Beal’s acquire Harcourts Property Agents

Beal’s Independent Estate Agents has acquired well-established letting agent, ‘Harcourts Property Agents’ based in Southampton, Hampshire.

Beal’s will retain the highly experienced team and will implement a ‘business as usual’ approach to ensure a smooth transition and integrate the with their newly refurbished Shirley office.

Darren Tait, Partner at Beal’s Estate Agents, said:

”This acquisition of Harcourts shows our confidence in the lettings and block management market and will only add to our ongoing proposition which includes Sales, Financial Services, Conveyancing, Surveying, and Land & New Homes.”

Sequence ties up with leading bungalow provider

National estate agency network Sequence has announced its appointment as sole selling agent for RoyaleLife, the UK’s largest bungalow provider.

With a heritage dating back to 1945, RoyaleLife is delivering luxury gated bungalow developments, exclusively for those aged over 45, in some of the UK’s most attractive regions. Sequence is charged with bringing RoyaleLife’s latest developments to market.

RoyaleLife has a Home Part Exchange scheme that gives purchasers 100% market value of their current home. So, if their current home is valued at £450,000, and a RoyaleLife bungalow is valued at £300,000, that will leave the buyer with a surplus of £150,000 cash.

“We are thrilled to have been appointed as the sole residential agent marketing RoyaleLife’s unique and extensive range of developments,” says Jason Howes, New Homes Managing Director at Sequence.

Ben Smith, Marketing Director for RoyaleLife, said: “We’re delighted to be partnering with market leader Sequence, who can use their national presence to bring our exclusive homes to an even bigger audience.”

New tech speeds up proof of identity

Property lawyers looking to speed-up due diligence and compliance are turning to a new piece of digital identity technology for homebuyers.

Index West Midlands Property Information launched the Electronic Customer Due Diligence (CDD) technology last month as part of its digital product and service portfolio for property lawyers.

The new app, which is recognised by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) as fully compliant with all law firm’s legislation and regulation, can verify client identity and proof of address in seconds, eliminating the need for clients to post documents or visit law firm’s premises, which slows down the onboarding process. The tech also carries-out anti-money laundering checks and compliance.