In this week’s In Conversation Today, I speak with Anthony Payne, Managing Director and co-founder of LonRes, a data and network...
Archive

Being a letting agent today means keeping up to date with the long list of rules and regulations governing how a...
20 February 2021
From: Features

A high-profile London agency is asking the police and property industry bodies including Trading Standards to investigate a fake company posing under...
19 February 2021
From: Breaking News

An agent has told a court she was 'heartbroken' to discover her accountant had stolen cash from her business, which then...
18 February 2021
From: Breaking News

A trade body is warning that increased home working triggered by Coronavirus makes the agency industry more vulnerable than ever to...
19 January 2021
From: Breaking News

Estate agencies have been named by HM Revenue & Customs for breaching anti-money laundering regulations. The list of those breaching the rules...
12 January 2021
From: Breaking News

A cyber-attack on a London council has caused some transactions to fall through and others to be significantly delayed. The attack occurred...
14 December 2020
From: Breaking News

The coronavirus pandemic has somewhat eclipsed Brexit this year – which is no mean feat. Cast your mind back to pre-Covid...
12 December 2020
From: Features

The property market, and therefore, estate agents have been accused of being the 'weak link' in the UK’s money laundering defences. This...
27 October 2020
From: Legislation & Compliance

Agents in some parts of the country may be able to make use of data from utilities comparison service uSwitch, which...
21 October 2020
From: Breaking News

Foxtons is alleged by a newspaper to have suffered a malware attack and data breach which closed its MyFoxtons client website. The...
19 October 2020
From: Breaking News

The government has issued new guidance to estate and lettings agencies on their obligations regarding money laundering issues - and online...
15 October 2020
From: Breaking News

A security company says it is “disappointing” the estate agency industry is only around 55 per cent through preparations to cope...
09 October 2020
From: Breaking News

A businessman with links to serious criminals has lost his vast investment property empire worth nearly £10m after a National Crime...
08 October 2020
From: Breaking News

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has been criticised for its lack of enforcement of anti-money laundering (AML) legislation so far in...
18 September 2020
From: Breaking News

A disgraced former estate agent has paid his victims around £110,000 but must pay another £5,000 or so in the immediate...
14 September 2020
From: Breaking News

Over £73,000 has been stolen from a Countrywide branch by two admin staff making false travel claims and issuing fake invoices. The crimes...
24 August 2020
From: Breaking News

The last few months have been tough for the property sector, and the pressure will continue as estate agents across the...
19 August 2020
From: Features

National Crime Agency officers working as part of a Paramilitary Crime Task Force have searched a home in Belfast and have...
27 July 2020
From: Breaking News

NAEA Propertymark is calling on agents to show “greater diligence” when dealing with Russian buyers, in the light of the report...
23 July 2020
From: Breaking News

Businesses across all sectors have struggled to adapt to the changes brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic. One group that have bucked...
01 July 2020
From: Features

A successful property newspaper has collapsed after one of its former directors turned computer hacker and deliberately deleted over 5,000 files...
19 June 2020
From: Breaking News

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has revised its Anti-Money Laundering guidance in the light of Coronavirus. It says the scale of...
26 May 2020
From: Breaking News

The Police and Crime Commissioner for an area with thousands of holiday homes wants their owners to make them available to...
07 April 2020
From: Breaking News

The lightbulb moment for LonRes was born out of sheer frustration. I’d just missed out on a deal and the postman...
14 March 2020
From: Features

A woman claims she had no idea that her husband stole almost £1.5m from two high-profile employers - one of them...
27 February 2020
From: Breaking News

“It appears conveyancers either aren’t too concerned with PropTech right now, or they don’t yet have all the information needed to...
05 February 2020
From: Breaking News

Estate agents concerned over security breaches will be closely analysing what happens with a case concerning a London firm’s compromised email...
30 January 2020
From: Breaking News

Six common ‘crimes of modern-day call handling’ are blighting UK estate and letting agencies and hampering their growth, reputation and profitability. These...
18 January 2020
From: Features

Estate agents and others in the property industry have much more to do to deter money laundering. That’s the view of a security...
15 January 2020
From: Breaking News

An online estate agent is awaiting sentence after being found guilty of a £5,000 fraud Claire Ainsworth, who worked for the agency...
13 January 2020
From: Breaking News

Yesterday (January 10 2020), the Fifth Anti-Money Laundering Directive (5AMLD) became law. It forms part of ongoing international efforts to tackle...
11 January 2020
From: Features

The Fifth Money Laundering Directive becomes law in the UK on January 10 2020, strengthening the responsibilities placed on private companies...
07 December 2019
From: Features

Properties worth a combined £8.1m have been surrendered to the National Crime Agency following a tax probe. The properties included 16 homes...
28 November 2019
From: Breaking News

The police in Crewe are appealing for information after two charity boxes were stolen from an estate agent in the town. The...
19 November 2019
From: Breaking News

The police are looking for witnesses or anyone who can help identify the burglars accused of an extensive spray-paint attack on...
18 October 2019
From: Breaking News

London-focussed business-to-business deal data service LonRes has acquired an anti-money laundering compliance consultancy specialising in residential and commercial property. Financial Crime Services,...
01 October 2019
From: Breaking News

As an agent, it’s part of your role to protect and advise your clients throughout the buying and selling process. Mortgages are...
26 September 2019
From: Sponsored Content

There’s been a five per cent rise in the cases of mortgage fraud as increasing numbers of house buyers appear to...
25 September 2019
From: Breaking News

A property MOT being launched by Countrywide and described as “game changing” for the house buying process will include survey and...
19 September 2019
From: Breaking News

A fraudster who claimed to be an estate agent has been jailed for four years after conning vulnerable women into giving...
10 September 2019
From: Breaking News

Countrywide’s surveying division says it’s found a “knowledge gap” in existing surveys after a study involving over 15,000 buyers. The agency group...
02 September 2019
From: Breaking News

A Northern Irish woman with suspected links to serious organised crime has been ordered to explain how she financed the purchase...
08 August 2019
From: Breaking News

An estate agent who ruthlessly used his position as a prominent figure in the community to win the trust of vulnerable...
22 July 2019
From: Breaking News

The Metropolitan Police have confirmed that an excavation that took place yesterday was part of its ongoing investigation into the disappearance...
04 July 2019
From: Breaking News

An estate agent has been fined after racially abusing a police officer in an incident outside a nightclub. Sarah Loasby, from Kettering,...
24 June 2019
From: Breaking News

Three ultra-high-value London properties cannot be sold while a money laundering investigation continues. The houses have not been identified but were most...
31 May 2019
From: Breaking News

The UK property market can be seen by criminals as an effective vehicle to conceal the proceeds of economic crime. Criminally...
18 May 2019
From: Features

An estate agent in the north east of England has been told he will face prison after admitting two counts of...
15 May 2019
From: Breaking News

A man has surrendered to police after admitting smashing an estate agency's window. The Oxford Mail reports that a 30-year-old from Abingdon, who has...
24 April 2019
From: Breaking News

Police are continuing to appeal for information on a horrific hammer attack on the owner and chairman of Bridges Estate Agents...
03 April 2019
From: Breaking News

An insurance company claims that over 29,000 property deals fall through in a year because buyers get cold feet over their...
02 April 2019
From: Breaking News

An owner who enhanced the price of his property by illegally hacking branches off a tree has ordered to pay back...
25 March 2019
From: Breaking News

Thinking about the state of communication across residential property chains is enough to induce a severe migraine. We work in a world...
20 March 2019
From: Features

Estate agent anti-money laundering (AML) compliance is under scrutiny again following the publication of figures detailing the fines levied for AML...
13 March 2019
From: Sponsored Content

The influential Treasury Select Committee says estate agents should be more closely monitored to ensure they abide by anti-money laundering regulations. In...
08 March 2019
From: Breaking News

HM Revenue & Customs has issued more details of its bid to encourage estate agents to combat money laundering in the...
05 March 2019
From: Breaking News

It’s been revealed that Countrywide has been hit with a £215,000 fine as part of a swoop by HMRC cracking down...
04 March 2019
From: Breaking News

The controversial property portal Propertyheads has compiled a blacklist of tradesmen who have a criminal record. The website says this is the...
26 February 2019
From: Breaking News

The government’s anti-money laundering campaign Flag It Up has published an A to Z which it claims will help agents understand...
25 February 2019
From: Breaking News

The Money Laundering Regulations require estate agents to risk assess their business relationships and apply an appropriate level of investigation to...
20 February 2019
From: Sponsored Content

Mystery surrounds the details of an apparent theft of thousands of pounds by three men who walked into an estate agency...
11 February 2019
From: Breaking News

To a sales-focused agency, having a lettings department can sometimes feel like losing control of the business. Recent cases of property management...
07 February 2019
From: Sponsored Content

An estate agent who stole per £300,000 from an estate agency spent the money on designer goods and expensive holidays -...
30 January 2019
From: Breaking News

An estate agent in the north of England has been confronted by vigilantes who duped him into thinking they were underage girls. The...
29 January 2019
From: Breaking News

The government has moved to crack down on money laundering in the UK with a new campaign focusing on the accountancy,...
16 January 2019
From: Features

The National Association of Estate Agents has met with other members of a high-level government board to look at ways of...
15 January 2019
From: Breaking News

When renting a property out, letting agents and landlords recognise that it is important to take a deposit from the tenant...
15 December 2018
From: Features

Police have confirmed that a search is taking place at a property in the Midlands, in the hunt for the body...
30 October 2018
From: Breaking News

The government has told the estate agency industry that it has a “moral” obligation to report suspicions about potential money laundering. Figures...
29 October 2018
From: Breaking News

It’s time to sort the wheat from the chaff when it comes to overseas buyers of property. If you listen to Theresa...
13 October 2018
From: Features

A government minister has made a pointed jibe at estate agents who appear not to regard cash purchases of high-value properties...
14 September 2018
From: Breaking News

A Huddersfield estate agent who crashed her car while four times over the drink-drive limit has been banned from driving for...
24 August 2018
From: Breaking News

A maverick Cornish estate agent who falsely gave the impression to customers that his business was highly successful has been hit...
20 August 2018
From: Breaking News

Local media in Huddersfield report that an estate agent smashed into a traffic bollard while four times over the drink-drive limit...
14 August 2018
From: Breaking News

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) - which replaces the Data Protection Act 1998 - has now become effective and is...
07 August 2018
From: Breaking News

Does your company apply adequate customer due diligence measures when carrying out estate agency work? Does it establish and maintain appropriate policies...
28 July 2018
From: Features

A PropTech company boss says evidence given to MPs confirms the need to improve anti-money laundering processes through greater automation and...
10 July 2018
From: Breaking News

A pensioner who committed sexual assaults on two women - one of them an estate agent - has been sent to...
01 June 2018
From: Breaking News

How can you use data to benefit and better your business? It’s something you’ll no doubt have asked yourself down the...
21 May 2018
From: Sponsored Content

A man who is accused of assaulting an estate agent is to face trial. The Bournemouth Daily Echo reports that Marc Skelton,...
17 April 2018
From: Breaking News

The announcement that MPs will set up a Select Committee to probe the scale of money laundering in the UK property...
14 April 2018
From: Features

A 15-month research project says HMRC should do more to engage estate agents in recognising the importance of complying with anti-money...
12 April 2018
From: Breaking News

The Treasury Select Committee of MPs has announced an inquiry into ‘economic crime’ - including the possibility that overseas-owned UK homes could be...
03 April 2018
From: Breaking News

An estate agent who ‘glassed’ a man who rejected her advances in a pub has escaped a prison sentence. Sarah Brown, 27,...
20 March 2018
From: Breaking News

A Stratford estate agent accused of killing his wife on New Year’s Day has pleaded not guilty to a charge of...
12 March 2018
From: Breaking News

Crimestoppers is working with estate agencies and financial advisers as well as conveyancers in a bid to eliminate house buyers’ deposits...
07 March 2018
From: Breaking News

The UK property sector has been a hotbed for financial crime in recent years, with many criminals seeing it as an...
24 February 2018
From: Features

Almost a third of all ‘Suspicious Activity Reports’ concerning possible anti-money laundering infringements and reported to the National Crime Agency have...
13 February 2018
From: Breaking News

An estate agent has offered a reward of £1,000 for information to help find a safe stolen from his premises during...
17 January 2018
From: Breaking News

An estate agent charged has been charged with the murder of his wife who was stabbed to death at their home...
05 January 2018
From: Breaking News

The Home Office has announced a new division to tackle fraud issues, including money laundering. A new national economic crime centre within...
04 January 2018
From: Breaking News

A local news outlet in Essex is reporting that a Chelmsford agent claims he crashed his car whilst driving drunk following...
14 December 2017
From: Breaking News

Thieves have broken into an estate agency branch within a fortnight of it opening and are reported to have stolen equipment...
13 November 2017
From: Breaking News

In the UK, there are over 3.9 million homes situated in off-grid areas with no access to mains gas, so it’s...
11 November 2017
From: Features

The spread and sophistication of financial crime in the UK in recent years has been unprecedented. Figures from UK Finance show that...
04 November 2017
From: Features

One one in every 300 property purchases by overseas buyers trigger a so-called ‘red flag’ with the National Crime Agency -...
12 October 2017
From: Breaking News

The National Association of Estate Agents is telling members to delete a spam email purporting to have been sent by the...
11 October 2017
From: Breaking News

An insurance provider says small estate agencies are peculiarly vulnerable to cyber attack yet are amongst the least prepared amongst their...
18 August 2017
From: Breaking News

A Hampshire property investor who failed to declare Capital Gains Tax from the sale of properties evading £157,725, has been jailed...
14 August 2017
From: Breaking News

The police are investigating a quick sale company after a claim by an individual that he received less than half of...
11 August 2017
From: Breaking News

A man who stole envelopes containing keys from an estate agents’ office by using a pole projected through the letter box...
06 July 2017
From: Breaking News

The National Association of Estate Agents has thrown its weight behind a government move to create a register of overseas companies...
07 April 2017
From: Breaking News

New analysis shows what appears to be the correlation between rising house prices and falling burglary rates across the country. The research,...
17 March 2017
From: Breaking News

An estate agent will be sentenced next month after pleading guilty to 76 fraud offences. The Get Surrey website reports that Ayodele...
16 March 2017
From: Breaking News

It has been revealed that an estate agent who is serving a five year prison sentence for fraud is to return...
20 December 2016
From: Breaking News

A new property portal is to launch in April, and has this week started recruiting estate and letting agency members while...
09 December 2016
From: Breaking News

London Mayor Sadiq Khan’s aim of creating a 24-hour city is one step closer with the appointment of London’s first Night...
26 November 2016
From: Features

Who are you? Nick Dyoss, Group Business Development Director, SearchFlow, property intelligence specialists You have a high profile within the conveyancing search industry,...
26 September 2016
From: 60 Second Interview

Two men who confessed to killing a British estate agent are being held in Turkish controlled northern Cyprus - although they...
05 September 2016
From: Breaking News

After all the recent Whitehall upheaval we can perhaps get back to business; and first item on the agenda seems to...
21 July 2016
From: Sponsored Content

Nearly three quarters of people who have sold or bought a property deem it more stressful than having a child or...
15 July 2016
From: Features

Who are you? Carole Marsden What does it say on your business card? UK Sales Director What attracted you to join SearchFlow? SearchFlow has...
07 June 2016
From: 60 Second Interview

Fraudsters attacking the conveyancing sector, successfully stealing large sums of money from homebuyers, are making national headlines at a depressing rate....
27 May 2016
From: Sponsored Content

The race to replace London Mayor Boris Johnson has entered its final few days, and like never before, housing is the...
29 April 2016
From: Features

An estate agent has pleaded guilty to a charge of drink-driving after being found almost three times above the legal alcohol...
27 April 2016
From: Breaking News

An estate agent has been jailed for five years for taking more than £450,000 from elderly clients in Cumbria. A BBC report says...
25 April 2016
From: Breaking News

An estate agent who has pleaded guilty to 13 counts of fraud involving around £450,000 has been warned he is likely...
10 March 2016
From: Breaking News

Police have released footage of an estate agent who has been jailed for four years after repeatedly running over his girlfriend's...
22 February 2016
From: Breaking News

Purplebricks chief executive Michael Bruce is to speak alongside eMoov founder Russell Quirk in a debate to be held at the...
14 January 2016
From: Breaking News

So how long does a visitor typically stay in an estate agency office? Well, if it’s the case of intruders, about 15...
12 January 2016
From: Breaking News

“Estate Agents have been highlighted by the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) as under reporting relative to their vulnerability to money...
03 December 2015
From: Sponsored Content

A conveyancer who swindled his clients and HM Revenue and Customs out of almost £352,500 in stamp duty land tax, has...
18 November 2015
From: Breaking News

Estate agents have been accused of flouting the rules by erecting For Sale and To Let signs despite a voluntary ban. The...
11 November 2015
From: Breaking News

A 25 year old estate agent accused of raping a 53 year old woman after meeting her outside a nightclub has...
10 November 2015
From: Breaking News

A new online service claims to protect agents and others working in the industry from the threat of cybercrime. The service, called...
02 November 2015
From: Breaking News

The National Association of Estate Agents admits that “take up has been low” in its bid to persuade each member agent to...
26 October 2015
From: Breaking News

Three prisoners have been convicted of a prison attack on Jeremy Green, the former army lieutenant jailed for life for the...
23 October 2015
From: Breaking News

Online estate agent SellMyHome is teaming up with local-area research information provider Property Detective to offer what it calls a “hybrid”...
20 October 2015
From: Breaking News

A legal expert suggests central London’s house prices may have been skewed because of money-laundering - “and we all know it.” Jonathan...
14 October 2015
From: Breaking News

There is still no word on when a police investigation will report on alleged irregularities said to involve the buy to...
12 October 2015
From: Breaking News

It was interesting to see the report on Estate Agent Today about the meeting between London estate agents, NAEA, and HMRC. No,...
25 September 2015
From: Features

An estate agent accused of being behind a £300,000 fraud has appeared before Carlisle Crown Court. The Cumbrian News & Star local...
15 September 2015
From: Breaking News

A sales director of a branch of Humberts has resigned after being found guilty of stealing £2,500 from a charity. Jane Hale...
01 September 2015
From: Breaking News

A jealous estate agent has been jailed for two months after dousing the bed of his ex-partner with diesel fuel and...
03 August 2015
From: Breaking News

The head of research at lettings portal Lettingweb.com says the National Crime Agency’s claims about hundreds of billions of pounds of...
28 July 2015
From: Breaking News

Estate agents have been warned by the National Crime Agency that they must not hesitate to inform the authorities if they...
27 July 2015
From: Breaking News

The rising phenomenon of agent-rating and review websites is a topic that seems to have caused considerable division and controversy among...
10 July 2015
From: Features

The National Association of Estate Agents says the agents named in Channel 4‘s From Russia With Cash documentary may have tarnished...
09 July 2015
From: Breaking News

A man suffered "deep lacerations" to his hand after allegedly smashing the window of an estate agency office in Ilminster, Somerset. The...
07 July 2015
From: Breaking News

The Competition and Markets Authority has used Twitter to inform agents of the risks of joining trade assocaitons with loosely-worded or...
22 June 2015
From: Breaking News

Poldark, a period drama recently on the BBC, has inspired a new trend dubbed the 'Poldark Effect'. Rather than an increase in...