"Nobody expects the Spanish inquisition"
It appears that solicitors who are members of the Law Society's new Conveyancing Quality Scheme (CQS) needn't worry about a Pythonesque "fear and surprise" reprisal if they break the guidance rules.
The Law Society introduced the CQS to help traditional high street law firms differentiate themselves from ordinary legal providers. Although it is designed to show that member firms are always courteous and offer excellent service, our recent experience with some CQS firms indicates that this may not always be the case.
Following some recent exchanges of the nature that we thought solicitors only reserved for estate agents, we checked with the Law Society what sanctions were available where firms breach their rules. The answer was that there are none. The words teapot and chocolate spring to mind, although not necessarily in that order.
Chancel repair liabilities - the clock is ticking
Over recent years, it has become a standard requirement for buyers (particularly when getting a mortgage) to check whether there is any liability for homeowners to pay for the upkeep of the local church, through a rather arcane law enacted centuries ago. Although there have not been many cases, this right expires next year, so there is a possibility that some churches may look to make the most of this opportunity.
The potential liability is real and we will be introducing a low-cost service next year for homewners to check whether they have this liability and take the necessary steps to protect themselves.
SDLT Changes
The government and Revenue & Customs have warned they will close the loopholes that people are exploiting to avoid Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT). Indeed, last month, they announced they would remove one method, whereby buyers used companies to buy properties, by increasing the rate to 5%. Discussions with agents has shown a marked decrease in the numbers of clients trying to avoid SDLT, and we have witnessed numbers falling.
Whilst currently, mitigating SDLT can be done legally, some are speculating that in the future, it may be considered to be a criminal offence.
Finally, the government appears committed to its decision to scrap the SDLT exemption for first time buyers spending less than £250K after 24th March 2012.
New website and online case tracking
We will be launching our new-look website in January, with the focus very much on social media and information delivery. We will also be extending our Partnership League system so agents will be able to track the progress of their client's cases online. This will enhance our current offering of our fast-response email and 7 days-erp-week telephone access.
... and finally ... we don't DO end of year reviews, so it just remains for us to wish a merry Christmas and a happy new year to our readers!
Wednesday 21 December 2011
Tuesday 13 December 2011
Solar panels - its deja vu all over again
We should have known.
In our last blog, we found it within our hearts to compliment the government on actually doing what they said they would do when it came to eradicating tax avoidance with Stamp Duty Land Tax.
We believed that we were witnessing a new political dawn.
However, as Nick Clegg will testify, a week is a long time in politics. Therefore, we're not surprised to see, that, unfortunately, Westminster is back to its old ways when it comes to shifting policy goal posts overnight.
This time it's the solar panel industry.
Recent years have seen massive growth in the sale of solar panels - the promise of free electricity and money from the government paying home owners to produce it, was simply too strong for many. Indeed, this business opportunity, with its green overtones, seemed ideal for domestic energy assessors, (DEAs) many of whom had lost significant income from the overnight scrapping of HIPs, where they made their money.
The key to the business was the "feed-in tariff" - money from the government paying consumers to generate their own electricity. Without it, the cost of buying (or leasing in many cases) these solar panels simply didn't make financial sense. This fee was guaranteed. (Or so the franchise salespeople told their franchisees).
The amount paid was up for review in April 2012, and a consultation period was underway. However, in a HIP-like move, the government has overnight reduced this tariff by 50%, making the proposition for many, unviable.
Observers estimate this will cost 20,000 jobs. Add that to the estimate of 10,000 jobs lost when HIPs were abandoned, and suddenly, Cameron's new caring Conservatism doesn't appear to be quite so friendly after all.
In our last blog, we found it within our hearts to compliment the government on actually doing what they said they would do when it came to eradicating tax avoidance with Stamp Duty Land Tax.
We believed that we were witnessing a new political dawn.
However, as Nick Clegg will testify, a week is a long time in politics. Therefore, we're not surprised to see, that, unfortunately, Westminster is back to its old ways when it comes to shifting policy goal posts overnight.
This time it's the solar panel industry.
Recent years have seen massive growth in the sale of solar panels - the promise of free electricity and money from the government paying home owners to produce it, was simply too strong for many. Indeed, this business opportunity, with its green overtones, seemed ideal for domestic energy assessors, (DEAs) many of whom had lost significant income from the overnight scrapping of HIPs, where they made their money.
The key to the business was the "feed-in tariff" - money from the government paying consumers to generate their own electricity. Without it, the cost of buying (or leasing in many cases) these solar panels simply didn't make financial sense. This fee was guaranteed. (Or so the franchise salespeople told their franchisees).
The amount paid was up for review in April 2012, and a consultation period was underway. However, in a HIP-like move, the government has overnight reduced this tariff by 50%, making the proposition for many, unviable.
Observers estimate this will cost 20,000 jobs. Add that to the estimate of 10,000 jobs lost when HIPs were abandoned, and suddenly, Cameron's new caring Conservatism doesn't appear to be quite so friendly after all.
Wednesday 7 December 2011
Good to see the government grasping the mettle
To be completely frank, when we saw a Conservative prime minister appear at the doors of number 10 Downing Street last year, the last thing we expected would they would actually resolve a taxation issue that affects many of their supporters.
However, we're delighted to see that after various promises over the past six months, that they are cracking down on those people looking to avoid Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT).
In addition to the budget earlier this year when many avoidance schemes were outlawed, we read that the draft Finance Bill 2012 now includes a change to SDLT rules outlawing avoidance for properties over £1m, where previously, buyers could exploit a loophole which would save them thousands of pounds.
We remain concerned that those people that have been sold such avoidance schemes in the past will end up having to find the money that they have saved (not forgetting the 50% fee that they paid to the providers that sold them the "cast-iron" schemes) when the Revenue and Customs finally catch up with them.
However, we're delighted to see that after various promises over the past six months, that they are cracking down on those people looking to avoid Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT).
In addition to the budget earlier this year when many avoidance schemes were outlawed, we read that the draft Finance Bill 2012 now includes a change to SDLT rules outlawing avoidance for properties over £1m, where previously, buyers could exploit a loophole which would save them thousands of pounds.
We remain concerned that those people that have been sold such avoidance schemes in the past will end up having to find the money that they have saved (not forgetting the 50% fee that they paid to the providers that sold them the "cast-iron" schemes) when the Revenue and Customs finally catch up with them.
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