Articles in ‘Property Disputes’ Category

With changes taking place to legislation in April 2017, what do landlords need to know about Rent Repayment Orders?

New legislation came into effect on the 1st October 2018 which will impact over 170,000 landlords. The legislation widens the definition of large HMOs and is designed to limit overcrowding in house shares. Non-compliance can result in unlimited penalties and therefore it is vital that landlords are aware of whether these changes are relevant to their properties.

The Law Commission has published its eagerly awaited proposals on their options for reforming the law on valuation in the acquisition of the freehold of leasehold properties and lease extensions.

The Law Commission was tasked with exploring options to reduce the cost of lease extensions and freehold purchases. This not only has legal implications but also political implications as by making the process cheaper for leaseholders, freeholders could lose out.

Due to the current COVID-19 pandemic, the Government has taken drastic action to protect citizens. One promise it has given is that social and private tenants will not be evicted during these times of hardship. However, the temporary emergency legislation, the Coronavirus Bill (“the Bill”) actually says something a bit different.

While the government is supporting tenants by preventing them from being forced out of their homes during the pandemic there is no exemption from paying rent. Tenants are reminded that they do not have a right to pay a reduced rent or no rent. They remain under a legal obligation to pay rent in full.

The Coronavirus Act 2020 came into force on 26 March 2020 in England and Wales and will be in place until 30 September 2020.

The legislation covering assured shorthold tenancies, regulated tenancies and fully assured tenancies has made changes to the notice period for Section 21 notices and Section 8 notices.

Landlords have been able to make new possession claims during the lockdown but there has been a stay on the Court issuing new and progressing existing proceedings until 23 August 2020. Urgent changes have now been made by the Government dealing with how claims will be managed by the Court. Court Practice Direction 55C has been introduced and comes into force on the 23 August 2020. These temporary provisions will be in effect until 28 March 2021

Jacqui Walton offers a further update on the latest Practice Direction for landlords, coming into effect later this month.

Can landlords recover their legal costs from tenants if they win at court or a property tribunal?

Recent figures from the Metropolitan Police indicate that prosecutions for squatting in London have fallen dramatically in the eighteen months since the legislation making squatting illegal in residential properties came into force. In the first few months prosecutions hit a peak of 28 in a single month but are now steady at single figures. The legislation therefore appears to be effective in deterring squatters from entering peoples’ homes.

When buying a property there are a many things to consider; the crime rates in the area, the surveyor’s report, the potential returns of investing in commercial property, the proximity of a river to name just a few.

In most cases, issues are resolved during a purchase, the purchaser moves in and lives happily ever after. However, as was the case recently with a professional gambler, a property owner may be shocked to later discover that their humble abode is surrounded by a strip of land they thought was theirs but is, in fact, owned by someone else.

For landowners who own land with development potential, preventing the creation of public and private rights of way over land by long user is always an issue. Such rights can devalue the development potential, or even make development unrealistic when small sites are concerned.