Archive

Councils across England could make an additional £540m a year in council tax on empty homes after new rules came into...

You don’t have to simply accept things as they are when it comes to managing your client accounts. If your bank...

It usually takes a scandal or a reshuffle to remove a Government minister so it came as a bit of a...

Like millions of others, I watched in open-mouthed astonishment as details emerged about the Post Office scandal. I knew a little bit about...

Like so many I’ve been infuriated by the injustice meted out to sub-postmasters and postmistresses over many years.  I was aware of...

This week saw around 80 conveyancing firms across the UK paralysed by a service outage caused by a ‘cyber incident’ on...

The proposals to shake the Private Rental Sector (PRS) to its foundations will, depending upon your political persuasion and housing status,...

Estate agency branches are bracing themselves for “a very difficult few months,” the National Association of Property Buyers (NAPB) claims. The NAPB...

The apparent battle for the future of beleaguered online agency brand Purplebricks took an interesting turn last week when activist investor...

In tougher times – as is the case now, post-Covid, post-Brexit, cost-of-living crisis, war in Ukraine, etc – reputation and consumer...

Is Facebook giving you a headache? If you’re in the property sector, you’re not alone! From the Cambridge Analytica Scandal to...

Time is up for Boris Johnson's tenure as Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party, serving 3 years and 44...

Despite all the controversy surrounding it in recent years, and various government attempts to address the leasehold scandal, new research from...

Housing Secretary Greg Clark, who is also the Levelling Up Secretary, has been caught up in the storm surrounding Rishi Sunak...

Yesterday’s publication of Purplebricks’ annual results – which made for very difficult reading for the troubled brand – came as part...

Purplebricks has this morning announced its long-awaited annual results, delayed since July 12 due to internal changes. It shows that revenue...

The last week has been dramatic even by the standards of UK politics, with a Cabinet and junior minister rebellion bringing...

A high-profile review of the governance and purpose of the RICS has said the need for change at the institution is...

The Prime Minister has tonight won a confidence vote in his leadership and hung on to his premiership. After a dramatic day at...

The property industry is fortunate in including many great people, doing great work across a range of businesses – from traditional agency...

Yesterday afternoon, Helena Marston was finally confirmed as Purplebricks new CEO after all the due diligence checks that are required for...

A national newspaper has lifted the lid on what it alleges to be the backgrounds of high-end self-employed agents who feature...

If the UK and its allies have been played by Russia over the Ukraine ‘invasion’, and it’s beginning to look that...

The government is threatening to deny planning consent to developers who refuse to pay towards the removal of unsafe cladding on...

It really is beginning to look a lot like Christmas – just a week to go now. Presents all wrapped and...

The perception of the housing market, especially in London, being awash with ‘dirty’ money is a problem that needs to be...

A petition calling on the government to set up an independent enquiry into the cladding crisis has reached a key 10,000...

The bid by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors to re-establish itself as a trusted body continues with the naming of...

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has given a ringing endorsement to home ownership as a central part of the government’s levelling up...

Propertymark has spoken out over the Pandora Papers leak scandal, which reveals many elite and super-rich buyers of properties in London...

The governing council of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has issued a public apology to the whistle blowers whose actions...

New Housing Secretary Michael Gove is reported to be set to press ahead with plans to pause controversial planning reforms.  It came...

Boris Johnson's sudden and unexpectedly ruthless Cabinet reshuffle, which drew comparisons with Margaret Thatcher's 'purge of the wets' in 1981, ended...

The Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners (ALEP) has become the latest body to welcome the decision by Countryside Properties to scrap the requirement to pay...

In a day of unexpected drama, Boris Johnson carried out a surprisingly brutal and widespread Cabinet reshuffle which saw a number...

One of the biggest campaign groups calling for leasehold reform has welcomed the action taken by the Competition and Markets Authority...

Robert Jenrick has been sacked from his post as Housing, Communities and Local Government Secretary. He was the third major name to...

In what will be seen as the latest win for leaseholders across the UK, it’s been revealed that – following action...

The independent QC leading a review into the governance scandal at the RICS says there was “no fraudulent or criminal misbehaviour”...

The independent review into the RICS scandal of recent months and how the governance of the body failed, has thrown up...

A news conference today is expected to reveal more details of the governance scandal which has engulfed the Royal Institution of...

The chief executive of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, Sean Tompkins, is in talks to step down according to an...

The work of the National Trading Standards Estate and Letting Agency Team is “vital” it claims - and the case of the...

The publication of a report following a controversial RICS investigation has been pushed back another month. Last month it was announced that...

A property that used to house one of London’s best known prostitutes - and which carries a blue plaque celebrating her...

NAEA Propertymark says the news that two major players in the leasehold sector have reformed their activities must be just the...

The Grenfell Tower disaster in June 2017 exposed the dangers of inflammable cladding on residential tower blocks, and what has come...

Two of Britain’s largest house builders have reacted sharply to calls by Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick and the Competition and Markets...

The Competition and Markets Authority has written to two top house builders ordering them to change their leasehold terms. In September the...

One of the biggest trends in recent times, as a direct result of the pandemic, is the concept of working from...

New guidance has been issued in a bid to allow agents to get the insurance payouts they expect from the Business...

Members of Propertymark are left wondering today what if any future there is for the industry’s trade body. The shock resignation yesterday...

An agent is challenging the insurer Hiscox over its interpretation of whether to honour a Business Interruption Insurance policy. A standard letter...

Rightmove is the latest portal to forge a link with the controversial Modern Method of Auction service being offered to agents. A...

Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick has announced “an exceptional intervention” promising that leaseholders in high-rise buildings above 18 metres will bear no...

Labour and Conservative MPs have expressed a unanimous view on their desire to see an extension of the stamp duty holiday...

Labour has entered the cladding controversy by calling a vote in the House of Commons to force government action on the...

The Supreme Court will give its judgment on the long-running Business Interruption Insurance case on Friday. In November a Supreme Court appeal...

Agents anxious to know if they will receive a payout from their Business Interruption Insurance will have to wait still longer...

A leasehold group has written to Housing Minister Chris Pincher pressing for an update on the government’s approach to reform for...

Ed Mead has joined a growing chorus demanding government action on the cladding crisis. He is one of the industry’s leading figures from...

The many agents believed to be awaiting pay-outs on their Business Interruption Insurance will have some consolation in knowing that the...

One of the victims of a notorious estate agency price fixing cartel has spoken out against one of the offenders.  Christina Davis...

It’s fair to say that UK estate agents don’t have the best of reputations, often featuring in the lists of the...

A PropTech firm that regularly claims London homes are mis-measured in property descriptions has taken a swipe at Purplebricks. Pupil, a spatial...

Agents are awaiting the outcome of a test case regarding Business Interruption Insurance, which may determine whether they receive thousands of...

The long-awaited proposals for leasehold reform produced by the Law Commission suggests giving owners the right to extend their lease for...

An eight day court hearing kicks off this morning as the Financial Conduct Authority begins a test case regarding Business Interruption...

It may be that by the time you read this it’s all over for Robert Jenrick, the Secretary of State for...

Controversial Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick is the subject of a harshly critical cartoon in The Times which depicts “pigs in the...

The phrase ‘game-changer’ has been hugely overused. But when applied to how Covid-19 is changing the way estate agents will work...

Two estate agency directors have been disqualified by the Competition and Markets Authority after taking part in an illegal price fixing...

More details have been released about a test case being brought by the Financial Conduct Authority about the ongoing Business Interruption...

Dominic Cummings has been at worst a cause of huge anger to a nation that’s already extremely anxious. At best, he’s been...

The scandal over Business Interruption Insurance policies is hotting up, with class actions being discussed against insurance firms and the Financial Conduct Authority announcing...

The Competitions and Markets Authority has started court proceedings seeking the disqualification of two estate agency directors over a price fixing...

Unfortunately for consumers, buying and selling properties is rarely plain sailing. But fortunately for agents, this provides you with an opportunity to...

The Competition and Markets Authority has released a 135 page document giving explicit details of its latest agency cartel investigation. This includes...

There’s no doubt that we live in politically charged times and every day appears to bring something new to the ‘party’. For...

The price premium paid by purchasers for a freehold property rather than a leasehold is at its highest for eight years. An...

A PropTech company is suggesting that property mis-measurements and resulting over-valuations may be the next PPI scandal. The firm - Spec, which...

Is this the ultimate in accountability or a desperate bid to win back public support for a company damaged by the...

A leasehold reform campaigner says government proposals risk creating a two-tier market and do nothing to assist leaseholders already hit by...

Theresa May’s ‘hostile environment’ policy that was implemented in 2012 was designed to make staying and residing in the UK as...

So far in our contribution to the campaign to replace leasehold with commonhold we have outlined the stories of some of...

In recent weeks our campaign to replace leasehold with commonhold has continued to gather momentum both in the press and across...

Proceedings against an estate agent at the centre of a fees cartel case have been dropped following his agreement not to stand as...

The leasehold scandal continues to generate plenty of column inches, with fresh stories emerging almost daily of people living in unsellable...

The leasehold scandal has received plenty of press coverage, with horror stories of people living in homes that are impossible to...

Campaigning groups like Generation Rent and Shelter like to think they are simultaneously edgy and radical; likewise some think tanks believe...

When it comes to major issues confronting housing, and in particular the direction that the government would like to take the...

A survey of owners has revealed that recent leasehold scandals have deterred many would-be buyers from considering new build homes.  The survey,...

The Competition and Markets Authority has this afternoon taken the latest step in the lengthy case of an estate agency cartel. This revolves...

A husband and wife pair of directors at a property valuation and surveying company have been ordered by the courts to...

An agent has started an online petition demanding negotiators and others in the agency industry be paid the legal minimum wage...

Developers have continued to sell thousands of new-build houses with leaseholds, despite a government pledge to ban the “unscrupulous” practice a...

Just under one in five buyers in the past two years have suffered moving day delays, either because funds have been...

It’s time to sort the wheat from the chaff when it comes to overseas buyers of property. If you listen to Theresa...

The Competitions and Markets Authority says the result of its latest probe into estate agencies’ possible infringement of the Competition Act...

Sales of holiday homes could be hit as a result of a new £560m tax proposal put forward by Labour.  Under the...