Since the introduction of assured shorthold tenancies under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1988, tenancies of 12 months have become the norm. The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government has just launched a consultation on “Overcoming the Barriers to Longer Tenancies in the Private Rented Sector”, asking whether measures that would encourage or compel
Category Archives: Real Estate News
Subscribe to Real Estate News RSS FeedRight to rent legal challenge
A challenge to the government’s right to rent measures began yesterday (6 June) when permission was granted to the Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (JCWI), a charity, to proceed with a judicial review challenge. A full hearing will follow. The basis of the challenge is that the checks cause discrimination on grounds of
Whose shoes? What subrogation means and why it matters
Subrogation is a well-known principle of insurance law, which also affects real estate. It means that an insurer who has settled a claim may then “step into the shoes” of the insured and try to recover what it has paid from anyone who has contributed towards, or caused, the loss. In real estate, landlords’ insurers
It’s just not cricket (but it is Blockchain)
Last week, the property press ran the tantalising story that parcels of Lord’s cricket ground were up for sale by New Commonwealth, an enterprise which describes itself as a “new property-owning democracy” that provides “access to prize assets for the man on the street, not just the landed elite”. Of course, part of Lord’s is
Directors disqualified for breach of competition law
For only the second time in its history, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has secured the disqualification of directors whose companies have infringed competition law. In May 2017, the CMA concluded its investigation into the conduct of six residential estate agents operating in the Burnham-on-Sea area. The CMA found that the estate agents had
New Lease Code for Old
The professional statement, “Code for leasing business premises”, published by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) incorporates the proposal for a new lease code. The consultation period in relation to this proposal ends on 12 April 2018. Following the consultation period, the RICS intends for the revised Code to replace the existing Code for
Update: public register of beneficial ownership of UK property by overseas entities
What’s new? The government has published its response to the April 2017 call for evidence on proposals for a register showing who owns and controls overseas entities that own UK property or participate in UK government procurement. The regime would catch any legal owner of registered land which is “overseas” and therefore would include commonly
Why did commonhold fail? The Law Commission issues call for evidence asking for the industry’s views
The Law Commission has issued a call for evidence on commonhold law to understand why commonhold as a form of ownership has proved to be so unattractive to the property market. This aligns with the government’s announcement in December 2017 to look at whether and how it can reinvigorate commonhold law, following the widely publicised
BHS Company Voluntary Arrangement – Landlords Win on Penalties
Collapsed retailer British Home Stores cannot challenge its own company voluntary arrangement as an unenforceable contractual penalty and must repay rental discounts to its landlords, the High Court in England and Wales decided yesterday. The case, in which Hogan Lovells represented the successful landlord, provides important guidance on the operation of company voluntary arrangements (CVAs),
Flexible Permissions: Change can do you good
Do you have an asset that’s proving difficult to let? Would you just like to maximise marketability? A “flexible” or “dual-use” planning permission might be able to help. A flexible planning permission allows occupiers to switch between specified planning uses without the need for multiple planning permissions. The right to switch lasts for ten years
Law Commission gears up for driverless cars
Just before Christmas, the Law Commission announced plans to develop laws to support the safe development and use of driverless cars in the UK. The aim is to develop legislation which may be ready as early as 2021. The Law Commission is an independent law reform watchdog for England and Wales and this review is
When will register of beneficial ownership by overseas companies be introduced?
The government has confirmed to parliament its timetable for the introduction of a public register of beneficial ownership of UK property by overseas entities. This follows on from the government’s consultation in April 2017 on establishing such a register which we blogged on last year (see here). In December 2017, the government confirmed that it
New Year, New CIL Regs to save £millions
The New Year has started off with a bang as changes to the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) Regulations 2010 were laid before Parliament. The draft 2018 Regulations correct an unintended defect in the current legislation. The error had resulted in millions of pounds of extra CIL being charged, even where no extra floorspace or change
No blues for the Blues on rights to light
There was much fanfare when Chelsea Football Club secured planning permission for redevelopment of Stamford Bridge last year. However, one family’s fight against the new stadium’s impact on its right to light had the potential to bring the redevelopment to a standstill. Hogan Lovells’ Planning and Development specialists, Hannah Quarterman and Paul Tonkin consider the
Government consults on abolition of the “staircase tax”
Business occupiers (and particularly small business owners) welcomed the announcement in the Autumn 2017 Budget that the government is putting an end to the so-called “staircase tax”. The “staircase tax” acquired its name from the 2015 Supreme Court decision on assessment of business rates in Woolway (VO) v Mazars, which held that a tenant who
Government to ban leasehold houses and set ground rents at zero
Following the consultation in summer 2017 on ground rents and leasehold houses (read our blog here) the government has published its response (read it in full here) with the following headline proposals: A ban on granting new residential long leases of houses, other than in exceptional circumstances This currently only affects new leases, but the government will consult on
Time to crack the Code: the new Telecoms Code comes into force on 28 December
Earlier this year, we blogged about the new Electronic Communications Code and the impact the changes would have for equipment installed by approved telecoms operators on private land. It has been announced today that the changes are coming into force on 28 December 2017. As a quick recap, the main changes are: 1. New no-scheme valuation
DREAMING OF RETIREMENT …
That’s what we were doing at Property Week’s Retirement Living Conference. As one of the most untapped sectors in real estate we were amazed to hear about the potential for a retirement living explosion. There were approximately 11.8 million people over the age of 65 in the UK in 2016, and this is set to
Technology in the Property Industry
Hogan Lovells hosted the Reading Real Estate Foundation Breakfast Forum (RREF*) on 17 November 2017. This year’s topic was: Technology in the Property Industry and provided digital food for thought from three key areas. David Sleath (CEO of SEGRO) described the ways in which technology has changed the warehousing sector. This includes how warehouse design
Budget shock for property industry: non-UK resident landlords to be taxed on UK property gains
Quietly, almost without any fanfare, a tax policy of more than 50 years designed to encourage overseas investment into UK real estate was reversed in the small print of the Budget. The announcement has provoked a storm across the property industry. UK tax will apply to the disposal by non-UK residents of all UK property
Unopposed Lease Renewals – a need for speed?
From 1 December 2017, there will be a year-long pilot scheme for unopposed lease renewals that are issued in the County Court at Central London (CCLC). All claims will be transferred to the First Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) (the FTT) in London. The main aim of this is to “ensure that all cases proceed to
Government issues draft Tenant Fees Bill banning residential letting fees
Earlier this year, we blogged on the government’s proposals to ban residential letting fees. On 1 November, the government took the next step towards realising those proposals by publishing the draft Tenant Fees Bill. The Draft Bill The draft legislation bans landlords and agents in England from charging residential tenants and licensees fees or other charges
Flexible terms in flexible space: is London’s office market changing for good?
The London office market is not what it was 10 years ago. A combination of “place-making”, changes to employee working patterns and the development of efficient and robust IT infrastructure has enabled London’s work force to become a much more mobile community which has prompted a change in attitudes to leasing. Businesses, particularly small to
The Clean Growth Strategy – Government releases its strategy for a low carbon future
On 12 October the Government released its latest strategy to promote “clean growth” in the UK. It sees clean growth as growing the UK’s national income, while cutting greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change. In her ministerial statement, Claire Perry, the Minister for Climate Change and Industry, outlined the strategy as an important