tm blog

The topic of infrastructure continues to keep our politicians busy with discussions around the budget for HS2, where and when a new runway should be added in the south and if there should be more projects to improve the economy, but what about homebuyers?

Clearly many of these projects are both high profile and long term, and it would be naïve to suggest that anyone buying a house near an airport or railway line is going to be ignorant of its presence and the fact that it will impact upon the property in some way, for better or for worse. What is challenging is that these issues are usually subjective and the reaction to them will vary from individual to individual but, as a conveyancer, how can you tell unless you can inform them?

When the SRA published their Risk Outlook 2014-15 in July of this year to assess the key risks to firms in carrying out their regulatory objectives there was a new entry in the Risk Outlook chart compared to 2013, namely bogus law firms.

The other four including misuse of money, money laundering controls, a failure of service and diversity within the workplace remain, so where has this new threat emerged from?

Law firms need to be aware of their attractiveness to criminals who seek to launder the proceeds of crime through conveyancing transactions. Image copyright Images Money.

The Solicitors’ Regulation Authority (SRA) is stepping up its efforts to ensure that law firms do not become embroiled in money laundering activity and are compliant with the various regulations and legislation associated with anti-money laundering compliance.

In their Risk Outlook 2014-15, published in July, the SRA highlighted how law firms are an attractive vehicle through which to launder the proceeds of crime, such is the magnitude of funds being transferred by legal practices.

The process of conveying property is inherently fraught with risk; so much so, in fact, that one might question the veracity of the statement: 'safe as houses'. To make things worse, properties in some parts of the country are afflicted with rather more quirky threats than you might unearth in a typical transaction. We take you through five of the strangest searches, in no particular order.

Ransom strip causes headaches for property developers in Essex, amid 5 years of legal wrangling. Image source: Daily Mail | Copyright Cascade News

Why Highways? - What's wrong with a SIM or local search?
Ah, a good question as sometimes the pain isn’t always recognised, it is just put up with.