Archive

Sky News is reporting that up to 30 Conservative MPs are threatening to rebel against the government’s approach to ground rents...

Borrowers are currently rolling off relatively favourable two-year fixed-rate deals agreed at the start of 2022, but the pain from higher...

Plans to set ground rents at a ‘peppercorn rate’ are reported to have been dropped amid opposition from freehold campaigners and...

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

Leasehold campaigners are urging anyone responding to the Government’s consultation on ground rents reform to boycott all options but capping them...

SmartSearch looks at the importance of incorporating Source of Funds checks into KYC processes It is no secret that the UK property...

Large language models, machine learning, artificial intelligence, artificial general intelligence, and 'the singularity' change everything, but there again, they change literally...

Estate agents are among falling numbers of regulated firms that aren’t checking sanctions and politically exposed persons (PEP) lists, research suggests. A...

Agency brand Anthony Pepe has announced the acquisition of Chamberlains Estates in Enfield. The former owners of the Chamberlains business, Andrew Ryde...

The Government has outlined five proposals to reduce ground rents for existing leaseholders as its latest attempt to reform the sector...

Propertymark has given its backing to commitments from the Housing Minister on the long-awaited next steps of leasehold reform. Timothy Douglas, head...

All new houses in England and Wales will have to be sold as freehold properties under government plans to phase out...

The Property Energy Professionals Association (PEPA) has opened its annual conference in Derby to estate agents and conveyancers for the first...

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

OnTheMarket Software has announced an integration with digital ID and source of funds provider Thirdfort. The digital ID, anti-money laundering and source...

Estate agency has changed. No longer is it required to sit in a high street office working the old way. Provide a...

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

Joe Pepper has stepped down as chief executive of TM Group. It follows the acquisition of the proptech brand by Aurelius last...

Success with your chosen CRM solution should not be a one-and-done package. Once you team up with a stellar CRM provider,...

CRMs can be superheroes for your business, but not all of them possess the necessary powers to save the day. As...

By adopting a top-notch Customer Relationship Management (CRM) solution, you're not only opening doors to acquiring new customers and nurturing existing...

Pattinson Auction has gone international by opening up in Spain. After growing its UK portfolio to almost 3,000 partner agents, it will...

Black mould associated with condensation is becoming an increasing problem for homes in the UK and following the tragic death of...

The managing director of Essex-based agent Lamb & Co has designed his own gin that will be part of moving-in packs...

Lies, damned lies, and statistics this week. I don’t know about you, but sometimes I feel as though I’m being bombarded...

Only 11% of property businesses including estate agencies increased staff pay last year, a new report officially launched next week claims. Property...

The ESTAS Customer Service Awards – which are often described as estate agency’s version of the Oscars – took place last...

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...

A compliance expert has warned that even though most agents will have robust anti-money laundering (AML) checks and processes in place,...

Property firms are still failing to make basic anti-money laundering checks (AML), and some may even unwittingly be helping politically exposed...

High profile agents and industry executives are due to appear in a new video series to share best practice ideas online. The...

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

Estate agents are being urged to reassess their fee structure and not be afraid to reflect the time and level of...

Referral fees, lack of trust and too much email have been identified as barriers to greater collaboration between conveyancers and estate...

You will hopefully have seen that the Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act 2022 has now received its Royal Assent, meaning it...

Ben Ridgway and Jamie Cooke, co-founders of iamproperty Group brought together industry leaders in a recent roundtable to discuss the challenges...

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

Vote? Well, whether we have a change of Prime Minister or not, there’s an important vote today - for great charitable...

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...

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

The Propertymark Qualifications Awards annual ceremony taking place early next month have revealed their shortlist. There is a total of nine Awards...

The largest live event in the property industry for two years took place last Friday - the ESTAS awards.  TV property expert...

Fund-raising takes all sorts of shapes and sizes and this week we have a splendid selection proving that point. Don’t miss out...

The stamp duty holiday concluded at midnight, marking the end of the busiest period for the industry - all parts of...

Implementing measures recommended in an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) could boost the sales price of a property for a vendor, the...

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

My neighbour had been seeking to move home for some time. Suggestions that he wanted to get away from his neighbours...

Referral revenues shared between agents in a major industry trade group has hit over £1.35m.  Daniel Pepperell, regional director at The Guild...

Boomin has announced the appointment of six agents, described as independent representatives, who are now on the new portal’s strategic board. The...

In this week’s In Conversation Today, we have another industry big-hitter and one of the most high-profile female leaders in property...

Initiatives by property portal Residential People and mortgage lenders Paragon Bank and Foundation Home Loans help people to find, buy or...

In the world of football – very topical at the moment, as we all enjoy the Euros – there is an...

As estate agencies are covered by Money Laundering Regulations, agents are legally obliged to take customer due diligence measures to limit...

The Guild of Property Professionals is launching a new PropTech platform called Fee Street, which is in its own words “dedicated...

Who are you and what does it say on your business card? Christopher Keen and Company Director  What is ‘company name’ and what...

TM Group and sales progression solution mio have signed up as partners for the 2021 ESTAS Forum & Awards, sponsored by...

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

As you’ll know by now, I like to use the Natter to shine a light on independent agents doing things a...

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...

The findings of the new ‘Thriving in a Pandemic’ report, recently published by tmgroup and mio, have highlighted that the market...

A new study suggests that the end of the stamp duty holiday should not significantly dent the purchasing pattens of buy...

The property market became somewhat fractious during 2020. After receiving a much-needed boost with the promise of stamp duty relief, things...

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

With the Government announcement this week of another national lockdown across England amid the surging coronavirus infections, it once again puts...

Millions of leaseholders will be given the right to extend their lease by a maximum term of 990 years at zero...

Recent debate about urgent need for reform and better collaboration within the property industry, has once again come under the spotlight...

The soon-to-launch Boomin portal has signed up a national firm and now claims to have recruited 40 per cent of the...

It’s been an unexpected year for the property market, shaped by the effects of the pandemic. We didn’t quite anticipate the...

The property market, and therefore, estate agents have been accused of being the 'weak link' in the UK’s money laundering defences. This...

Two independent agencies in London have joined forces to form a 'full circle' service for developers, promising to transform the property...

The last few months have been tough for the property sector, and the pressure will continue as estate agents across the...

The industry’s first virtual awards event has taken place with hundreds of agents participating courtesy of YouTube. Winners of the prestigious ESTAS...

With Brexit still unresolved, the domestic agenda has been pushed from the headlines by the seemingly overwhelming public and political discord...

Hello - it’s that time of the week again when we celebrate the agency industry’s fantastic fund-raising. We were delighted that our...

The UK property market can be seen by criminals as an effective vehicle to conceal the proceeds of economic crime. Criminally...

Hello and welcome to this week’s ADC - yet more examples of stupendous fund-raising by our industry (and a lot of...

As the clock ticks down and Britain’s future gets ever more difficult to predict, one of the few certainties to cling...

The Money Laundering Regulations require estate agents to risk assess their business relationships and apply an appropriate level of investigation to...

The huge £215,000 fine levied on Countrywide for failing to abide by anti-money laundering procedures is a demonstration that estate agents...

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

The government has moved to crack down on money laundering in the UK with a new campaign focusing on the accountancy,...

Technology is transforming the way we comply with Anti Money Laundering (AML) regulation. It is providing a consistent approach, reliable outcomes...

In our previous 2 blogs we have covered the definitions of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations (CPRs) and what the practical...

In 2014 The Properties Misdescriptions Act was repealed and replaced with the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations, otherwise known as...

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 chief executive of the newly-expanded Emoov group has been giving details of the merger with Tepilo and the possibility of...

Next week ludlowthompson celebrates its 25th anniversary. Here, I catch up with Stephen Ludlow, co-founder and now executive director of the...

Does your company apply adequate customer due diligence measures when carrying out estate agency work?  Does it establish and maintain appropriate policies...

The Money Laundering Regulations 2017 require estate agents to risk assess their business relationships and apply an appropriate level of investigation...

The Money Laundering Regulations 2017 require estate agents to risk assess their business relationships and apply an appropriate level of investigation...

The Money Laundering Regulations 2017 require estate agents to risk assess their business relationships and apply an appropriate level of investigation...

The announcement that MPs will set up a Select Committee to probe the scale of money laundering in the UK property...

The Guild of Professional Estate Agents and Fine & Country are offering agent members the option to have in-person reviews and...

It seems prop-tech is exploding at a scary rate, and the latest brands are all trying to grab our attention by...

The guys at Which? are at it again, all over estate agents like a rash for “over valuing” properties so they...

Annoying isn’t it. You take on a stunning property, agree a compelling asking price and your Vendor is desperate to get the...