BREAKING NEWS – top 5 stories 09/07/2021

Estate Agent Networking Breaking News

Daily bite-sized proptech and real estate news in partnership with Proptech-X. Today, Stanton looks at Help me Fix, Foxtons, Coadjute, and more.

 

  1. Help me Fix connects qualified tradespeople via video in triage and mend service
  2. Foxtons dumps Chair Ian Barlow due to share price doldrums
  3. Coadjute breaks cover to sell property on the blockchain
  4. TM Group has a new strategic owner and will stride forward
  5. Ministry of Justice wants to hike grant of probate fees

 

Help me Fix connects qualified tradespeople via video in triage and mend service

It has been reported that a video-chat maintenance service connecting tenants to tradespeople over video has seen a marked uptick in new clients. After all, value and efficiency win over the hearts and minds of those in the maintenance sector of lettings.

Ettan Bazil, the founder of Help me Fix, said: “It’s Service as a Software. Help me Fix is a professional service disguised as a piece of software, not the other way around. It saves money for landlords, increases passive income for agents, reduces workload and stress for property managers, and eliminates waiting times for tenants.”

Ettan is a skilled and qualified tradesman in his own right, so he knows what he’s doing. He built the solution having seen first-hand the frustrating process of dealing with maintenance tasks at properties.

The result is a piece of technology that sits in between landlords, property managers, tradespeople and tenants, that gets the right engineer to the right person quickly and efficiently. Game-changer.

 

Foxtons dumps Chair Ian Barlow due to share price doldrums

It has been announced that the incumbent Chair of Foxtons, who has been in place for a number of years but has not managed to steer the ship into calm waters, will step down. Perhaps now a new Chair will get on board with a more intuitive grasp of the realities of real estate in the digital age.

 

Coadjute breaks cover to sell property on the blockchain

I must confess that I do know a great deal about what Coadjute have been up to, and I wish their CEO, Dan Salmons, all the luck. Their tech team, headed up by Founder John Reynolds is second to none.

It is good to see that they have now embarked on a very public working case study with the selling of their first property on their blockchain. I for one genuinely hope that transparency and speed are pulsing through the whole project for all the stakeholders.

 

TM Group has a new strategic owner and will stride forward

The TM Group (UK), fronted by a very clever man named Joe Pepper, has lost two shareholders, LSL and Connells. However, it has gained a strategic new owner in the shape of Dye & Durham, a global force based in the US.

Knowing that there are likely to be further consolidations and alignments where big players look to concentrate their market share, this buyout seems to be a great result for all. Cash for Connells and LSL, and a sole focusing business.

 

Ministry of Justice wants to hike grant of probate fees

It has been announced that the Ministry of Justice is looking at ways of making probate applications pay. At present they are a loss leader. The current line of thought is to have a new blanket fee of £273, replacing the present two-banded system. A consultation is in play ending in late September.

Andrew Stanton

CEO & Founder Proptech-PR. Proptech Real Estate Influencer, Executive Editor of Estate Agent Networking. Leading PR consultancy in Proptech & Real Estate.

You May Also Enjoy

Estate Agent Talk

Conservatories fall out of fashion

Conservatories fall out of fashion as fewer than one in 10 homes boast the former must-have feature   The latest market analysis from eXp UK has revealed that conservatories appear to have fallen out of favour with England’s homeowners, with fewer than one in 10 properties currently listed for sale offering the once-popular home improvement.…
Read More
Breaking News

95% of estate agents say homebuying reforms could speed up property transactions

The latest survey by GetAgent.co.uk has found overwhelming support from estate agents for the Government’s proposed homebuying reforms, with the vast majority believing the changes will create a faster, more stable and more efficient property market. The proposed reforms are designed to modernise the homebuying process by introducing greater upfront information, earlier legal certainty and measures…
Read More
Breaking News

Private rent and house prices, UK: July 2026

1. Main points Average UK monthly private rent increased by 3.3%, to £1,388, in the 12 months to June 2026 (provisional estimate); this annual growth rate remained unchanged from the 12 months to May 2026. Average rents increased to £1,446 (3.4%) in England, £843 (4.9%) in Wales, and £1,012 (1.3%) in Scotland, in the 12 months…
Read More
what is happening to house prices
Breaking News

Tenant demand continues to strengthen in Q2

The latest research by The Letting Partnership has found that tenant demand across England continued to strengthen during the second quarter of 2026, with 29.7% of all rental listings already securing a tenant. Demand has increased by 2.3% over the quarter and now sits 0.3% higher than the same time last year, demonstrating the continued…
Read More
Breaking News

Breaking Property News 22/7/26

Daily bite-sized proptech and property news in partnership with Proptech-X.     More kite flying on capping rents creates new uncertainty for investors Official data undermines rent cap folly as Burnham yo-yoing creates damaging market uncertainty More kite flying on capping rents has created new uncertainty for investors at the worst possible time. Analysis of…
Read More
Estate Agent Talk

Conveyancing keeps providing stability in uncertain market

New research from Lyons Bowe solicitors has found that conveyancing costs have remained remarkably steady as a proportion of house prices across the UK, providing essential reliability for homebuyers during another year of market and economic uncertainty. Lyons Bowe’s analysis found that the average cost of purchasing a freehold property increased from £1,383 in April 2025…
Read More