As of today, stressed-out house hunters have a new tool at their disposal to keep nuisance cold callers at bay, thanks to Homebuyer Conveyancer Quotes.  Their free online portal allows users to find and compare the best conveyancing quotes without the need to enter any personal details – unlike  many other price comparison sites. This free to browse service makes finding an Approved Lender Conveyancer fast and hassle-free. At the click of a button, users can view a list of like-for-like conveyancing quotes direct from High Street Solicitors. In the current climate, competition remains fierce for properties on the market with the so-called ‘race for space’ driving increased demand for houses with bigger gardens and capacity to work from home. It is more crucial than ever to understand and budget for the cost of conveyancing from the outset and be ready to set the wheels in motion as soon as an offer gets accepted. With the Homebuyer Conveyancing Quotes comparison service, users can filter results by cheapest price, location and by approved Mortgage Lender in an instant. This can help speed up the process and ultimately reduce failure in the chain.  Moving house and re-mortgaging is big business in the UK and the main issue is that the deal only becomes binding once the seller and buyer have exchanged contracts. This can take several months, and a lot can happen in that timeframe to derail the sales progress such as bad surveys, gazumping or expired mortgage offers. Due to the pandemic and the chancellor’s extended stamp duty holiday, house hunters are already having to deal with unpredictable changes to prices and demand as well as gridlocked conveyancers. The goal of Homebuyer Conveyancer Quotes is to help people get the best deal in the fastest time, without any added stress. Duncan Pattinson, Managing Director said: “When you use websites that insist you enter your contact details, you WILL be emailed and called. This can be annoying to anyone, but with all the added stress of moving the last thing you need is endless nuisance sales calls coming through especially when you are at the early stages of budgeting. With Homebuyer Conveyancing Quotes, only when you want to take a quote away do you enter your contact details. Once this is done you can schedule a timed call back when it suits you. At a budgeting stage, you can save yourself a lot of inconvenience.” Additionally, The Purchase Homebuyer Conveyancing Quotes now offers customers a Search Pledge, which replaces the disbursement searches for free up to a value of £300 for the buyer’s replacement property. This provides an additional safety net to help those having to secure a replacement property.  Here are some top tips for finding the best conveyancing deal: Look for transparent pricing for accurate comparisons Check the best-case scenario for how fast your completion can take place Understand your Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) liability and factor this into your budgeting Prepare questions for when you speak to potential conveyancers – this is where a timed call back really comes in handy Instruct a conveyancer prior to offer acceptance Pass details of the Solicitor onto the Sellers Agent only when an acceptable offer has been taken For more information and help with buying or selling a UK Property, visit the secure website: https://www.homebuyerconveyancing.com.

Do you like the idea of relaxing on the couch at home and turning off the upstairs lights without having to move? The ever-expanding options of smart technology enable you to do just that. Controlled by a simple smartphone or computer, you have the power to control lights, air conditioning, garage doors, deadbolts, security cameras and more. If this sounds like a dream come true, read on to learn all the benefits of installing smart technology in your home.  Increase Your Home’s Resale Value Realtors and smart home builders around the nation are aware that a home that offers the latest in technology is a selling point for buyers. In fact, where repainting walls or updating carpets were suggested improvements before selling a home, now sellers are advised to install automated systems within their home before listing. Buyers see the convenience of having the equipment preinstalled and are more interested in a home that current owners have kept updated.  Monitor Your House When You’re Not There A smart home provides peace of mind for the times you are away. Devices connect with a cell phone, computer, or tablet, which allows you to check on your home and its occupants. You can check to make sure you locked the front door, shut the garage door, and remembered to turn off the oven no matter where you are. Not only are appliances available with smart technology, but most security systems are also controlled remotely. This setup allows you to check on your home when you’re away, receive alerts if there’s motion around your home, and view security footage in real-time. These features provide a feeling of reassurance if you have children or elderly parents at home by themselves. Save Money By Saving Energy When your home has smart options, not only can you control appliances from a distance, most of these items are programmable. The thermostat can be programmed to run only when you’re at home, and some are smart enough to adjust the amount of air flowing in empty rooms. Do your children constantly forget to shut off the lights? Smart lights are programmed to sense when there’s no movement in a room and automatically shut off. These features are incredible ways to cut energy and save money.  Answer the Front Door at Any Time Another benefit of having smart technology is seeing who is at the door without being by it. Doorbell security systems alert you when someone rings the bell or motion is detected by the front door. You can view who is there and speak directly with them through an app without opening the door. This means that your home and occupants are also safer without opening the door to strangers. What about when your parents stop by unannounced while you’re at the store? No worries, use the app to speak directly with them, then unlock the front door to let them in without making them wait for you to get home.  Equipping your home with updated smart technology has numerous benefits. The only decision is choosing what to buy first. 

Construction software platform, Zutec, has been tasked with helping global commercial real estate company, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, to build the largest shopping mall in Europe In 2008, the world faced one of the greatest economic crises in modern history. Many businesses suffered, and the high street appeared to become a thing of the past. However, against all odds, amidst a fast-deteriorating retail landscape, one company was able to complete the construction of a mall visited by over two million shoppers in its first three weeks of opening. Westfield Group’s Westfield Shopping Mall, in White City, West London, became the largest covered shopping development in London in October of that year. It began with a retail floor area of 1,600,000 sq. ft., and with additional investment and expansion, by 2018 it became the largest shopping centre in Europe, with an area of 2,600,000 sq. ft. To ensure the mall was completed on time despite the poor economic climate, commercial real estate company, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, sought the aid of cloud-based software platform, Zutec, for Phases 1 and 2 of the project from 2007 until present. Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield was formed in 2018 when Unibail-Rodamco SE, a European company, acquired Australian shopping centre operator Westfield Corporation, and has the largest development pipeline in the industry. Phase 1 In 2007, Westfield Design & Construction (now part of Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield) procured Zutec to manage the handover and completion process for the first phase of the shopping centre. When the mall opened the following year, the platform became a powerful tool for the management team, who used it to access interactive and digital operations and maintenance manuals, continuously upload retail fit-out information onto the platform, and update both capital and minor works to maintain a Source of Truth for the entire facility. Phase 2 From 2017 onwards, Westfield D&C once again procured Zutec for the handover and BIM data management and integration of Westfield London’s £600 million Phase 2 retail extension, as well as the URW UK Head Office Building and Newall Court. Early engagement with Westfield’s management team, via workshop sessions held with key management personnel, was crucial to success during the implementation of the software for this phase of the project, which included adding 740,000 sq. ft. of retail space. During this time, Zutec evolved from an interactive folder structure for the capturing of handover information, to a 3D Model Management and Visualisation Solution, and repository for all BIM attributes linked to Asset Registers and Manuals/Documents. Benefits The project was a success due to the multitude of benefits Zutec provides its customers. The platform, which is used for all project data to be defined, captured and managed throughout the entire lifecycle of a project, allowed Westfield quicker access to information, enhanced knowledge of built assets, a reduction in existing condition surveys and a faster reaction time in emergencies. Zutec continues to be utilised as a single Source of Truth, where the as-built records, changes and modifications which take place throughout the facility’s life cycle continue to be updated and maintained. Commenting on the partnership, Zutec’s Global Head of Digitalisation, Tom Boland, said: “This project has been one of our greatest achievements, and we are proud to have been involved from the very beginning. It’s thanks to the hard work and dedication on both sides that Westfield was able to open its doors on time and achieve the level of success that it has experienced to this day. We hope to continue this more than 10-year-long partnership with Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield and collaborate on equally groundbreaking projects in the coming years.”

Building decision-makers list budget constraints and buy-in from senior leadership as the two biggest barriers to their adoption of smart technologies, according to a new research report from Johnson Controls. The report, ‘Thinking Smart: How the foundations of the UK will be defined by smart buildings’, found that 99% of decision-makers see the value of smart tech – yet just 34% of buildings are currently fitted with smart solutions. In the short-term, this could be putting occupant health and safety at greater risk, while long-term, sustainability targets will be impacted. During the COVID-19 pandemic, smart technologies helped 87% of respondents keep their buildings safe – and over a third (37%) say it was critical or essential to doing so. Despite these evident benefits, budget constraints caused issues for two-thirds (64%) of decision-makers, while 42% struggled to get senior buy-in. When it comes to the smart building budget abyss, commercial office space organisations have to make their money stretch furthest, with required budgets as high as £2.7 million per building, and real budgets coming in as low as £1.3 million. Higher education is also struggling, with a £300,000 deficit from the £1.8 million they need, while government and healthcare organisations feel they have sufficient budgets to see value from their smart technology investments. For senior leaders, this exposes a difficult question: whether to address the problem head-on and make major investments now, or be forced to make urgent improvements down the line – both to reduce ever-mounting costs and meet increasingly tough sustainability targets. But it’s not only a problem in the present. Occupant health and safety takes top priority now, but decision-makers say that in five years’ time, energy efficiency will be top of their priority list. In ten years’ time, sustainability and net zero will take the top spot, signalling a growing focus on climate change. Worryingly, without the right smart technologies in place soon, businesses will struggle to achieve these goals.   Priority in the next year  Priority in the next five years  Priority in the next ten years  Occupant health & safety  59%  32%  32%  Regulatory compliance   42%  28%  26%  Employee experience  40%  34%  37%  Operational efficiency   39%  42%  36%  Energy efficiency   38%  58%  37%  Cost efficiency   37%  44%  31%  Security   34%  32%  29%  Sustainability & net-zero targets   17%  37%  49%  Profits  16%  21%  22%  “Smart buildings haven’t only helped businesses get through the pandemic – they’re also essential to achieving ambitious sustainability targets like Carbon Net Zero,” said Andy Ellis, VP and General Manager, Johnson Controls UK&I. “Smart solutions that integrate with your fire, security, controls, HVAC, and occupancy systems can look across a whole building to see in real-time where efficiencies can be made. Without technologies like these to do the hard work for building staff, achieving new levels of sustainability targets and creating healthy workspaces – that support both the environment and employees – will be hard.”  “It appears that building decision-makers understand the challenge, so now it’s on organisations like ours to speak out, educate the market and embrace the challenges we face around sustainability. We can do this by using smart technologies, so taking this message to the C-Suite and senior leaders – with tangible evidence on the benefits they will bring – will be critical. Then, we can gain their buy-in to ensure our buildings and businesses can be future-ready.”