Purchasing a new build home is an exciting prospect, promising modern amenities and a fresh start. However, the process of conveyancing for new build properties can be very different from existing homes. In this blog, we will discuss the nuances of...
As Halloween looms, Bird & Co beckons the brave home seekers to explore haunted realms across the UK, where properties await their fearless potential owners... To celebrate Halloween this year, our team have explored what are known as some of the most...
Researchers at Bird & Co wanted to investigate the types of properties people in the UK were most interested in, to get a better sense of the market over the past year. To find out, they looked at the Google search volumes for various property key...
In the conveyancing process, indemnity insurance is a protective policy that safeguards against potential legal issues arising from property transactions. It covers a variety of concerns, such as missing documentation, boundary disputes, or planning...
If you are purchasing a property, or selling one, the likelihood is that you’ll want to move through the process as quickly as possible. Conveyancing processes are not always straight forward, however, working with an expert conveyancing solicitor...
Conveyancing enquiries are questions asked to learn more about a property during a sale. Also known as pre-contract enquiries, they refer to a series of questions raised by the buyer's solicitor and to the seller's solicitor. Enquiries are an...
Bird & Co’s new first time buyer home deposit calculator shows the cities where singles and couples have the most hope of buying a home. Our new mortgage deposit calculator was put to the test, uncovering what the picture looks like for first...
Edward Neil Hamilton 1936 – 2023 It is with great sadness that we announce the death, on 28 th June 2023, of Edward Neil Hamilton, a Consultant Solicitor at the Firm. Mr Hamilton trained in law for five years before qualifying in 1959. He...
If you are dealing with property, for example, buying, selling, transferring ownership or remortgaging, you will need a conveyancing solicitor to act for you. Here, we take a look at the role of a conveyancing solicitor in detail and how they can help you...
Conveyancing is the legal process of transferring property ownership. It involves several stages including property searches, drafting and exchanging contracts and registering the transfer with the Land Registry. Conveyancers, typically solicitors or...
Discover if your desired destination ranks among the UK's top 10 most sought-after counties... Bird & Co has uncovered the UK’s most sought-after locations, having analysed June 2021 net internal migration figures from the Office of National...
One of the most significant financial commitments that a person can make in their lifetime is to purchase a home. For the majority of people, this purchase is only made possible with the assistance of a mortgage. However, before receiving a mortgage, the...
A study conducted by researchers at Bird & Co has identified the European countries most frequently searched on Google by UK residents looking to relocate overseas. For some time, residents in the UK have been facing mounting pressure and financial...
In light of National Conveyancing Week, conveyancing solicitors, Bird & Co, have carried out search engine research to answer the UK’s most common conveyancing queries. Launched to boost the profile of conveyancing across the property sector, ...
Conveyancing solicitors, Bird & Co, put ChatGPT to the test to see if it can answer the most common first-time buyer queries accurately, in place of a conveyancing solicitor. Looks like the AI chatbot has far to go to rival property solicitors in the...
We took a look at our internal client data throughout 2022 to see how home buying patterns changed during the year after recovering from the impacts of Covid-19. Key Home Buying Statistics 2022 68% of Bird & Co’s clients were first time...
Daniel Chard, Partner at Bird & Co, explores his predictions for the housing market in 2023.
Newly released Census data shows that 30% of England & Wales homes are single occupancy. Despite growing uncertainty in the UK’s economic outlook, living alone has continued to be a popular choice for many. In fact, 1 in 3 households across...
Hundreds of thousands of homes across England stand empty despite growing numbers of homelessness across the country. To examine the percentage of unoccupied homes in England, we have used data from sources like the Census as well as the Office for...
The 2021 Census results have now been revealed. At Bird & Co we’ve analysed the first set of data released to find out where the 65+ age group are living now compared to when the last census took place in 2011 . According to the data, inner...
Cornwall is the most up-and-coming place to live, new census data reveals. The 2021 census results are in. We’ve done a deep dive into the first set of data released to see where young people are living now compared to when the last census took...
Once an offer is made and accepted on a property, you may think the price agreed is a done deal. However, there remains room for manoeuvre on both sides of the deal, meaning the buyer can reduce their offer or the seller can ask for more, as long as they do...
Before beginning the moving process, many people are keen to learn how long it takes to move house. The answer will vary slightly according to the circumstances. However, it’s useful to understand the average time frames for each part of the process,...
Homeowners have huge sums of money tied up in their houses, and it is possible to release a portion of this equity by accessing a loan that is secured against the property. If you own a property and you need to borrow a lump sum, you may be eligible to...
After decades of campaigning for a ‘no fault divorce’, the Divorce, Dissolution and Separation Bill finally gained Royal Assent in June 2020. The changes are the biggest shake-up of divorce laws for 50 years, and it means from 6 April 2022,...
Bird and Co explore the recent ONS statistics, breaking down the percentage of home ownership in each region in England. Who’s on top? The UK housing market is currently under unwavering pressure, with house prices and rent charges continuing to rise....
The Bird and Co team explore their 2021 client statistics to assess home buyer habits during this year of transition. In 2020, we took our first deep dive into our client transactions, and saw how the pandemic affected home buyer habits. We saw how first-...
2021 has truly been a spectacular year for the property market, having been the busiest year since 2007. Despite the Bank of England warning that property prices had the potential to fall 16% due to the pandemic, the average UK house price rose...
The number of homes in England and Wales owned by foreign buyers has almost tripled since 2010, with close to 250,000 residential properties being registered to individuals based overseas - amounting to 1% of all registered titles. According to the Centre...
Japanese knotweed cases have increased by 28% in the last five years, according to a study by Horticulture.co.uk, analysing data from 49 environmental organisations. South Yorkshire has seen the biggest increase of 77.19%, with a total of 1,111 confirmed...
Making a great first impression is essential when selling your home. A recent survey by Purplebricks revealed that when searching for a new home online, homebuyers spend an average of just 25 seconds deciding whether a home is right for them. According to...
Reverend Mike Hall was recently shocked to be alerted by neighbours that someone was living in his Luton house. He returned home straight away to discover the locks changed, his belongings gone and a stranger telling him that they’d bought the house....
Find out if your ideal location is in the top 10 most flocked to UK counties… With the housing market making a resurgence after a tumultuous 2020, the UK has since experienced rapid growth thanks to thousands of homeowners looking to relocate...
If your home is no longer working for you, you need to decide whether it’s time to sell up or whether some extra investment in your current home might do the trick. Lack of space, a tired kitchen or bathroom, or just plain old boredom with the home...
In the past year 251,000 Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) were lodged for new build homes – an increase of 16%. These new figures, released by the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government , mean that 85% of new homes in England...
The first Stamp Duty holiday deadline on 30 June 2021 has been and gone. Any conveyancing transactions must have completed by 30 June to receive a full tax break on properties worth up to £500,000 in England and Northern Ireland. Until 30 September...
The effects of climate change are becoming a significant concern for eco-conscious consumers. Many people have recycled for years, they switch off lights when they leave rooms and reduce the amount of meat they eat. But what about the environmental cost of...
The government has announced a new scheme called the First Homes Initiative which could give first time buyers in England discounts of at least 30% and up to 50% on their first home. With the average UK house price now exceeding £250,000 , the new...
The short answer to that is no. While it used to be normal to use a local solicitor for your conveyancing, it’s now increasingly common to carry out the process of buying or selling a house over the phone and online. This means there is no longer any...
It has been a difficult year for buy-to-let investors and renters alike. The Covid-19 pandemic meant that many people lost their jobs or were put on furlough leave, and as a result, many fell behind on their rent. In normal times, a tenant could be evicted...
Selling your home can be a daunting prospect. You will no doubt be aware of the various steps you need to take to ensure your transaction runs smoothly and without disruptive delays. That’s not to mention having to balance selling your current home...
With so many people forced to stay at home over the past year, it is understandable that home buyers are considering making major changes to their living circumstances. Flats and homes with no outdoor space are falling out of fashion; rural homes with...
Spring is usually a popular time to put your home on the market. But with the Covid-19 pandemic, is now a good time to sell your home? This time last year in April 2020, national lockdown meant the housing market was firmly closed. People could not sell...
From 1 April 2021, people buying residential property in England and Northern Ireland who are not resident in the UK will be required to pay a Stamp Duty Land Tax surcharge. Here we outline how this surcharge will work and how it may affect you if you want...
Everyone is looking forward to 21 June when (if all goes well) most, if not all, coronavirus restrictions will be lifted, as per the government’s roadmap out of lockdown. But with continued questions surrounding foreign travel, many people are...
We are now opening all of our offices to the general public from Monday 17th May 2021. We will be open during our normal business hours. We will retain the safety measures set out on the link page but the offices will be open and clients can attend for...
We took a look at our internal client data throughout 2020 to see how home buying patterns changed during the year of Covid-19. As we all know, the coronavirus pandemic had a drastic impact on the property sector from the get-go. During the first lockdown,...
Over 100,000 property transactions could be saved by the Stamp Duty holiday extension, announced on 3 March 2021 as part of the Spring Budget and efforts to support the housing market during the Covid-19 pandemic. Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, has listened to...
The government has announced that it will start backing 95% mortgages, allowing home buyers to purchase their home with just a 5% deposit. Announced on 3 March 2021 in the Spring Budget, the new mortgage guarantee scheme aims to bring back low-deposit...
The Help to Buy: Equity Loan scheme deadline has been extended by an additional two months until the end of May 2021, the government has announced. More than 16,000 purchases were at risk of falling through due to delays caused by the Covid-19 pandemic,...
