020 8221 8000 Enquire now

Property Market News

evictions to resume

Property evictions to resume

Property evictions are to resume but residential tenants will continue to be assisted during the Covid-19 restrictions with longer notice periods remaining in place until at least October 2021. This was announced by The Housing Minister, Christopher Pincher, on the 12th of May. During the initial lockdown in 2020, the Government reformatted the notice periods for residential tenancies, affording tenants extra protection during the pandemic. As part of these temporary changes, a Section 21 Notice (which normally provides a tenant a 2-month notice to vacate a property) was extended to…

Future proofing rent

Future-proofing rent suspension clauses

The fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic has meant that landlords and tenants must consider future-proofing rent suspension clauses. Following the initial lockdown in March 2020 and subsequent disruption for many businesses, commercial landlords and tenants now must face a reality that a balance has to be struck when negotiating new leases to allow future-proofing to account for events like those imposed by the pandemic. Ideally, each side would want to achieve maximum protection for themselves, but a balance probably lies somewhere in the middle. A recent case involved a commercial…

SDLT holiday

News: Stamp duty holiday extended until the end of June

What does it mean for you? In the Budget, today, the Chancellor has confirmed that the stamp duty holiday on properties priced up to £500,000 has been extended by three months until the end of June. In addition, the holiday will also apply to properties priced up to £250,000 until the end of September 2021! The extension provides relief for buyers who were unlikely to complete their transactions before the original March 31 deadline. With a tax cut now available for buyers until September, this should also help to ensure…

Leasehold

The beginning of the end of leasehold 

Leasehold property owners are set for important changes in the coming months. The Government is planning to grant new rights on lease extensions and ending ground rent, which signals the beginning of the end of leasehold and this form of ownership. The government has indicated there will be a shift to ‘commonhold’ on the horizon, but the benefits to householders are likely to take time to filter through. Nearly all flats and some houses in England and Wales are owned on a leasehold basis, giving the owner the right to…

Long leases for London's tenants

Long leases for London’s tenants

Sadiq Khan leads the way with long leases for London's tenants looking to get on the shared ownership property ladder. Affordable Housing Programme The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has outlined plans to sell shared ownership homes delivered as part of his new Affordable Housing Programme with long leases for London's tenants on a standard 999-year lease term. Sadiq is determined that London leads by example and sets the benchmark for higher standards for leaseholders across the UK.  The new expectation, which was set out in a letter written by…

Review of commercial

Review of commercial landlord and tenant legislation to be launched

Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick announced in December 2020 a review of the outdated commercial landlord and tenant legislation will be launched in early 2021, to address concerns that the current framework does not reflect the current economic conditions. This review will consider how to enable better collaboration between commercial landlords and tenants and also how to improve the leasing process to ensure our high streets and town centres thrive as we recover from the pandemic and beyond. The review of commercial landlord and tenant legislation will be launched this year…

Landlords safety checks

Landlords must gear up for new safety checks 

Residential landlords must get their house in order with the arrival of further legislation to protect tenants through electrical and building safety requirements. New electrical safety standards are rolling out for private sector tenancies and the other upcoming challenge for residential landlords is fire safety compliance for building structures.  Both safety aspects have been accelerated following tragic outcomes.  Electricity causes about half of the UK’s 37,000 house fires a year, according to the charity Electrical Safety First, and faulty electrics cause some 70 deaths and 350,000 injuries each year in…

Retail tenants should

Retail tenants should check the small print

As a fresh wave of lockdown measures cut across the UK, retail tenants may be experiencing new concerns about how to pay the rent, but another ticking timebomb is the viability of their landlords. Even before the pandemic, the high street was undergoing radical change and the continuing restrictions have seen a dramatic shift in consumer habits towards online shopping. Faced with such a shift towards e-commerce, few were surprised to see the recent demise of Intu, a large retail landlord with shopping centres that include the Trafford Centre in…

Stamp duty holiday

Property boom as home and overseas buyers rush to beat the deadline 

Property buyers are fighting off the pandemic to catch a new home before stamp duty goes back to its normal rate.  For overseas buyers, the race is even more important, as the rate will carry an additional surcharge for them from April. As part of the range of measures to provide economic support through the Covid-19 pandemic, the Government introduced a temporary holiday for Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) on the first £500,000 of purchases, but this will come to an end on 31 March 2021, when it will revert…

Lockdown 2 and home improvements

Lockdown 2 and home improvements: When do you need planning permission?

With recent announcements from both the UK and Scottish government about further lockdown restrictions, you might be planning to fill your time with some home improvements. At the time of writing, tradespeople are exempt from lockdown restrictions and may enter your home to carry out necessary repairs. However, you should be aware that certain modifications to your home and garden may require specific permissions. In this article, we look at where you can find the information you need and provide a brief guide to when you may and may not…

Back To Top
Search

Powered by How to backup and restore wordpress site

error: Content is protected !!