The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act (the Act) received Royal Assent on 24th May 2024. The purpose of the Act is to improve the rights of residential leaseholders in England and Wales. When will it come into force? The Act is essentially split into two stages. The first stage comes into force on 24th July
Homeownership in England and Wales generally consists of two tenure types: freehold and leasehold. Freehold is an ownership over the land and the property built upon it, which lasts forever, and generally gives extensive control over the property. Leasehold provides time-limited ownership (for example, a 99-years lease), and control of the property, which is shared
What is a listed building? A listed building is a building which is included in a list that has been approved by the Secretary of State. The older a building is, the more likely it is to be listed. Buildings that are listed usually have a special architectural and historic interest that needs to be
The Building Safety Act 2022 came into force in June 2022. The Act was introduced to protect qualifying leaseholders from the costs related to the remediation of cladding which has been deemed unsafe. You can find further information as to whether you qualify for protection by visiting our previous article: Building Safety Act 2022 –
The Building Safety Act 2022 came into force in June 2022. The Act was introduced to protect ‘qualifying leaseholders’ from the costs related to the remediation of unsafe cladding. Am I a qualifying leaseholder? To be a ‘qualifying leaseholder’ you must satisfy the following requirements: If you purchased your property after 14 February 2022, you
What are they? A flying freehold occurs where part of a property either overhangs or lies beneath another person’s property. Examples of flying freeholds include: Whilst a flying freehold is unlikely to cause an issue to a person in everyday life, having a flying freehold may present an issue for a person when they come
Leasehold is a form of property ownership (or tenure) when you (as a Lessee) have an agreement, called “the Lease” between you and the owner who is the Freeholder or Landlord. You own such leasehold property only for a fixed period and this ownership will return to the Landlord when the Lease comes to an
The legislation The Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban development Act 1993 (“the Act”) provides leaseholders who meet certain qualifying criteria with a right to extend their lease by a further 90 years with a peppercorn (zero) ground rent. To qualify, a leaseholder must satisfy the following: A leaseholder will not qualify if: How to start
It is important to understand the difference between these two routes when purchasing a property with other people. Tenants in Common This route allows each person to hold their own share of the property. You can decide how to divide these shares. For example, if one person has contributed 70% to the mortgage and
A house in multiple occupation (HMO) is a property that is rented by at least 3 people who are not from the same household. They must share facilities such as the bathroom and/or the kitchen. There are both standard and large HMOs. Large HMOs consist of 5 or more tenants who form more than 1
The Housing Act 2004 gives Councils the power to designate areas to be subject to discretionary licensing in a bid to tackle problems in their areas, or any part or parts of them, caused by low housing demand and/or significant anti-social behaviour, subject to certain evidential criteria, public consultation, and approval from central Government. A
Before buying a leasehold property, buyers should ensure they understand the main clauses in their lease and it’s very important to find out what the current and future service charges are likely to be. The lease is a contract between the tenant or leaseholder and the landlord, that among other things includes the landlord’s power
A person who possesses land which is not their own for an extended period of time can claim what is known as adverse possession over the land. The person who does this is known as a ‘squatter’. In England and Wales there are two adverse possession regimes: To claim adverse possession over land, the following
Islamic Finance is a term used when referring to financial transactions that are compliant with the basic principles of Islamic law (or Sharia). Sharia is a religious law which is taken from the Qur’an (the Holy Book for Muslims). Islamic finance is not limited to those who are Muslim, and there has been a recent
Widespread reforms were announced in June 2022, as part of the Government White Paper: A Fairer Private Rented Sector (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/a-fairer-private-rented-sector/a-fairer-private-rented-sector) and 2023 could be the year landlords get more details and clarity on what it will be. The White Paper defines the Government’s commitment to “deliver a fairer, more secure, and higher quality Private Rental
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