As the COVID-19 pandemic spreads across the globe, so does uncertainty. Landlords and tenants are facing unprecedented impacts on their businesses, and it is no surprise in this environment that both parties are looking to their insurance for comfort. Business interruption insurance Calling COVID-19 an interruption to business would be something of an understatement, and
Monthly Archives: March 2020
COVID-19 UK: The impact on rent review
It will not have escaped the attention of anyone in the real estate industry that today is the March quarter day. For many landlords and occupiers, the immediate focus will be on rent payments due today and the media are already reporting that large numbers of retailers are expected to withhold rent to ease cashflow
COVID-19 UK: Permitted development rights to help take away the strain
The UK government’s actions are ramping up as it battles to contain the spread of COVID-19 and enforce social distancing. To assist with this, secondary legislation has been enacted to establish a new permitted development right for takeaways. What are the new permitted development rights? As of 10am yesterday, permitted development rights have been granted
UK COVID-19: Commercial tenants to be given three months’ protection from forfeiture
Yesterday, as well as locking down the country, the government published critical amendments to the emergency Coronavirus Bill protecting commercial tenants from the risk of forfeiture until the end of June 2020. The Bill, together with these amendments, has now been approved by the House of Commons and is, today, going before the House of
COVID-19 in the UK: emergency legislation for renters
The government has confirmed it will bring forward emergency legislation to protect residential tenants from eviction. Following the Budget which announced mortgage “holidays” for those who own their homes, the government has been urged to assist private renters impacted by COVID-19. Under the emergency legislation landlords will be unable to start proceedings to obtain possession
Coronavirus UK – has your tenant asked for a concession?
In Boris Johnson’s first daily coronavirus update yesterday, he urged the general public to stop “non-essential contact” and “all unnecessary travel“, and to avoid social venues including “pubs, clubs and theatres“. Although supermarkets have been doing a roaring trade in pasta, hand sanitiser and loo roll in recent days, other retailers, restaurants and pubs have
You can’t just wash your hands of it… A landlord and tenant’s guide to COVID-19 in the UK
As hand gels and toilet paper fly off the shelves and children across the world cross their fingers for school closures, the COVID-19 strain of coronavirus has taken over the news. The outbreak has now been declared as a pandemic and is showing few signs of slowing. But what does the virus mean for commercial landlords
Budget 2020: real estate tax changes
Here is a brief summary of the measures in the March 2020 Budget which are relevant to the Real Estate sector. Non-UK resident companies with UK property income – As previously announced, non-UK resident companies that carry on a UK property business, or have other UK property income, will be charged to Corporation Tax on UK
It’s just a phase… isn’t it?
The recent judgment of the High Court in the Oval Estates case has highlighted the importance to developers in settling CIL phasing strategies early on in the planning process and not relying on retrospective action. The community infrastructure levy (“CIL”) is payable on chargeable developments. Where a planning permission is expressly stated to be phased,
Mistakes in notices: useful guidance from the Court of Appeal
Earlier this month the Court of Appeal decided the case of Captain Nigel Crighton Pease v Jeffrey William Carter and Louise Mary Carter. The case concerned whether statutory notices of proceedings for possession, served under section 8 of the Housing Act 1988, containing an incorrect date for the commencement of proceedings, had been validly served.