With property transaction activity remaining persistently low, down 22% year-on-year, real estate lawyers have seen caseloads drop by over 19% in 2024.
The number of active law firms also continued to to decline, according to the latest Conveyancing Market Tracker (CMT) from property data company Search Acumen, recording a 3% reduction in the first six months of the year, or a drop by around 130 firms.
This also represented an 11% drop in firms than a decade ago, from 4,317 in 2014 to 3,857 in 2024.
According to the analysis, December 2023 recorded the fewest property transactions per month since the pandemic at 56,397, last reaching such historic lows in September 2020 at 53,166.
The decline saw law firms averaging far fewer caseloads in 2024 at 61 per quarter this year so far, compared to 74 across the same period in 2023 and 94 at its peak in Q1 2022.
However, in the latest data available for June 2024, transactions remained steady.
With increased investment stability and economic confidence that a new Government could bring, levels are predicted to end the year on a more positive note.
Andrew Loyd, managing director at Search Acumen, said: “Lawyers, like other industries, are feeling the pressure to do more with less.
“Pressure from clients to produce more in the same time frame – to be quicker as well as to serve their firms bottom line – is a balancing act where often technology can be used to expedite the process.
“Whilst the fact that caseloads are dropping may feel like a well-earned reprieve for many after the post-pandemic years, it is also an uncomfortable sign that growth is stagnating in real estate.
“Some firms are taking a much larger slice of the pie, knowing that when the heat is on, upping their game is essential.
“The data reflects this and what we know anecdotally, that the mid to large firms are investing in digital transformation and seeing their market share grow as a result.”
He added: “We know housebuilding has been at historic lows with high ambitions cemented by a new Government to reverse this trend.
“With housebuilding comes increased investment from both the private and public sectors to support the real estate ecosystem, from retail to social housing.
“If Labour deliver, we could see a very different picture for transactions this time next year as land deals accelerate.
“What technology can deliver for businesses’ bottom lines here will be essential. The competition from professional service industries to be the firm of choice will increase as Labour’s housing policies bed in, in which the need to transact quickly, with effective and accurate digital tools, will play a leading role in the race against obsolescence.”
