CML predicts steady volumes for 2016/17
The volume of residential properties to stay steady into 2016/17 according to predictions from The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML). According to the CML, there were approximately 1,219,000 residential property transactions last year, with their prediction for 2015 being 1,210,000. For next year, the CML believes there will be some growth to 1,230,000 transactions with another […]
Law Society president Jonathan Smithers vows to "learn lessons" from Veyo project
President of the Law Society Jonathan Smithers has vowed to learn lessons from the failure of the Veyo project. Responding to an open letter written by Rob Hailstone, also sought to emphasise the operational independence of Legal Practice Technologies (LPT) and its employees from the Law Society itself. Jonathan Smithers wrote: “Closing the Veyo project […]
Solicitors and conveyancers get in the festive spirit for Christmas Jumper Day
Solicitors and conveyancers up and down the UK have been getting in the festive spirit for charity today. “Christmas Jumper Day” is an annual fundraising campaign organisd by Save The Children, which encourages people to “make the world better with a sweater.” Here are some of our favourites from around the UK. Well done to […]
Karen Pay joins My Home Move as Director of Human Resources
Karen Pay has joined My Home Move, the UK’s leading provider of mover conveyancing services, as Director of Human Resources. Karen who has previously worked for Xylem Water Solutions, GRG Executive Search and Germanischer Lloyd GL, has over 17 years’ experience within the HR sector. She is an experienced board level partner who excels in […]
Christmas rush (Conveyancer Slater – Tweet of the Week)
You DO NOT understand busy unless you work in conveyancing over Christmas!! — shaylie (@shaylie_marie) December 17, 2015
Effortlessly reduce risk with Searches UK’s online ordering platform
As a client of Searches UK you can rest assured in the knowledge that your search provider is continually reviewing its products and services to make the lives of busy solicitors and conveyancers a whole lot easier. In 2015 Searches UK made improvements to their online ordering platform to assist solicitors and conveyancers in reducing […]
SRA appoints new board members
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) have appointed five new members to its board. The new members are Sharon Darcy, Barry Matthews, Geoff Nicholas, Dame Denise Platt and Deep Sagar. SRA Chair, Enid Rowlands, said: “I’m delighted to announce that we have five such distinguished appointees joining our Board in the New Year. “They will bring […]
Pali launches new revolutionary system for conveyancers
Pali is pleased to announce they can now offer their solicitor clients a streamlined system that will allow anyone within their firm to quote prospective clients for conveyancing either face to face, over the telephone or via email, in seconds. By simply entering basic information, this new facility will calculate the quote in real time […]
InfoTrack and Lawyer Checker to deliver educational webinars focused on the growing threat of fraud
InfoTrack and Lawyer Checker have announced a new webinar designed to help conveyancers understand what can be done to protect themselves from fraudulent activity. Identity theft and fraud continue to increase significantly for both the conveyancer and law firms. Subsequently, it is imperative for law firms to protect their business using the necessary tools available. […]
Efficient processing in the digital age (less paper and more efficient process)
Until now the Government’s digital by default approach has had slow adoption. In his Autumn Statement, the Chancellor confirmed his commitment to making savings of 18% to the HMRC budget by scrapping paper processing and committing to central Government’s Digital Drive. It is not surprising that the Chancellor chose to mention HMRC. HMRC has dabbled […]
Remortgagors release extra cash ahead of Christmas
A third of remortgagors increase the size of their home loan to release cash, of which two in three increased their loan size by more than £10,000 More than three-fifths refinance to also take advantage of competitive rates available Nearly a third (31%) borrowers who remortgaged in November, did so to increase the size of […]
House prices to soar 50% and rent by over a quarter by 2025, predicts ARLA and NAEA
Renting population to increase by 9%, while home ownership will fall by 7% by 2025 Drastic and immediate policy overhaul is necessary to fix Britain’s broken housing market ARLA and NAEA launch Housing 2025 report, compiled with CEBR Rents are set to sky-rocket, and buying a house is getting further out of reach for many, […]
Gross monthly lending 23% up year on year for November
Gross monthly mortgage lending for November was up 23% to £19.9 billion compared with November 2015 according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML). The CML also report that gross mortgage lending has dipped 9% from October 2015 as the market slows down for winter. CML economist, Mohammad Jamei, said: “Lending is set to finish […]
Rob Hailstone and Bold Legal calls on Law Society to prove Veyo was ever wanted
Rob Hailstone of the Bold Legal group has published an open letter calling for the Law Society to explain itself in detail over the Veyo fiasco. As part of the 15 points put to Law Society president Jonahan Smithers and Chief Exec Catherine Dixon, Rob Hailstone calls ont he Law Society to provide “evidence that […]
Online estate agents PurpleBricks shares dip after IPO
Online estate agents Purplebricks have launched on London’s alternative investment market (AIM) with shares initially valued at £240.3 million up for sale. Shares had fallen slightly from 100p to 94p after their first two hours of trading. Purplebricks is the first of a series of online estate agents to debut on the stock market. Launched in […]
Cyber scams cause continuous chaos
Friday afternoon computer issues are the last thing any Conveyancer needs, but how often is a phishing email put down to IT issues? At the busiest of times it is easy to overlook simple spelling errors, a slight change in email addresses and an inconsistent use of telephone numbers. The Government recently introduced a ‘Cyber […]
Eddie Goldsmith, Chairman of the Conveyancing Association's predictions for 2016
Private tenants are set to bear the brunt of the Government’s move to encourage homebuying, according to Eddie Goldsmith, Chairman of the Conveyancing Association (CA). Mr Goldsmith also isn’t holding his breath for the market to fill the gap left behind with the failure of Veyo. Making his predictions for the New Year, Eddie Goldsmith […]
Mortgage Advice Bureau buys stake in online conveyancing hub
The Mortgage Advice Bureau (MAB) have bought a stake in online conveyancing hub Sort Refer. The sale of a 23% stake in Sort Refer’s parent company Sort Ltd for £350,000 is being funded out of the independent mortgage broker’s existing cash resources. Peter Brodnicki, CEO of Mortgage Advice Bureau, said: “The combination of legal and […]
Firms warned to be prepared for "ransomware"
Specialist malware attacks by viruses nicknamed “Ransomware” are on the rise, according to experts, with twice as many attacks globally in 2015 as in 2014. The malware works by encrypting files and demanding a ransom – usually in bitcoins – to decrypt the files. In light of attacks in the US law enforcement officials have […]
Electronic identity checks can safeguard the conveyancing industry from fraudsters
The news of a young woman being duped into handing over £1.35 million to a person purporting to be the legal owner of the property was reported in the Daily Mail last week. It serves as another stark reminder of the risk of fraud in the conveyancing sector. Maud Rousseau, Group Marketing and Communications Director […]
