In the midst of a global pandemic and Brexit rearing its head again, August 2019 seems like a lifetime ago. We will take a look back at some key topics which we were considering a year ago and are still very relevant now. Law firms are as vulnerable to fraud now as they have ever …
Continue reading “Throwback Thursday – Week 1”
Practitioners will be aware that HMLR has issued a temporary relaxation to its rules relating to identity verification in response to the Covid-19 situation. Note that PG67 (evidence of identity: conveyancers) has been further updated in relation to the evidence of identity forms referred to in the guide, in particular to forms ID1, ID2 and …
Continue reading “HMLR – further changes to evidence of identity requirements”
In general terms, the higher rate of SDLT is payable if a purchase will result in a buyer owning more than one property on completion of the transaction. The starting point is that this includes the buyer’s current home if they still own it at the end of the day they buy their new home. …
Continue reading “SDLT refund period – extended”
If HMLR makes a mistake regarding a registration, Sch 4 LRA 2002 should help. The provisions seem pretty clear: Introductory 1. In this Schedule, references to rectification, in relation to alteration of the register, are to alteration which – (a) involves the correction of a mistake, and (b) prejudicially affects the title of a registered …
Continue reading “HMLR mistake – rectification”
HMLR has issued a short reminder about how firms should request an application to be expedited. It is necessary to use the Application Enquiry in the HMLR portal. An applicant must attach evidence as to why the application is urgent. HMLR will process the application sooner if they approve the application. If a firm has …
Continue reading “HMLR – expediting an application”
All property practitioners should note the important measures announced on 22 June 2020 in relation to the lifespan of planning permissions. The government estimates that by the end of June 2020, more than 400 residential permissions providing more than 24,000 new homes would have expired. Planning permission usually expires after three years if work has …
Continue reading “Planning permission deadline – extended”
On 29 May 2020 the Law Society (and other industry bodies) issued some very practical guidance (‘Sector specific guidance for conveyancers’) to assist conveyancers and their clients to navigate the still very difficult area of moving home during a period of social distancing. The guidance promotes the idea that the period between exchange and completion …
Continue reading “Conveyancing – Law Society guidance”
Property lawyers will be all too aware of the importance of a new home warranty to buyers of new properties or those that are less than ten years old. The purpose of such warranty is to give homeowners confidence that if there is a defect, it will be covered by the warranty. In most cases, …
Continue reading “New home warranty – statute barred”
Amending a deed that has already completed is important at any time – but in the midst of the current situation, conveyancers are more likely to have to correct clerical or other errors in deeds, so it is more important than ever to get it right. This is dealt with in HMLR PG 68: amending …
Continue reading “HMLR – amending a deed”
Each month we consider conduct and practice issues relevant to busy practitioners. This month we will consider some of the risks to conveyancers of so-called ‘Covid clauses’. Conveyancing practitioners have been hit particularly hard by the Covid-19 crisis. Workloads dried up overnight, staff moved to homeworking with little or no notice, many staff had to …
Continue reading “Conveyancing Covid clauses – the risks”