Conveyancers face statutory duty to check identities (LF)
Conveyancers would come under a new statutory duty to check the identity of clients and make indemnity payments to the Land Registry if they failed to take reasonable care, under […]
Careless conveyancers could be liable for title fraud (LSG)
HM Land Registry could recover millions of pounds from conveyancers who fail to take reasonable steps to verify their clients’ identities under Law Commission recommendations to reform the Land Registration […]
Making conveyancing quicker and better – that’s the promise… (EAT)
The Law Commission has unveiled proposals that it claims could stop property fraudsters in their tracks and improve conveyancing at the same time.
New draft legislation launched to expose true owners of UK property bought by foreign entities (PIE)
Foreign companies owning UK properties will have to reveal their ultimate owners on the world’s first public register, after a new draft law was laid yesterday.
Big surge in down-valuations as ‘surveyors predict housing market crash’ (PIE)
There has been a ‘significant’ rise in down-valuations which are now running at the highest rate since the crash in 2008.
Criminals who launder money though UK property could face 5 years in prison (TC)
The Government has announced that foreign companies that own UK properties will have to reveal their ultimate owners on the world’s first public register.
Bid to reduce “low-quality” money laundering reports (LF)
High numbers of low-quality suspicious activity reports (SARs) are making it difficult to investigate money laundering, the Law Commission has warned.
Japanese Knotweed remains problem for sellers despite recent ‘all clear’ (EAT)
Japanese Knotweed remains a major problem for a property sale – and that’s despite a recent study suggesting that the growth is relatively harmless.
Why we must all get behind Countrywide’s recovery plan (PIE)
Countrywide’s long-term recovery plan, set to be revealed with its interim results on Thursday, should be eagerly awaited by estate agents across the country.
Referral fees – why a ban won’t make services cheaper (EAT)
Any belief that services would automatically be cheaper without agent referral fees is a false one for several reasons.
Agents’ fees cartel : investigation blows the lid on how it was planned (EAT)
An investigation by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has blown the lid on the infamous fee-fixing cartel scandal involving estate agents at Burnham on Sea in Somerset.
Is this why transactions have slumped? Equity Release hits a new high… (EAT)
Only 24 hours after the Land registry released data showing a 20 per cent slump in housing transactions, new figures from the Equity Release Council throw some light on why […]