Archive

Regulated firms across all sectors will be well aware of Know Your Customer (KYC) checks and their importance in combatting financial...

Fraud poses a significant challenge for residential conveyancers, with criminals often attempting to exploit the transaction process for money laundering purposes. The...

Financial crime within the property sector is on the rise and the stats are alarming. According to data from Apex Bridging,...

Digital compliance specialist SmartSearch can help estate agents comply quickly and efficiently Around one in five estate agents are not registered for...

Hamptons expands into Andorra with new partnership Hamptons has launched a partnership with Roc Propietats Estate Agents in Andorra that will include...

There’s no question that trust is the bedrock of any longstanding client relationship. It is built on delivering on your promises...

The recent cyber attack on CTS left around 80 conveyancing firms across the country commercially paralysed as the harm to their...

If you’ve paid even scant attention to Landlord Today or other trade titles, you’ll be familiar with the headlines about rogue...

Leading digital compliance firm SmartSearch has launched an innovative new solution to help professionals working within the UK property sector to...

The term mixed-tenure development usually refers to residential developments where different residential tenures are provided on the same site. Typically, tenure was...

For most people, buying a house or flat is the largest financial commitment they will ever make. Which is why many...

In recent years, the UK private rented sector has witnessed a significant increase in government regulation aimed at raising standards for...

Agents and other businesses are being encouraged back a new joint initiative from employee protection firm Peoplesafe and the Crimestoppers charity. The...

According to research, the average cost of home insurance was £300 in 2022 – a record low. However, this could increase...

Tackling economic crime is part of the day job for estate agents. But how can the latest digital ID tools help...

Step right up and witness the extraordinary world of Estate Agents as they embrace the power of biometric checks, turning the...

Increasing numbers of estate agents are submitting suspicious activity reports (SARS) but questions are being raised about whether there should be...

Amidst mounting regulatory pressure and the escalating threat of financial crime, property firms must embrace innovation to protect themselves and their...

Property fraud is a significant risk for agents, particularly as fake IDs become increasingly prevalent, and the economic climate remains challenging....

Recent research estimated that up to £100 billion is being stolen in the UK each year, with much of it due...

The majority of estate agents are in the dark about the Government’s Economic Crime Levy (ECL), when it was implemented or...

The dreaded ‘C word’ – compliance – has been facing Estate Agents for years now and it’s not going anywhere. Looking ahead...

Agents of all sizes are being urged to make themselves aware of a new anti-money laundering (AML) charge that has come...

Estate agents could be putting their clients’ personal details at risk by taking information such as addresses, bank account or passport details...

Recent tragic deaths of women walking home alone, notably Sarah Everard, have highlighted the need to address gender inequality in the...

SmartSearch, the UK’s leading provider of digital compliance, has published an agenda-setting whitepaper to highlight the anti-money laundering shortcomings and sanctions...

Agency software provider Reapit has achieved ISO 27001 certification for information security management. The certification means that Reapit has implemented one of...

FCS Compliance and the National Crime Agency (NCA) have joined forces to present the first Rightmove anti-money laundering (AML) webinar of...

A chartered surveyor has highlighted 15 ‘crimes against property’ in a new book that aims to prevent owners from damaging the...

It has been another busy month for job moves in the estate agency sector. Here are some of the latest moves that...

The Government’s mini budget on September 23 was anything but ‘mini’ with several major announcements one of the most significant of...

If recent headlines are anything to go by, estate agents and the wider property industry are not just feeling the heavy...

You've finally found the perfect house. It's within your budget, has the desired number of bedrooms and bathrooms, and even comes...

Estate agents selling rural homes have been urged to provide better levels of upfront information regarding homes in the countryside that...

FCS Compliance has announced the latest in its anti-money laundering (AML) series of webinars with Rightmove.  The latest is titled The Role...

Agents are ‘wrongly’ relying on hard copies of identity documents to verify people’s identities in anti-money laundering (AML) checks, new research...

As Britain’s housing boom continues,  SDL Property Auctions has warned of ten ways new homeowners could be fined up to £5,000...

If there’s one thing that received a boost as a result of Covid and lockdowns, it’s podcasts – which reached whole...

Anti-money laundering (AML) software provider SmartSearch is warning of a rise in financial crime, particularly targeting smaller property firms. A survey of...

As another round of property firms is fined, named and shamed for breaching anti-money laundering rules, it feels like the road...

In this latest ‘Women in Property’ edition of the Natter, I check in with Collette Allen, who was recently appointed as...

Agents have pledged to keep a close eye on planning reforms amid a proposed overhaul announced in the Queen’s Speech yesterday. Prince...

The Queen’s Speech has unveiled proposed overhauls on planning, consumer and economic crime laws that could all have an effect on...

A ‘frightening’ number of respondents to a Rightmove online poll appear to be unaware of their anti-money laundering reporting requirements. The portal...

A new Deputy Ombudsman, Lesley Horton, has been appointed by The Property Ombudsman Scheme. She will work alongside Property Ombudsman, Rebecca Marsh,...

PayProp’s recent Rental Confidence Index survey polled property professionals about their biggest concerns for 2022. Unsurprisingly, new regulations were a top...

A legal expert has warned that everyone is theoretically at risk of committing a breach of sanctions against Russia - but...

The UK government appears to have given sanctioned Russian property owners a get-out-of-jail card valid for six months.  It’s been confirmed that...

The Mayor of London is demanding ministers take sanctioning Russian oligarchs seriously by moving immediately to seize assets that can then...

Almost exactly a decade ago I wrote a blog on the back of a spate on mainstream news stories about prime...

The government is considering seizing British property owned by Russian oligarchs on the sanctions list without paying compensation. The Financial Times says Housing...

It is claimed by Propertymark that the government’s Economic Crime Bill - to be debated in the House of Commons today -...

The outcome of the Ukraine crisis is far from certain, but one thing has become abundantly clear. The long-overdue Economic Crime...

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

The UK property industry has long been a target of fraudsters due to the low levels of transparency and the fact...

Housing ministers have lined up in recent days to support beleaguered Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Housing minister Chris Pincher, upon hearing of new...

The government’s new Levelling Up White Paper, revealed this morning includes a radical reshaping of the private rental sector. Section 21 eviction...

Our Agents Do Charity column each Friday does a fantastic job of highlighting the amazing charitable work of agents up and...

Was Purplebricks right to delist a property from its website when it discovered the vendors - a Christian couple - were opposed...

An hour-long webinar this week aims to inform agents how to deter property fraud by greater emphasis on compliance, due diligence...

A warning has gone out to estate agents that “more and more” reports are being filed about cyber attacks on agencies...

A new guide to help avoid property title fraud, where home ownership can be stolen, has been released by the Fraud...

The Covid-19 pandemic has had a huge impact on all aspects of our lives, but undoubtedly one major negative side effect...

Property fraud is on the rise and early in 2022 agents will have an opportunity to attend a webinar featuring a...

I’ve worked in financial crime for the past seven years, beginning my career as a white collar crime litigator in a law firm. I know that the...

While the Christmas season is usually heralded by an influx of terrible Christmas adverts, the launch of Starbucks’ gingerbread lattes, Adam...

Agents must have a robust plan in place in case they are subjected to a ransomware cyber attack, says the Guild...

Increasingly rigorous Money Laundering Directives have made regulations in the property industry more stringent than ever, and Estate Agents have a...

Fears are growing that large estate agency groups may have to pay a mandatory levy towards the cost of anti-money laundering...

The owner of an estate agency in Sussex has been jailed for five years for what a judge has called “an...

A prominent law expert is claiming that a high profile case of property fraud, reported earlier this week, involved a “devastating...

A BBC investigation has revealed that a man’s house was sold and his furnishings removed without his knowledge, in the latest...

We have all heard the terrible forecasts and listened to Sir David Attenborough’s speeches on the environment and the “we still...

The Pandora Papers - the biggest ever leak of offshore data - has revealed that the UK’s property market is being...

Buyers are being warned about scams conning people out of hundreds of thousands of pounds. The Law Society of England and Wales...

Disclaimer: This article is intended for information only and does not constitute legal advice. As part of its 2020 budget, the UK...

A burglar who ransacked an independent agency’s branch office and stole equipment worth almost £2,000 has escaped prison. Bilal Hemmi of Windsor...

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

Regulators are warning the UK’s property, finance and legal sectors to be aware of the possible impacts of the exit from...

An estate agent with stomach cancer faces a prison sentence after pleading guilty of defrauding an 80 year old pensioner out...

Thirty-five years after London estate agent Suzy Lamplugh disappeared, the trust that bears her name is calling for action to address...

The estate agent who accosted England's chief medical officer, Professor Chris Whitty, has been charged with common assault. Lewis Hughes, 23 and...

The founder and managing director of FCS Compliance, Jerry Walters, has died suddenly. A statement from the company says he died during...

The property market was expected to struggle to recover after the first lockdown, but, thanks to the stamp duty holiday and...

An assessment by a risk solutions firm shows that estate agents are on average just 53 per cent of the way...

With property fraud on the rise and an ever-increasing number of transactions taking place in the lettings sector, having strict anti-money laundering...

The man behind the free-to-list portal Residential People says security across all portals should be tightened, with so-called Two Factor Authentication...

A leading industry trade body is warning that remote-working agents and smaller independent agencies are particularly vulnerable to the growing threat...

Brexit means that the UK’s anti-money laundering laws are no longer governed by the European Union (EU), but any estate agents...

Local elections rarely set the pulse racing and this year’s poll on Thursday faces a similar problem. But this time, it’s a...

A new property board game called Gazumped aims to rival Monopoly but reflect a much more realistic view of how the house...

The Chancellor’s recent announcement that the stamp duty holiday would be extended for another three months was undoubtedly great news for...

The original stamp duty freeze, which started in July 2020, has already helped push house prices to a record high and...

Another TV programme will this weekend examine the fate of Suzy Lamplugh, the London estate agent who disappeared 35 years ago...

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

Being a letting agent today means keeping up to date with the long list of rules and regulations governing how a...

A high-profile London agency is asking the police and property industry bodies including Trading Standards to investigate a fake company posing under...

An agent has told a court she was 'heartbroken' to discover her accountant had stolen cash from her business, which then...

A trade body is warning that increased home working triggered by Coronavirus makes the agency industry more vulnerable than ever to...

Estate agencies have been named by HM Revenue & Customs for breaching anti-money laundering regulations. The list of those breaching the rules...