Archive

An online travel agent has come to the rescue for an estate agent’s fundraiser to give a local road sweeper a...

Energy performance certificates (EPCs) can be riddled with inaccuracies and unhelpful advice that could cost homeowners when they come to sell...

Who are you and what does it say on your business card? I am Chris Brown, CEO and Founder of Hydrogard...

A man has been jailed for fraud after conning potential property buyers out of nearly £16,000. Jaspal Singh Juttla, 64 of Northwood...

A new product to help agents meet their anti-money laundering (AML) responsibilities has launched. Lifetime Legal has unveiled Smart Compliance, which advises...

Eight agents were excluded from The Property Ombudsman (TPO) scheme during the first quarter of 2023 including collapsed online brand Doorsteps for...

A claims management company (CMC) is in the process of helping with more than 500 claims from homeowners to get refunds...

Thousands more leaseholders are expected to see ground rents cut and some may even receive refunds. It forms part of the Competition...

Purplebricks has pushed back the publication of its annual accounts. The online agent’s full year results were due to be published on...

New homeowners are being warned about cold calls from scammers advising them to make speculated stamp duty refund claims. The warning comes...

Purplebricks has revealed a drop in instructions so far this year. The online agency brand issued a trading update this morning for...

Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) has long been the bugbear of many property transactions. Even the very wealthy will lose interest...

Online agent Strike is preparing to name a home seller who will be reimbursed the equivalent of an estate agent fee...

It was a quiet first quarter this year for sanctions at The Property Ombudsman (TPO). The redress scheme has revealed that just...

For the second time in recent weeks, Purplebricks has de-listed a property after an unacceptable comment by the seller on social...

Purplebricks’ decision to de-list a property after the Christian vendors made anti-gay comments has won widespread support from industry figures, including...

Purplebricks is reported to have removed a property listing from its website when it discovered the vendors - a Christian couple...

Knight Frank has reported a record pre-tax profit and has reimbursed staff who sacrificed some salaries during the pandemic. The agency - which has...

A property specialist is warning about “modern day ambulance chasers” who try to convince buyers they have paid too much stamp duty.  “An increasing...

Rightmove - which for some time has linked solely with iamsold to provide the controversial Modern Method of Auction system to...

The controversial proposal by a PropTech start up to charge potential viewers of properties to let or for sale has been...

Propertymark says a new pay-per-viewing service is “interesting” but warns agents to protect themselves by abiding by consumer protection regulations. The warning has come following...

A number of estate agencies have signed up to a service which charges £30 to view a property. The online service, called...

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

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

The Competition and Markets Authority has struck a deal with house builders over leasehold abuses. Aviva has committed to remove certain terms...

It’s nearly two years since The Tenant Fees Act came into force for tenancies in England. On 1 June 2019 it...

Another major agency group has agreed to repay substantial sums it claimed under the government's Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, introduced to...

The MP leading a new parliamentary committee on the housing market says a radical reform of tax would help more people move...

A prominent estate agent has warned buyers and sellers about the perils of the controversial Modern Method of Auction. MMA is now...

The head of a PropTech platform wants financial penalties on conveyancers if transactions miss deadlines. “The only way to accelerate the current...

Zoopla says it has so far delivered almost £80,000 in agent fees through its access to the Modern Method of Auction. MMA...

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

There’s been a huge focus on both the stamp duty holiday and Help To Buy deadlines at the end of March...

A PropTech supplier says the conveyancing process is “antiquated” and buyers and sellers would be better served if they were ’shadowed’...

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

An auction house that's made a transition from ballroom operations to online streaming is to publish all fees for all lots -...

The largest company involved in the controversial Modern Method of Auction says it’s producing a “disruptive digital market campaign to address...

A tax expert says his research suggests some buyers of homes with annexes may have paid too much stamp duty on...

Stamp duty specialist consultancy Cornerstone Tax claims some 120,000 buyers in the UK may be owed SDLT refunds. It says that in...

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

A property developer has set up an estate agency that charges no commission to sellers but instead levies a non-refundable reservation...

Following the easing of lockdown restrictions on England’s property market in May, NAEA Propertymark reported a sharp increase in business for...

An intervention by a magazine has led to Purplebricks refunding the up-front fee to a seller whose husband died suddenly and...

Zoopla has entered into a partnership with an online platform to promote the so-called Modern Method of Auction option to estate...

A tax and legal specialist says there’s been a huge rise in stamp duty refund cases between March and June -...

I recently read the news about Settled closing its doors. As of 6.29am on Tuesday morning, the article had been read by 8,642...

The online estate agency Settled appears to have ceased trading with its customers refunded. It was launched in 2014 by former Google...

In these unprecedented times, Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS) aims to reassure letting agents, landlords and tenants on any legislative changes, relating...

The three leading portals have rejected an appeal to give the industry a payment holiday to help firms through the Coronavirus...

Training operator The Able Agent is to include a module on the Modern Method of Auction in its future programme.  Charlotte Jeffry-Campbell,...

There will be a two per cent stamp duty surcharge on the purchase of UK investment properties by non-resident overseas buyers...

Sellers who failed to mention a motel and diner being constructed nearby have been ordered by a court to pay £285,000...

Last November, as part of the Conservatives’ general election campaign, Boris Johnson made a surprise announcement that his party would introduce...

Humberts is the latest estate agency to announce that it’s going to offer customers the controversial Modern Method of Auction option. The...

The prospective buyers of a home in Oxfordshire who paid a deposit of £108,000 before withdrawing are suing the sellers in...

A new online auction service has launched this week, pledging a fairer service for agent partners, as well as buyers and...

Three key industry organisations have endorsed a best practice guide for the controversial Modern Method of Auction. The iamsold guide is aimed at...

A study from Santander Mortgages has blown the cover on first time buyers, suggesting they know almost nothing and research very...

A former Foxtons estate agent has set up a property finding service which is exclusively for first time buyers - believed...

An estate agent in Cardiff has come up with a marketing wheeze in a bid to win more instructions - but...

A company operating the controversial Modern Method of Auction says it is trying to improve the sector’s image after a series...

A distinctly autumnal storm seems to be gripping the UK for the early part of the weekend but as ever, nothing...

The modern method of auction is proving to revolutionise the way properties are bought and sold across the UK.  By putting the...

MyBid4It is an online auction platform which has been developed to partner with Estate Agents and revolutionise the way properties are...

A former Territory Owner at Purplebricks, who at one time managed 11 Local Property Experts, has spoken out in support of...

It has been a long time coming, but the tenant fees ban, which forbids landlords and letting agents in England from...

Another new online auction company has launched and is bidding to woo traditional estate agents with the controversial ‘modern method of...

Here’s an unusual story, describing the work of one of Purplebricks’ Local Property Experts who was with the company for around...

A member of a prominent legal network is warning buyers and their conveyancers to be ”wary” of the Modern Method of...

The government has launched an official consultation about a new stamp duty surcharge - the long-awaited additional one per cent for...

Yet another property raffle has had to be abandoned because it has been deemed illegal under Gambling Commission rules. A Yorkshire couple,...

When renting a property out, letting agents and landlords recognise that it is important to take a deposit from the tenant...

At least some calls from potential customers to Emoov are being cut off and rival estate agents are now plundering the...

A new company is claiming to reduce chain collapses during sales by creating a lockout agreement, also known as a reservation agreement. Property...

On the face of it, this year’s Budget was not what you could describe as ‘housing heavy’ in terms of the...

A consumer group says agents are securing increasing income from online auctions, but it warns that for buyers there are pitfalls...

An estate agency trading under two different names has been expelled by The Property Ombudsman after refusing to refund a £2,000...

The brief but troubled history of individuals and companies attempting to raffle homes as prizes has received another blow as a...

As the estate agency business in England moves towards being more robust with professional qualifications and higher standards being introduced, there...

The Conveyancing Association has backed the government’s calls for extensive reform of the buying and selling process, announced at the weekend. The...

Independent agency Coast and Castle has been acquired by Signature, a chain in the north east of England with 18 other...

Online agency Settled is introducing a deposit scheme which it claims will assist sellers and buyers reach completion faster - and...

HMRC has refunded £185m to some 15,000 house buyers since the introduction of the stamp duty surcharge in April of last...

The largest mutual life pension and insurance company in the UK has added its voice to growing calls for stamp duty...

Purplebricks’ advertising is very negative and critical of the competition. They talk about 'commisery', trying to make potential sellers feel ripped...

The Property Ombudsman’s office has defended a change to its code of practice which, according to a national newspaper, means agents...

Conveyancing is the most complained about area of law in England and Wales – accounting, on average, for nearly a quarter...

London-based Auction House says the new stamp duty surcharge rules will encourage more sellers to use auctioneers. The additional homes three per...

A group of leading tax experts claims the stamp duty surcharge coming into effect one week from today will hurt the...

The Legal Ombudsman has published new guidance for first time buyers as a result of conveyancing problems topping the list of...

Two more agents have been expelled by TPO because they failed to pay awards when ordered to pay compensation, and because...

It’s pretty hot out there but our industry still confounds critics by doing good work for good causes.  We’ll gladly publicise your...

An estate agency has been criticised for taking fees from buyers and vendors, known as ‘double-charging’. Over the weekend The Guardian published...

Earlier this week we passed the official deadline for letting agents to fully publicise their fees as well as providing evidence of...

In 2007, the government introduced a compulsory deposit protection scheme as part of the Housing Act 2004 to help protect tenants...