Following on from the successful Alienation Protocol, a new protocol for applications for consent to carry out alterations to leasehold property (the Alterations Protocol) has been launched. It applies where a tenant wishes to carry out alterations but the lease restricts its ability to do so. Compliance with this protocol should help landlords and tenants
Monthly Archives: March 2016
What does it take to be a global city?
Hogan Lovells hosted the Reading Real Estate Foundation Breakfast Forum (RREF) on 22 March. RREF is a registered charity that provides support for real estate and planning education at the University of Reading. The event featured presentations by: Kathy Pain, Professor of Real Estate & Planning and Director of Research at the Henley Business School
Staying Put? Enforceability of planning conditions
The recent case of R (Skelmersdale Limited Partnership) v West Lancashire Borough Council and another [2016] EWHC 109 (Admin) has made it crystal clear that conditions imposed by a local planning authority are a powerful tool in helping to ensure potential tenants of new retail space cannot abandon the old in favour of the new.
High Court refuses to create Frankenstein’s lease – tenant cannot assign to guarantors
Landlords have no reason to fear Frankenstein’s monster, following the decision of the High Court in EMI Group Limited v O&H Q1 Limited. The court was considering, once again, the anti-avoidance provisions in the Landlord and Tenant (Covenants) Act 1995. Many will be familiar with the effect of the 1995 Act, which ensures that both
Budget 2016: SDLT on additional residential property
To compound the misery within the industry following the increases in SDLT rates on commercial transactions, a mooted exemption for large scale residential investors has also not materialised. George Osborne confirmed yesterday that they will indeed be subject to the extra 3% rate on purchases of additional residential properties. In the recent consultation, an exemption
Budget 2016: SDLT strikes soft targets
There were audible gasps at MIPIM yesterday as the Chancellor unveiled his shock raid on the commercial property industry. SDLT rates on commercial freehold and lease premium transactions have changed, so they are now applied in a similar way to residential properties. Until the Budget, the SDLT rates on commercial property applied to the whole
Budget Banishes CRC – And An Extension Of ESOS Could Still Be On The Cards
The Chancellor announced in today’s Budget that the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) will be abolished, with effect from 2019. The financial aspects of the CRC will be replaced by an increase in the Climate Change Levy, which will be much simpler administratively and largely resolve the “split incentive” issue that has arisen in commercial lease
Sunday Kept Special – Government proposals to relax Sunday trading hours rules defeated
Proposals to allow councils to extend opening hours were defeated in the Commons on 9 March by 317 votes to 286, following a three-hour debate. Labour MPs, under the banner of their ‘Keep Sunday Special’ campaign, joined the SNP and Conservative backbenchers in opposing the plans. George Osborne first announced the plans in last year’s
Residential Stamp Duty Higher Rates – put your houses in order
The government has recently consulted on its proposals for higher rates of Stamp Duty Land Tax (‘SDLT’) on purchases of additional residential properties. In summary, the proposals envisage that a purchase of a second, or further, residential property, which is not replacing a main dwelling, will incur an extra 3% of SDLT on the total
Planning in principle?
The Government’s drive to get Britain building new homes continues. The recently launched consultation on implementing measures in the Housing and Planning Bill contains a raft of initiatives to speed up the planning process, increase efficiency and unlock development. The consultation covers a wide range of matters in considerable detail. This blog and our regular