Archive

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

No, this isn’t about Brexit. But as the saga of leaving the EU is likely to bring about the downfall of...

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

Hello, welcome to a new week and to PJT, your regular Monday round-up of jobs news in the industry. Do please let...

Almost as soon as the government yesterday made its latest announcement to outlaw rogue leasehold deals, the measure was branded “pathetic. More...

A large-scale survey by a consumer group has revealed that over half of home owners regard stamp duty as a growing...

Over the last few years, there have a number of changes to the stamp duty land tax (SDLT) regime, which have...

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 Law Society claims that the unforeseen charges faced by some purchasers of leasehold properties could be addressed “if developers and...

The leasehold system has created many unsellable and unmortgageable homes and should change, MPs say. The all-party Housing, Communities and Local Government...

The proliferation of big data is paving the way to improving our economy on almost every front as entrepreneurial digital companies...

The National Trading Standards Estate Agency team has issued new guidance for those seeking redress over leasehold disputes.  This guidance contains a...

There’s been a dramatic improvement in the speed of searches being completed and returned by local authorities, the government claims. Housing minister...

The civil servant leading work to reform the house buying has revealed key areas of government thinking - with a ban on...

Our latest case study come from a recent news item to have hit the industry and national press. A disgruntled tenant is claiming...

The head of a property management company says conveyancers must do more to ensure buyers of leasehold properties fully understand the...

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

The cost of new-build leasehold properties has surged 16 times faster than freeholds according to research from property investment platform. The revelation...

The National Association of Estate Agents has welcomed the government’s move to ensure most future new-build houses are sold as freehold...

The vast majority of new-build houses are to be sold as freehold with ground rents for new leases capped at £10...

The government has unveiled a new body which, it claims, will raise agency standards. There is a long-standing commitment from the government...

A series of leasehold roadshows beginning next month in Manchester aims to throw a spotlight on problems associated with the tenure,...

You will perhaps have seen recently that the Government has decided to boost funding to the regulator, the National Trading Standards...

The National Association of Estate Agents has given broad support for radical proposals from the Law Commission to end leasehold abuse...

The Property Ombudsman has urged the government to bring the new homes build sector under consumer redress. New builds are not currently...

Almost all buyers of new build houses who purchased a leasehold regret doing so, and the vast majority say they definitely wouldn't...

A specialist property law firm is calling on the government to speed up changes in the law to avoid abusive leasehold...

In our previous blog, we looked at the definitions outlined by the CPRs. In our next blog we’ll look at the...

The parent company of Your Move, Reeds Rains and other agency brands has succeeded where Foxtons yesterday did not - in...

You will notice that there is a new author for this regular column for Estate Agent Today. Last month I was...

A new website has been set up specifically to help leasehold flat owners who have been served a Section 5 Notice...

The government says its funding schemes such as Help To Buy will no longer be applied to what it calls “unjustified...

Estate Agent Today is 10 years old this weekend. We hope you’ll agree that’s a cause for celebration and a great...

To say this is a turbulent time for UK politics would be something of an understatement. As I write, the Brexit...

As housing market stakeholders we’ve all had a month or so to try and digest the government’s own response to its...

A leasehold reform campaigner has called on the government to ensure it publishes its report on leasehold reform before the summer recess at...

One of the three official redress bodies serving the estate and lettings agency industry has conducted a survey of complaints across...

People living in leasehold properties should extend the remaining terms of their leases before they drop beneath 80 years, according to a...

A leasehold reform campaigning group is warning that “it is likely to be many years” before promised leasehold reform becomes law. Leasehold...

Stubbornly high house prices and concerns over leasehold-related charges top the list of worries amongst the public about the housing market. That’s...

The government has announced further measures which will, in its words, “professionalise” house buying and the estate agency business. In yet another Sunday...

At any given moment it’s difficult to say which issue dominates our marketplace, but I think it’s fair to acknowledge during...

The Property Ombudsman has launched an online training module which it describes as the first of its kind.  The interactive module -...

Representatives from estate and lettings agencies as well as professional organisations have formed The Home Buying And Selling Group with a...

Home owners seeking lease extensions may now have to pay more as a result of a controversial judgement handed down by...

The Court of Appeal is today expected to rule on a legal battle which may be critical in determining the value...

While there is a distinct market for flats held on particularly short leases, there is a middle ground where flat owners...

It’s no surprise that figures don’t always show the results or consequences we expect - even if they are entirely accurate. Look...

The Society of Licensed Conveyancers says it is worried that HM Land Registry’s decision to publish details of apparent errors in...

A specialist leasehold enfranchisement firm has branded government leasehold reforms as "incredibly weak". In an announcement lost in the noise following Damian Green’s sacking,...

A new EU crackdown on money laundering requires estate agency businesses to adopt a collaborative approach if they are to avoid...

Labour MP Justin Madders is working on a Private Members' Bill creating leasehold reform in a bid to help leaseholders who, he...

It’s something of an understatement to say it’s been a busy fortnight for the industry in terms of announcements, consultations and...

The government has launched a consultation this weekend calling for evidence on how to make the home buying process “cheaper, faster...

Another week, yet more consultations - the agency industry can’t complain about not being asked for its views recently. The latest were on...

The UK is home to four million leasehold properties in private ownership, according to government figures. The majority of which require...

The All Party Parliamentary Group on Leasehold and Commonhold Reform has made a hard-hitting submission to formal government consultations on the...

Labour’s shadow housing minister John Healey is reported to be one of a number of prominent front bench opposition spokespeople being...

Even so close to the event, I don’t think anyone will be deeming 2017 as the ‘summer of love’.  The summer of...

Without wishing to blow our own trumpet at this time, we did say at the start of the year that 2017...

There has been general support from the industry for the government’s apparent intention to ban new homes in England being sold...

The government says it wants to ban “unfair” leasehold charges imposed on buyers of new-build homes in England.  Under the measure, subject to...

A leasehold enfranchisement expert wants government action over what he calls the "forgotten casualties" of the recent ground rent scandal.    Louie Burns,...

The political ebb and flow continues - seemingly with all the subtlety of a Boris Johnson rugby tackle on a 10-year...

A cluster of conveyancing and legal experts, known as the Legal Sector Group, has published a raft of proposals on leasehold...

The Advertising Standards Authority says it has “partly upheld” a complaint regarding a claim that a leasehold property was Sold STC. Greenslade...

Theresa May’s call for a snap general election on June 8 took many by surprise. But estate agents have been broadly...

In years to come, students of political history might come to look at the 2017 General Election campaign with some interest....

The Conservative and Labour party manifestos do not go far enough to tackle problems with the leasehold system. That’s the view of...

The Conservatives have this morning announced a reform of the house buying process in the party’s manifesto for the June 8...

Analysis of over 500,000 transactions shows that completions are slowest in London and the South East. The average progress from an offer...

There has been widespread praise for the Nationwide building society's crackdown on criteria for mortgages for leasehold new build homes.   From May...

Not only did Theresa May stun everyone with her decision to call a ‘snap election’ but with the campaign now underway...

A two year investigation by the Law Commission has ended with a claim that some owners of leasehold retirement properties, and...

Peter Robinson, CEO of AIPP – Association of International Property Professionals – shines a light onto the international property market. Some UK...

The Conveyancing Association wants the creation of a ‘log book’ and ‘Home Reports’ for each home on sale - reminiscent in...

The Conveyancing Association (CA) has this week published a consumer guide on leasehold property.  The document, released yesterday, has a specific focus...

A sales progression tool claims to have reduced the average transaction time for a property from around 94 days to around...

The housing market has not been short of a White Paper over the last few months, and while you might just...

The government has set out 29 key points in its Housing White Paper.   Introducing it in the Commons this afternoon, Communities Secretery Sajid...

Housing minister Gavin Barwell says the government will provide “substantial investment” to ensure more transparency in leasehold tenure. “We are determined to...

Housing minister Gavin Barwell says the government will put forward proposals in the new year to stop abuses of the leasehold...

I recently came across a consumer comment expressing frustration at the length and complexity of UK conveyancing and raising the question...

A firm is warning of “a wave of litigation from home owners who were given inadequate advice from their solicitors or...

Leaseholds Solution - the company behind the Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners - says it wants recent proposals to modernise the...

The Conveyancers' Association has called for sweeping changes to the house buying and moving system to create a "more certain and...

Working relationships between estate agents and conveyancers can be mutually beneficial with the referral of work between parties. However, they are missing...

Several estate agencies have announced expansions and new offices - and once again a former Countrywide management figure is revealed to...

The Conveyancing Association says it is continuing to campaign to reform the leasehold transaction process, despite the government saying there is...

The Conveyancing Association has set out recommendations to end what it claims are significant delays and overcharging taking place within the...

The possibility of short-term falling house prices caused by Brexit may be good news for the UK’s four million leasehold flat...

The Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners says more leaseholders are complaining of inflated service charges for maintenance, upkeep and communal areas.  The...

A conveyancing firm claims there has been a 140 per cent increase in the number of properties requiring leasehold extensions in...

An unusual story of hard-to-sell homes has emerged from Northumberland where a kind of new town, established in the 1960s, is...

A number of my member firms (Bold Legal Group) have reported that, compared to three years ago, the time to get...