Property, Leasehold and Housing

Housing Secretary vows to ban No-fault evictions before next election, tackling landlord abuse. Proposed Renters (Reform) Bill aims to protect tenants' rights, including outlawing discriminatory practices, improving housing standards, and strengthening...

In a surprising twist, the government has indefinitely postponed the much-anticipated ban on no-fault evictions under 'Section 21'. Housing Secretary Michael Gove cites the need for a revamped court system before the ban can be implemented,...

A judge has settled the tricky question in a case that sparked controversy between two leaseholders sharing a roof/floor and the property’s two freeholders. The case involved two maisonettes contained in a house belonging to two freeholders, who...

A homeowner has been granted permission to add a two-storey extension to his property despite objections from his neighbour.  The case involved neighbours on an estate of houses around a private road constructed in the 1980s. The properties were...

A recent Court of Appeal decision concerning the signing of documents on behalf of a landlord, has been welcomed by many landlords and agents. Background Northwood (Solihull) Ltd v Fearn & Ors (2022) EWCA Civ 40  considered the requirements for...

Local authorities are to receive extra funding to tackle landlords who fail to comply with energy rating standards on their properties. Since April last year, privately rented homes have had to meet a minimum energy performance rating of EPC Band...

  Background  In  Jalili v Bury Council , the court considered the amount of legal costs that were recoverable by a tenant in a disrepair claim brought against their council landlord that settled pre-issue of proceedings. The tenant’s...

The recent case of Sturgiss -v- Boddy concerned the impact of the law on commonplace flat shares where the owner does not live at the property but allows others to do so and those others are unrelated to one another. Under this arrangement it is common...

Three homeowners have lost their appeal against a decision that sections of land they bought with their homes should be classed as ‘gardens or grounds’ and so be subject to Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) at the full rate. The issue in each case was...

The Court of Appeal has ruled that a commercial tenant had correctly exercised a break clause in its lease despite having left the premises “dysfunctional and unoccupiable”. The break clause provided that the tenant could terminate the lease if...