Home ownership amongst young people up after a decade of decline
The proportion of 25 to 34 year olds who own their own home in England has risen for the first time in over a decade. There are now as many owner occupiers in this age…
Watchdog issues “strong signal” to rogue agents who price-fix
The Competition and Markets Authority says it wants to send “a strong signal” to the estate agency industry that price-fixing will not be tolerated. The CMA has in recent times probed three cases of price-fixing…
Conveyancing call for Knotweed info shows need for treatment – claim
The increasing demand for information on Japanese Knotweed during the house buying process is emphasising the need for householders to pay more attention to the problem, it is claimed. Mortgage lenders now require the sellers…
Stamp duty receipts down again – agency demands government action
Data from HM Revenue & Customs shows tax receipts from stamp duty fell a further 5.2 per cent between 2018 and 2019, part of a broad decline in income since late 2016. The figures have…
Revealed – the agent posting Instagram pictures of clients’ houses
The high-end estate agent who has quit his post after being found to have posted pictures of clients’ houses on Instagram has been named. Last week The Times made reference to speculation that an agency…
Agents can capture automated valuation leads even if they quit process
The ValPal Network claims its new product allows agents to gather the maximum amount of information from customers using its automated valuation tool – even if they fail to complete the valuation exercise. ‘Before You Go’…
Agents warned they will be accused of mis-selling
A leasehold reform campaigner claims estate agents face “growing calls to be held accountable for mis-selling leasehold properties.” Louie Burns, managing director of the Leasehold Solutions Group, says: “Estate agents are facing mounting pressure to ensure they…
More market optimism as transactions enjoy end-of-year boost
The number of residential transactions rose by 6.2 per cent in December – an unseasonal increase – according to data from HM Revenue & Customs. There were 104,670 residential property transactions last month, when traditionally…
Housing market activity in London bounces back as demand surges
Soaring demand in London is pushing up activity levels with the housing market seeing interest from would-be buyers, including property investors, rocketing, according to the latest report from Knight Frank. The number of new prospective…
Property market sentiment improves following Tory election victory
The housing market has enjoyed what some are calling a “Boris bounce” following the result of last month’s general election, with confidence in the market hitting a three-year high, according to a new survey. Zoopla,…