Rural communities have felt the impact of Coronavirus and lockdown often more dramatically than more urbanised areas. With local businesses being the main focus point for employment and community, the loss of income and closing of them has hit local people the hardest.

Nearly two decades after the technology was approved in legislation, HM Land Registry has revealed plans to accept digital signatures to execute deeds.

Robert Jenrick Secretary of State for Housing Communities and Local Government announced this week that the deadline by which start on site must occur in order for grant to be successfully claimed under the Shared Ownership and Affordable Homes Programme (SOAHP) is to be extended by 12 months from end of March 2022 to end of March 2023.

The Green Homes Grant scheme sees the Government plan to provide households with up to £5,000 from September to make their homes more environmentally friendly.

After many years of increasing, charitable gifts in Wills are now apparently in decline.

On 8 July 2020 Chanceller Rishi Sunak announced a temporary increase in the Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) threshold for residential property applicable to property transactions.

In a speech on 30th June Boris Johnson launched his ‘build, build, build’ approach to social and economic recovery included a significant focus on housing.

Now, more than ever, it is vital that the progress made into tackling housing requirements is maintained as the effects of Coronavirus will likely have left more people in housing need.

Like many people across the country, I recently suffered a family bereavement from Coronavirus. Unable to attend the funeral at the time due to lockdown restrictions, I had the strange experience of watching a live-streamed service from afar.

On 24 June 2020 the government announced £105m of funding for interim housing for rough sleepers. This is for those who are currently accommodated in hotels as part of the aim to take rough sleepers off the streets during the Coronavirus pandemic.

Although we have a national reach, Tozers LLP is a Devon law firm at heart, and the welfare of our clients and the local community are at the centre of what we do. As we start to see the lifting of the Coronavirus restrictions, it is important to reflect on the impact that the virus has had on Devon, and how as a county we can work together to move forward in the future.

Fraudsters and other con artists employ ever more intelligent tricks to get their hands on money, by threatening legal action for alleged non-payment of invoices or illegal use of copyrighted materials.