We would like to share the Q2 edition of Landmark’s Property Trends Report, which provides a complete summary of the 2021 property transaction pipeline from listings through SSTC, search and finally completion milestones, compared to 2019.
Surges and slowdowns in activity have aligned to major government announcements and deadlines.
Property search orders were up 43% in April 2021, compared to the same month in 2019, as buyers rushed to benefit from the Stamp Duty Land Tax holiday.
Other insights include:
- Listings were down on average by 5% at the half year point
- SSTC activity was 22% higher in April 2021 vs April 2019
- Completions in June were 85% higher compared to the same month in 2019
On this occasion, we are also adding our Completions to Instructions Ratio (CIR) report, which is an indication of overall workload, where we are reporting:
- A ratio of 115%, which demonstrates the extraordinary pressure conveyancing lawyers were under and the incredible way they delivered results for clients.
We hope you find our trend reports useful. Please CLICK HERE to access a copy of the Property Trends report.
Please be advised that Argyll’s best-in-class flood report, Flood Solutions Commercial is about to look and feel even better! These changes will come into effect today, Tuesday 22nd June, and don’t require any actions from you.
Flood Solutions Commercial has been enhanced to make it the leading choice for commercial property lawyers who want the highest quality flood report available. It’s suitable for every commercial property transaction including those with some complexities.
Enhancements include:
- New design with clear summary results and Hyperlinks
- Improved expert consultant review of flood data and site setting
- Improved analysis including elevation above watercourses and historical flood events
- Upgraded assessment of overall risk of flooding with and without flood defences
- Improved guidance on action required under NPPF to secure planning approval
- Improved indication of insurance availability
Flood Solutions Commercial Sample Report
Flood Solutions Commercial Product Card¿
If you have any questions or comments, please email intro@onesearchdirect.co.uk or get in touch with us on 0800 052 0117 and we will be more than happy to assist you.
Landmark’s CON29M report will now include, where required, the mine entry and subsidence claims additional assessments. And even better they will be delivered in the one report and within the hour of the order!
Landmark CON29M answers all 11 CON29M questions as set out by the Law Society and is suitable for all residential transactions. Plus, it provides specialist support and guidance, as with all Landmark reports, to help both conveyancer and client in understanding any risks in relation to their purchase property.
Landmark CON29M compliant Coal Report provides:
- Easy to Read – Simple ‘traffic light’ summary provides instant clarity on report findings.
- Assurance – Using the Coal Authority licensed data PLUS PINPOINT’s Unique Mining Risk datasets and is backed by a professional opinion from a coal industry expert.
- Accuracy – Data independently verified and tested for accuracy.
- Better Protection – With Professional Indemnity cover of £10 million and Aviva Information Accuracy Indemnity of £100,000 per report.
These changes do not require any actions from you and take effect from Tuesday 11 May 2021.
Please click here to find the updated Landmark CON29M product card and sample report.
To find out more about Landmark’s new coal report, call our Service Introduction Team on 01782 433 270 or email intro@onesearchdirect.co.uk.
Please be advised that from 29th January 2021, Landmark’s Plansearch report will be retired, and the Plansearch Plus report will be replaced by a new and enhanced report: Landmark Planning.
The Landmark Planning report will give your clients details on whether there are nearby planning applications that may impact the property as well as any types of development that are currently being carried out in the area
Landmark Planning will uniquely display data of the majority of the UK’s large planning applications as polygons, providing a realistic understanding of the potential impact, both positive and negative, of a development
As part of the relaunch of this key conveyancing report the price of the new Landmark Planning will increase from from £37.20 (inc VAT) to £42.00 (inc VAT).
Free webinar on Landmark Planning
Tuesday, February 16th at 11:00 AM
This session provides conveyancers with examples of how nearby development can impact a property and how the ‘Landmark Planning’ report can help purchasers make more informed decisions. Please click here to register your place on this webinar.
If your bundles will be affected by this upgrade, your account manager will be in touch. To find out more about Landmark Planning, please call our Service Introduction Team on 01782 433 270 or email intro@onesearchdirect.co.uk.
Please click here to view a sample report.
Please click here to view a product card.
What do you need to know about coal in 2020?
The heyday of coal mining in the UK is well and truly behind us. According to a report by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy in 2016, at its peak coal mining employed over 1.19m people in the 1920s. However, the many coalfields that operated across the country, such as those in Durham, Wales, Scotland, Yorkshire, Kent and across the Midlands, all closed several decades ago and fossil fuels are no longer in favour.
In fact, the consumption of coal as an energy source has dramatically fallen. Mining has virtually stopped and coal represents approximately five per cent of overall energy usage – much of which is now imported from other countries.
While many consider coal mining as something that has been dispatched to the history books, it leaves behind a significant and long-lasting legacy that will continue to have an impact well into the future. Namely, ground stability poses a real hazard for properties located over mine workings.
When transacting properties, it is important to consider ground risks as part of the due diligence work. Mining coal below the ground has the ability to cause subsidence. With deep mining this lowering of the surface takes place over a relatively short period of time. This can manifest itself as tension or ‘compression strains’, resulting in damage to buildings or quite simply a lowering of the surface and no damage at all. Shallower workings do not consolidate in the same way and the impact of these can continue for much longer, representing a continued present-day risk.
What is important to understand is that an area affected at the surface by mining activities may just be the tip of the iceberg. People are often unaware that the area considered to be at risk could in fact far greater than the immediate site of historic coalfields, due to the multiple angles, directions and depths involved in the mining process.
To calculate ground stability risk as accurately as possible, the ‘Zone of Influence’ (ZOI) needs to be taken into consideration, but what is this?
The ZOI is a complex three-dimensional calculation that is based upon the depth and slope of the workings, together with the surface terrain. Due to the various angles, directions and depths often involved, it is not sufficient to simply create a ‘buffer’ around the underground workings
These complex ZOI calculations are important and take into account a huge amount of data, which enables ground stability risks associated with mining activities to be assessed with a very high degree of accuracy.
People may say “coal mining was all a long time ago – what is the relevance today?” Within an area affected by deep workings the number of properties damaged is not universal or consistent, and subsidence or sinkholes remain a current risk, particularly given that historic mines or workings are no longer being maintained.
Obtaining a coal mining report enables prospective purchasers to be made fully aware of the risks and to see whether there is any history of damage – including where a claim has been made, or been rejected.
If the claim was accepted and repairs were carried out, it is suggested that you might want to commission a survey to check if the repairs are of an adequate standard.
In addition, if compensation was paid instead of repairs, it is important to know why and what, if anything, was done in relation to the damage. It gives the buyer the opportunity to research into the detail before the transaction completes.
Landmark’s Coal Mining Report – powered by PinPoint –provides all the standard answers required by the Law Society together with additional information about mine entries and claims when they are reported. The reports are supported by professional opinion from a Chartered Minerals Surveyor.
Therefore, while active coal mining may well be condemned to the history books in the UK, the after-effects leave behind a lasting legacy that certainly means it will not be forgotten. Forewarned is forearmed.
To find out more about Landmark’s new coal report, call our Service Introduction Team on 01782 433 270 or email intro@onesearchdirect.co.uk. You can request sample reports here.
Why are there Highways delays?
Lockdown has had a huge impact on Local Authority service provision, incomparable to what we’ve seen in recent history.
Highways departments are still working from home at a reduced capacity resulting in very delayed response turnarounds. Some are even returning to lockdown. This is making it increasingly difficult to obtain the key adoption status information needed to inform a commercial property transaction.
How can OneSearch Direct help?
To avoid the significantly delayed process of waiting on an official Local Authority highways response, we recommend using Argyll Environmental’s SITE SOLUTIONS Highways report. The report is built from their unique database sourced from official Local Authority responses.
If the adoption status is public and the information is held on their database, then a report can often be turned around faster than the Local Authority.
- 70% of reports provided in full after 10 working days
- Clear confirmation of adoption status (roads, paths & verges) based on official Local Authority responses
- Clear map showing extent
- Requests of specific nearby roads available
- Information also on, proposed road works or traffic schemes and rights of way
Only when the road is unadopted, the status isn’t known or a verge is suspected do we need to speak to the Local Authority. In these cases, a report will be provided in line with Local Authority response times. However, for those that are closed, we can provide temporary line maps.
Want to know more?
Landmark Academy are hosting a free webinar on 16th September at 12pm, discussing why it is important to consider highways as part of the conveyancing process and how Landmark can help make the process more efficient. Please click here to register.
To view the product card, please click here.
To view the sample report, please click here.
If you would like more information about Highways Reports, please email intro@onesearchdirect.co.uk or call 01782 433270.