Finance
Mortgage shelf-life drops and lenders increase rates
Lenders spent the first few weeks of May repricing, in reaction to a volatile swap rate market
News
Training
Fine & Country to hosts exclusive training event for licensees
Fine & Country has hired estate agent coach Josh Phegan to host the event
Law
Estate agents accused of breaking the law with conditional selling practices
Conditional selling by UK estate agents is on the rise again
Compliance
The Property Ombudsman receive record enquiries as pay outs rise
Consumers are increasingly demanding justice and becoming aware of the options available to them when it comes to dealing with agents
Acquisitions
Estate agency hails ‘transformational’ year following major acquisitions
Company makes major announcement
Other News
House prices edge down – industry reactions
Market activity remained resilient throughout the spring months, supported by strong nominal wage growth and some evidence of an improvement in confidence about the economic outlook
Law
New rules to be introduced in the private rented sector
New tenancies must be compliant from 1 September 2024; existing tenancies must be compliant from 1 December 2024
Agency
Online estate agency wins market share by offering cheaper fees than high-street rivals
Estate agency claims its typical consumer fee saving is £2,440 compared to the industry’s average estate agency commission of 1.42%
People
Comings & Goings
Snippets of industry news: TPFG provides major directorate update; Homesure Property expands estate agency team; Knight Frank appoints new lettings head
Lettings
Rent increases slow but demand remains exceptionally high
Despite falling rental prices across several UK regions, analysts say it is “business as usual” for the PRS
Other News
Sales activity slows in prime London as demand falls
The supply-demand imbalance has narrowed, placing downwards pressure on property prices
Law
Property industry reacts to Labour’s planned ‘Freedom to Buy’ scheme
Labour also plans to introduce an overhaul of the planning system, including reintroducing housing targets
Politics
Labour’s former housing minister fails to rule out property tax rises
The senior Labour MP has left the door open to increasing property taxes after the Tories challenged the party to rule out a hike
Politics
UK property market defies general election uncertainty, new data shows
UK property market defies general election uncertainty
Lettings
What’s the outlook for the rental market for the rest of 2024?
Rents have fallen over the last quarter across several regional cities due to localised supply and demand changes and affordability constraints in certain cities
Training
The Able Agent to launch certificate in agency management
Online property training specialist has announced the launch of an industry first Level 3 Certificate in Agency Management
Politics
Chancellor pledges to freeze stamp duty, CGT and council tax bands
Jeremy Hunt has unveiled an election Family Home Tax Guarantee
Law
Political parties urged to simplify planning applications
As the 2024 general election unfolds, more clarity over the system of auctioning commercial property acquired by local authorities is needed
Agency
Agents respond to Zoopla’s latest housing data
As legal and financial obligations increase for landlords, many buy-to-let investors are turning elsewhere to invest their money
Compliance
Councils failing to inspect potentially hazardous housing, data shows
The next government needs to focus on driving up enforcement to root out rogue and criminal landlords, says NRLA