A reported shortage of property surveyors and planners in Wales is causing issues for local councils. The shortage means that specialist services are having to be outsourced to meet demand as they can’t be met by professionals in the area.

In-house apprenticeship schemes are being considered to help drive young people into the industry to combat dwindling numbers. While training programmes are also being looked at in the hopes it might provide a draw for anyone looking to retrain.

According to Swansea Head of Planning, Phil Holmes, Welsh graduates are completing courses in England but finding jobs elsewhere, rather than returning to Wales to take up job opportunities there. There doesn’t appear to be a property surveyor course in Wales that can compete, leaving valuable skilled surveyors difficult to find.

Holmes said: ‘When it comes to regeneration schemes that's one of the vital skill sets we need.’ Following that, he stated: ‘I don’t think the situation will improve anytime soon.’

There is a huge demand for surveyors in Wales, however, demand is greater than supply which is potentially leaving current surveyors strained.

If you are a Wales-based surveyor and currently experiencing an influx of work or need assistance with existing work, we recommend you look at the services we have available.

We offer a range of services including 24-hour, overnight/weekend and same day transcription and audio typing.

Savills property group has forecast that the north-south value gap will continue to shrink over the next five years according to its latest industry forecast.

 

Part of its five-year prime and mainstream residential forecasts, the narrowing of house prices between regions could see prices in areas such as the North West and Yorkshire and The Humber increase by 18.8%.

However, house prices in the South aren’t suspected to rise so steeply. Prices are predicted to increase by 13.1% in the South West and only 10.4% in the South East and East of England. A rise of only 5.6% across the next five years is predicted for London, with the major changes forecast for 2022/23.

 

While the increase will not see the North competing with the prices in London any time soon, it could see the average house price reach £270,000 in parts of the North should Savills’ predictions turn out to be true.

London on the other hand will continue to offer good value for money and will benefit from an interest in overseas demand, likely due to increased travel internationally with the easing of travel restrictions.

This follows falling house values in some of London’s most elite postcodes and a seven-year slump, where house prices fell more the 20% in those locations. The renewed demand has seen recovery in locations such as Notting Hill and Holland Park.

The pandemic and the new work from home culture that has become the norm will also have a continued impact on the property as Frances Clacy, research analyst at Savills explains: “Beyond London, Savills expects to see changes in working patterns underpin demand in more rural areas further away from major employment centres, albeit to a lesser degree than over the past 18 months. In prime regions prices are expected to grow +4% next year, and +19.3% over the next five years.”

 

Our audio typing and transcription services are available nationwide, and we can provide a fast typing service to property professionals. We have worked with a wide variety of industry experts including Chartered Surveyors, retail property specialists, and commercial building consultancies to name a few.

 

Contact us to discuss how our services could benefit your business as the market continues to change.

 

More than two thirds of surveyors have said they expect house prices to continue rising despite the anticipated interest rate increase according to the latest RICS survey.

 

The survey, conducted in October, also echoed recent announcements of high prices and low stock. More than 70% of members reported house price increases, up from 69% in September, with a sharp rise across all regions and countries.

 

Overall the volume of sales agreed over the course of the month also saw a small dip, following on from the previous month. Although, looking ahead for the next 12 months, the North of England, London, Scotland and Northern Ireland all have an improved outlook, with a rise in transactions predicted.

 

With that said, demand is increasing and sales expectations are looking positive, with a hope of stabilising going forward.

 

Speaking with Property Industry Eye, Jeremy Leaf, north London estate agent and a former RICS residential chairman, said: “The monthly RICS housing survey is invariably a reliable indicator of market trends. This latest report is no exception and confirms what we are seeing on the ground – more resilience than expected after so many brought forward purchases in the summer taking advantage of the stamp duty holiday in particular.

 

“However, transaction numbers have reduced and prices have softened a little since as the frenzy of the last few months has been replaced by calmer conditions as supply and demand become more closely aligned.”

 

As the property market is predicted to pick up over the next 12 months, you may find your business inundated with work and require additional help to maintain your workflow. If you do not currently use an outsource transcription service then our team can help to keep on top of all your incoming business, allowing your team to focus on the task at hand.

 

Find out more about our transcription services by visiting our pricing page or call us on 020 7096 1663 to speak to us about our transcription and audio typing service.

The national average price of a properties coming to the market is at an all-time high according to Rightmove, with prices rising by 1.8% to £344,445 in October 2021, with properties coming on to the marketing selling quickly due to demand.

According to the UK’s number one property website, October saw the biggest rise at this time of year since 2015, with the average property price jumping by £5,983. This is due to a lack of stock as fewer properties enter the market, and a desire to buy ahead of a potential interest rate rise.

At present the market has recorded a ‘full house’, with price records across all regions of Great Britain and in all property market sectors during one month. This is the first time that a ‘full house’ has occurred since March 2007.

The autumn demand for properties is high, however the number of new properties entering the market is not enough to satisfy the strong demand from buyers, with ‘power buyers’ – those who have already sold their home or are first-time buyers – having the upper hand late in 2021.

There is such a high level of demand in the market, that even with agreed sales up 15.2% in September compared to the same period in 2019, the depleted is stalling recovery of the market. However, there is a fast turnover of property for sale and a window of opportunity to buy.

Based on a weekly snapshot, new sellers coming to the market is down 3.2% on the same period in 2019, however the period as a whole shows the market to be down by 9.3%. The market currently favours anyone looking to downsize or power buyers who are keen to move.

Tim Bannister, Rightmove’s Director of Property Data comments: “Competition for property for sale remains hot this autumn, with average prices jumping by almost £6,000 in the month. Although more properties are coming to market, the level is still not enough to replenish the stock that’s being snapped up.

“Consequently, new price records have been set across the board, with every region of Great Britain and all of the three market sectors of first-time buyer, second-stepper and top of the ladder hitting all-time highs. This ‘full house’ is an extremely rare event, happening for the first time since March 2007.

“The stock shortages started after the first lockdown, and they look set to continue with the underlying housing market fundamentals remaining strong, and an additional incentive to buy and fix your mortgage interest rate before a widely expected rate rise.”

The high demand is creating a quick turnover of sales and in turn increasing demand on services including surveyors, estate agents and solicitors. If you want to meet the demand and require audio typing or transcription services to meet tighter turnaround times on your survey reports, valuation reports or any other property correspondence, contact us at enquiries@backuptyping.co.uk.

 

Read more about this in Rightmove’s latest House Price Index report.

 

New Rules of Conduct launched by the RICS, which will take effect on 2nd February 2022, set out core principles for its regulated members and firms worldwide to encourage diversity and inclusivity within the profession.

The changes include explicit requirements that support surveyors regardless of their background or differences across the world. It also sets out updated requirements for surveyors to maintain their skills and expertise.

With an emphasis on continuing high standards of professionalism, the new rules are laid out to make it easier for the clients to choose a skilled expert and give them confidence in the service they will receive from a RICS professional.

The new RICS Rules of Conduct include:

• A simpler structure that makes the rules easier to understand for all RICS members.
• Clear examples of the rules that RICS firms and members can use to comply with the Rules. Plus 12 case studies showing the real-life application of the Rules.
• A focus on respect, diversity and inclusion underpins the professional ethics of members.
• Understanding evolving technology, which highlights the importance of understanding the use of data and technology, and the associated benefits and risks.
• Tackling global challenges, emphasising that ethical practice by RICS members and firms has an important role when it comes to global challenges. This includes creating sustainable development and tackling climate change.

The new RICS Rules of Conduct are set by its independent Standards and Regulation Board (SRB), and can be accessed by RICS members alongside a CPD programme.

Dame Janet Paraskeva, chair of SRB at RICS, said: “The advice of RICS professionals around the world underpins the successful management of our built and natural environment. With so many complex challenges facing decision-makers, this profession’s high standards of expertise and ethical conduct have never been more important.

“Standards in professional life must evolve to reflect modern-day expectations of clients and society at large, in order to maintain confidence. These revised Rules of Conduct will support our members and those that depend on their advice to continue addressing the challenges of today and tomorrow”

Following the Rules of Conduct announcement, if you need audio typing and transcription services to work alongside your existing team or relieve the pressure that your staff are facing, then contact us at enquires@backuptyping.co.uk or call us on 020 7096 1663.

The new Rules of Conduct will come into effect from 2^nd February 2022.

DIY property report preparation – do the numbers stack up?

Would you service and repair your own car during work hours?

How about preparing all the catering for a client lunch meeting?

Of course, you wouldn’t.

Whilst you may be more or less capable of doing either, it just doesn’t make commercial sense to take that time out of your day when there are trained experts who will complete your audio typing far quicker, better and more importantly, at a lower cost.

So, why then would you or your highly skilled fee earners type out their own documents?

Of course, you can type, but the truth is, the time it might take you to type out a report could actually cost you a small fortune.

Let’s look at the numbers:

A qualified Chartered Surveyor will be charging at least £100 per hour. To type out a 10-page report – roughly 4,500 words – at an average untrained speed of 33 words per minute, would take approximately 2 and a half hours. Which actually costs the business £250 of unchargeable time.  Add to that proofing and correcting, and you’re looking at over £300!

Compare that with an experienced, professional audio typist, who could produce the same document in about an hour, proofread, immaculately typed and spaced. That’s likely to only cost around £60 to get your document back on the same day – and all the while your surveyor can be doing what they do best – earning for your firm.

DIY property report preparation can be fun and sometimes it may even make sense, but in the fast-moving professional world, specialist jobs are always best left to the specialists.

BackupTyping have a team of highly experienced and trained professional transcription typists waiting to type your documents – and save you money. We’re darned good at it because it’s all we do.

DIY? No thanks – call the professionals.

Call Lorna on 020 7096 1663 to get started.

If you’ve ever been tempted to type your documents yourself, you may wonder why professional audio typists will always do it better than you…

Put simply, an audio typist is an expert at typing accurately and at speed (probably three times faster than an average person) from a dictated recording.

So what’s the secret of accurate audio typing?

Well, apart from years of training and experience (we’ve already won, hands-down right?), professional audio typists use a specialist transcription system that employs a foot pedal to control the playback of dictation through headphones. Smart eh?

The control pedal allows the audio typist to regulate the dictation playback speed and flow, in order to type without interruption.

So whatever speed you talk at, a professional audio typist will be able to control its delivery to suit their typing speed – even speeding it up if necessary!

But what about the other benefits of using an audio typist?

Using a specialist property report typing professional is the quickest and most cost-effective way to prepare accurate and properly formatted documents for your organisation.

As a property professional, you can simply dictate your report – on the hop if necessary – into a dictation machine, either a handheld device or your smartphone, using a mobile app, such as BackupTyping (available on App Store or Google Play), send it and get on with your job, while your audio typist does the rest.

What if I’m rubbish at dictation for transcribing property reports?

It does take a bit of practice to dictate well – there’s a useful article here: How to dictate well – your typist will thank you!, but with persistence, it can really be a game-changer for you, both in time/cost saving and document quality!

If you’re looking for a highly experienced property specialist transcription service contact BackupTyping for a FREE trial Get Started | BackupTyping.

What is the difference between typing yourself and a ‘professional’?

Also known as 'should I use professional transcription service or Fanny down the road?'

If you learnt to type (on a typewriter – let’s not mention age here) it was considered a real skill as it was a bespoke vocation and not everyone knew how to do this.

With the emergence of computers ‘touch typists’ were in demand, non-typists would look in awe as their fingers quickly passed over a keyboard producing accurate documents at speed.

But with the advancement of technology, everyone now knows their QWERTY from their DVORAK and can find their way around a keyboard at varying speeds, even a two-finger user can probably produce fast words (teenagers these days are probably faster typists on mobile phones than a trained typist).

However, using a keyboard and typing are two different things.

Producing words at a fast speed is completely different from producing a well-formatted document.

If you just need to type an email then formatting is not an issue but if you need even just a short report (let’s not even think about complex reports – well not just yet) the first thing an audio typist will think of is formatting, it’s better to put in place at the beginning than need to format later.

Setting up your document with ‘headings’ which can then be linked to a table of contents should it be needed can save time whilst taking no extra time.

Ensuring headers and footers are linked or unlinked, depending on the document, are all things that can be done with a click of a button whilst typing and are bread and butter for any professional typist.

After all, it is easier to amend a well-formatted document than to start formatting plain text.

Now as promised, what about complex reports?

So, just dealing with Word because it is more commonly used.

If a mix and match of formatting styles have been used – single line space, one and a half, windows, orphans – the terminology in itself can make your head spin.

But if you know what you’re doing from the outset, you know what to look for it’s easy (like Sunday morning – and at BackupTyping we do work weekends), does the document have inbuilt styles?

If it does this makes all professionals do a little fist pump knowing they just need to follow the set styles.

But for the untrained eye rather than choosing a ‘section heading’, they will just bold the title.

If the inbuilt formatting styles haven’t been followed it could end up taking hours to format something which could be done at the press of a button (well maybe two or three).

Here at BackupTyping, we are not ‘just’ audio typists but experts in Word (and PowerPoint and Excel too).

Add to that our deep understanding and experience of the property industry and its unique terminology, then the answer to the question becomes clear.

For tips on good dictation that your typist will thank you for, check out How to dictate well – your typist will thank you!

BackupTyping provides a fast, accurate and experienced transcription for property professionals – saving you time and money. Call us on 020 7096 1663 to find out how we can help you.

Simply, yes!

Of course, you should ask your confidential transcription service provider to assure you of this but all professional transcription companies will have arrangements in place to ensure the confidentiality of all documents and business information.

Here at BackupTyping, all typists sign confidentiality agreements from day one.

In fact, a transcription service can be even more secure as any potentially sensitive and highly confidential information is outside of the business.

At BackupTyping, as well as typing all manner of day-to-day property reports and documents, we work with HR departments within property organisations keeping their top-secret documents top secret.

All reputable transcription companies will also be happy to sign an NDA document if requested which will give you that extra peace of mind.

BackupTyping provides a fast, accurate and experienced transcription for property professionals - saving you time and money. Call us on 020 7096 1663 to find out how we can help you.

When transcribing dictation either in the office or remotely, the most important part of your work station is your transcription software and whilst Express Scribe and Olympus look very similar - there are a few differences.

Express Scribe, for example, will play every format of audio except (in 90% of cases) DS2 which is the standard Olympus format, although there are some anomalies and the reason why some files will load and some don’t is as much of a mystery as what is in Area 51.

Other than that all audio formats can be downloaded (DSS, WAV, M4A, AMR, MP3 etc).

DSS and DS2 are the standard formats of Philips and Olympus which traditionally were the ‘big 2’ in the dictation arena but with the emergence of apps for iPhone and Android other formats are becoming more popular and the handheld machine is becoming less of a necessity.

Olympus on the other hand will play all formats, although again there are a few instances where certain MP3 or M4A files will not load – see Area 51 above for an explanation of this.

But what Olympus can do which Express Scribe can’t is that it can convert audio files – a DS2 file can be converted to DSS, or WAV etc.

So for playing of audio files Olympus has a slight advantage.

However, what puts Express Scribe on an even keel is its ability to play MP4 files which are video files and the format that Microsoft Teams records in which gives it an advantage in the current climate of virtual meetings.

Is there a winner overall? Unfortunately not.

Neither software is all-encompassing and where one fails the other wins.

How do they perform on cost?

Express Scribe software is relatively inexpensive at around £40 (price is in $ and there are often discounts) and the foot pedal is £60 whereas an Olympus foot pedal is about £80 and the software around £140 so it does make it the more expensive option.

And before you ask, there is not a foot pedal which will work with both, an Olympus foot pedal will only work with Olympus software and vice versa for Express Scribe.

Rest assured though, at BackupTyping we have a mix of both software ensuring that all our clients’ dictation needs are met, so far in over 20 years we have not encountered an audio format we haven’t been able to transcribe.

For more information on Express Scribe visit www.nch.com.au and for Olympus visit www.olympus.co.uk.

To purchase Philips or Olympus dictation systems please contact us for information and up-to-date prices.

BackupTyping provides a fast, accurate and experienced transcription for property professionals - saving you time and money. Call us on 020 7096 1663 to find out how we can help you.