Graham Smith Property Lawyers

21/07/2025

https://www.gspropertylawyers.co.uk/how-to-find-a-conveyancer

A guide on how to find a good conveyancer or property lawyer

12/08/2024

https://www.gspropertylawyers.co.uk/what-is-indemnity-insurance

Indemnity insurance covers legal costs and potential damages in lawsuits. It primarily protects professionals from financial loss due to negligence, errors, or omissions in their work. But it’s also relevant when buying and selling a house when an indemnity insurance policy covers a legal defect w...

22/05/2024

We love Cassiobury Park and consider it the jewel of Watford. There is nothing better than packing a picnic on a sunny Sunday and heading to it! Especially if there is a free event on at the ‘BIG BANDSTAND’.

Big Bandstand
Date: June to September
Time: 3 to 5pm
Location: Cassiobury Park
Cost: FREE

Situated near the Cafe in the Park, every weekend during the summer months, it plays host to a jam-packed programme of FREE live shows, playing everything from jazz to ukulele – and of course, lots of traditional brass bands for you to enjoy. What better way to spend a lazy Sunday afternoon! AND maybe you will catch us there!

• Sunday 16 June – Trinity Swings Band
• Sunday 23 June – Welwyn Garden City Band
• Sunday 30 June – Watford Brass Band
• Sunday 14 July – Easy Street Big Band
• Sunday 21 July – Just Friends – Local Jazz Band
• Sunday 28 July – Big Jiveswing Festival
• Sunday 4 August – The SJ Jazz 5
• Sunday 11 August – Lou’s Sextet Band
• Sunday 1 September – Alex Williams and The SJ Jazz 5
• Sunday 8 September – The Blue Patch
• Sunday 15 September – The Apple Scruffs – George Harrison Tribute
• Sunday 22 September – Stardust Big Band
• Sunday 29 September – Bushey and District Jazz Ensemble

22/05/2024

We have a great team. We all work together to help our clients achieve their goals. Check out our reviews.

Google Business Profile Review
Gabriel-Cezar
09/05/24
Roksana goes above and beyond helping her clients. Always professional with expert advice she has helped us to buy our dream home. Roksana and her team at Graham Smith Property Lawyers always kept me well informed with regular updates at every step. I can't thank you enough. Wishing you all the best

04/03/2024

I thought that both regulators required conveyancers to be transparency on fees on their website, also I thought it was a Trading Standards requirement an online quote calculators should not require clients contact details.

During our regulatory audit they highlighted that our online quote calculator required prospective clients to put in contact with details. Slap on hand, even though prospective clients had an option to email the quote to themselves or to click the ‘instruct now’ button, once clicked we had access to contact information. Also our quote calculator is, and was, integrated into our case management system.

I am not being funny here, but I need to know why when there is such a push on estate agents become more transparent on listings and offer material information on property listings. Yet in the conveyancing realm, there seems to be a different rule on transparency of conveyancing fees on the high street and another for high volume online conveyancing firms.

I have pushed our regulator on this issue and they have come back and said online conveyancers offer acceptable alternative fee structures on their site. During my preliminary research I never saw the alternative fee structures on the websites. And guess what? Within days The 'factory' conveyancing firms amazingly offered online alternative fees after I highlighting my concerns to our regulator and then for some reason these companies have now taken off their alternative fees off their websites. Funny that!

They were not there initially, hey presto appeared within days and now have disappeared. Why are the rules different for the high-volume online conveyancers?

I have also been looking at online conveyancing firms’ reviews and many clients are complaining about the quotes doubling on their transactions; I understand that whilst taking a transaction through to completion there might be additional incurred fees; usually it is an indemnity policy which entails a conversation with the client. But Archiving fee, open file fee, closing file fee, doubling indemnity fee charges, a fee for exchange and completion within 10 days, charging for clients for phone calls are abnormal and they are all charged without consultation with the client. The reviews make it very apparent that the clients are shocked at getting completion statement and see a doubling of fees.

These high volume firms quote low to entice and then do addons to pay for the referral fee they paid to obtain the business. One could call it cowboy conveyancing. Yes, I have come to the conclusion that cowboy conveyancers have free range, allowed to rope in the unsuspected and take clients to the slaughter house.

It worries me is that all of these tactics are harming the reputation of conveyancers and the legal profession. There are so many great conveyancing firms, offered a great service to their community for years, conveyancers who have integrity, yet we are struggling to get our transactions to completion because we can not contact the cowboys on the other side. Who is going to rope the cowboys in?

01/12/2023

https://www.facebook.com/watfordcouncil/posts/pfbid02n6xHfaXDXpv5HSViau9TGqJHpCu4gd8m6qbz5najRb4MaTDcrFqBN1ajarYYDLjwl?notif_id=1701419806045781¬if_t=page_highlights&ref=notif

29/11/2023

The moral of The wonderful Wizard of OZ: Dorothy and her companions often feel happy and hopeful. Sometimes they feel alone and afraid, but the dark moments always pass. The message seems clear: if you stay true to yourself and stay on your path—as in, keep on moving—good things will come. And now Watford has its own Yellow Brick Road.

Yellow Brick Road is the new name for Occupation Road in a nod to the singer's 1973 album.

21/11/2023

HOW TO FIND A GOOD CONVEYANCER

A guide on how to find a good conveyancer or property lawyer

21/11/2023

Another great review for GSPL

'An excellent company to do business with. I was kept informed of all matters throughout buying a new property and selling my old property. The Lawyer who represented me (MG) was extremely knowledgeable and helpful and often went 'the extra mile' to ensure exchange and completion occurred on time. Buying and selling property is extremely stressful and we were so lucky to have had this company recommended to us.'

09/10/2023

The HMRC has published new guidance over tax avoidance schemes aimed at landlords who have set up a limited company and an accompanying LLP.

The scheme is marketed as a tax planning option available to individual property landlords to structure their property business and transfer the property Title into a Limited Liability Partnership it is sometimes referred to as a hybrid business model.

HMRC’s warns that this scheme does not work as the arrangements are primarily caught by a number of other existing tax measures, and may incur increased tax liabilities and penalties.

The Revenue says any landlord who believes they are in this arrangement and wish to get out can contact HMRC for help.

And it states: “If you’re using this or similar schemes or arrangements, HMRC strongly advises you to withdraw from it and settle your tax affairs.”

In addition, HMRC considers that a property rental business is likely to be within the exclusions from Business Property Relief at s.105(3) IHTA 1984 as it involves the ‘making or holding investments’, and the use of the hybrid business model does not change the availability of the relief here.

Anyone involved in such a scheme is advised to contact HMRC to discuss how they can settle their position by emailing [email protected] and to consider taking independent professional tax advice.

The spotlight reminds promoters of the scheme that they must disclose the scheme or face penalties of up to £600 per day

For more information follow the link below

Property business arrangements involving hybrid partnerships (Spotlight 63) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

28/09/2023

https://www.gspropertylawyers.co.uk/she-was-almost-scammed-out-of-56-000

Initially she had instructed a well-known online conveyancing company. They unfortunately had to decline her instruction when they found that they were also acting for the seller.

28/09/2023

https://www.gspropertylawyers.co.uk/property-fraud-is-on-the-rise-how-to-avoid-falling-victim-to-sophisticated-scammers

PROPERTY fraud could hit record levels in 2023 - because criminals are finding "increasingly sophisticated" ways to trick homeowners.