The Building Safety Act 2022 has brought a fundamental shift in the regulation of relevant and higher risk buildings, imposing a swathe of new obligations and processes on those responsible for these buildings, and plenty to...more
We have seen far-reaching change on the global political stage over the last few months. Since the publication of our last Global Real Estate Horizon Scanner, we have seen the election and inauguration of President Trump, the...more
The new UK government has made plenty of promises in terms of reform, a rental revolution and a planning shake-up. So what is coming down the line in terms of new legislation over the next few months and which are the crucial...more
The previous government put forward a huge agenda for leasehold reform. While they managed to pass the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 before parliament was dissolved – which introduced a ban on new leasehold houses...more
The new UK government has leapt out of the starting blocks at full pace in terms of promises of reform, a rental revolution and a planning shake-up. So what is coming down the line in terms of new legislation over the next...more
The Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) has recently given its judgment in Lehner v Lant Street Management Company Limited, absolving a tenant from paying service charge due to defects in the service charge demand....more
Michael Gove, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, has secured a remediation order requiring a pension fund landlord to carry out fire safety remediation works totalling £15 million under Section...more
The Law Commission’s review of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 was announced in Spring 2023, with a consultation paper – setting out the existing law, the problems with it, and possible solutions - anticipated by December...more
In IAA Vehicle Services Limited v HBC Limited, the High Court concluded that a deposit under the Standard Conditions of Sale fell due as soon as an option to purchase a freehold property was exercised, but that time was not...more
In 89 Holland Park (Management) Limited v Dell & Dell, the largest ever UK residential service charge dispute, the Court of Appeal has refused to allow a landlord to recover the legal costs of a dispute with its neighbour...more
The Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023 (LURA), which introduced the concept of high street rental auctions, received Royal Assent on 26 October 2023. Part 10 of LURA allows local authorities to carry out mandatory...more
The Freehold and Leasehold Reform Bill passed its second reading in Parliament on 11 December, and was described by Michael Gove – the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Levelling-Up - as the “effective...more
The Court of Appeal’s recent judgment in Gill v Lees News Ltd brought new clarity on when a landlord can successfully oppose the grant of a new lease under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 on the “tenant fault” grounds - in...more
In our last update in May, when the Renters Reform Bill was finally placed before parliament, we flagged the proposed changes - perhaps most significantly, the abolition of “no fault” or Section 21 evictions. While Bill...more
The first remediation order has been made under the Building Safety Act 2022, requiring a landlord to carry out works to fix fire safety defects.
In January, the First Tier Tribunal made the first Remediation Contribution...more
A snapshot of key regulatory developments expected to impact the UK real estate sector over the coming months.
The first six months of 2023 have seen a huge amount of change, both politically and economically, which has...more
In our previous Engage post in April, we set out the government’s proposals for the Renters Reform Bill. The draft Bill was finally placed before Parliament on 17 May. In this update, we track which of the original proposals...more
In Annington Properties Limited and others v Secretary of State for Defence, the UK High Court has robustly endorsed the rights of public body tenants to acquire a superior interest in property through leasehold...more
In part 1 of this series, we set out what landlord certificates are and when they must be provided. In this article, we delve deeper into the rather more burdensome requirements to provide supporting information with...more
The Building Safety Act 2022 introduced landlord and leaseholder certificates to help leaseholders understand which protections against the cost of remedial works apply to them. In this first part of our series on landlord...more
Where the parties can’t agree on the terms of a renewal lease under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954, the Court has the power to decide those terms. But how does the court balance the competing demands of a landlord - keen to...more
In June 2022, the Government published a White Paper proposing sweeping changes to the private rented sector - affecting around 4.4 million homes and 2.3 million landlords. The Renters Reform Bill is due to be introduced in...more
The First Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) has made the first remediation contribution order under the Building Safety Act 2022. The Tribunal ordered a landlord to repay amounts paid by the leaseholders of a multi-let...more
In their judgment this week in the case of Aviva Investors Ground Rent GP Limited v Williams, the Supreme Court has curtailed the First Tier Tribunal’s jurisdiction to intervene in residential service charges. The reduction...more