price of their property reflects its actual value. The Legal & General quarterly Mortgage Mood survey found that 5% of those surveyed believe their current house price is actually above what they might expect. These survey looks at the attitude of British homeowners and first-time buyers on a […]
Myhomemove announces conference line-up
Myhomemove, have announced the agenda for their conference to be held at the Heritage Motor Centre on 17th April. The event will include a line-up of guest speakers sharing cutting-edge industry knowledge, a gala dinner and a charity auction in aid of The Estate Agency Foundation. Confirmed speakers include; Robert Sinclair, Chief Executive at the […]
House prices continue to increase
According to the latest LSL House Price Index over the last year prices have risen by an average of £6,700. The majority of this increase can be attributed to significant increases in London. If London was taken out the picture a more modest increase of £1,117 would be seen. Prices fell in only one of […]
Valuations at post 2007 high
The total number of residential valuations conducted in March rose for the sixth consecutive month, taking them to a level not seen since March 2007. According to the latest Housing Market Activity Report by Connells Survey & Valuation valuations were up 24% from the same time last year. John Bagshaw, Corporate Services Director of Connells […]
Law Society of Scotland Sep Rep video
We reported in March that the Law Society of Scotland had voted on the issue of separate representation. Following discussion at their AGM on 22nd March, they voted in favour of introducing mandatory separate representation for borrower and lender. The Law Society of Scotland has published the video of that debate online. The video is […]
Making properties tradable – part 2
‘Anything can be made to work if you fiddle with it for long enough’ Now, where did we get to in the first part? Oh yes, we looked at some history, looked at the notion of caveat emptor and how it is out of date, and finished on the subject of MOTs. In this part […]
Searches UK Welcomes a Dynamic new Team Member!
The exciting news is that Lisa Summerton has joined our team as Sales and Marketing Director. Lisa’s previous experience includes all sales and product functions within the property industry and implementing new initiatives into companies and the market place. Lisa has a strong track record in sales management and business development within the legal sector […]
Blacks Connect launch free buyer protection
Blacks Connect have launched an insurance policy that will reimburse many of the costs of moving home if the purchase falls through. The service will be offered free of charge to customers. The announcement comes a week after The Source announced the launch of a fixed price buyer protection policy. The Blacks Connect buyer protection […]
