Featured Articles

Get the answers to your questions and stay up to date about apartment building management with our featured articles and NOTB guides, on topics such as service charges, right to manage, buying your freehold, major works, building insurance and other issues about blocks of flats.

2026 Will Test BTR’s Potential and Government’s Resolve

Throughout 2025 I have spent hours in meetings with and on discussion panels with institutional investors, developers and local authorities. And everything I’ve picked up on in the last year suggests that 2026 will be a crossroads for Build to Rent (BTR). The fundamentals are as strong as they have ever been. Demand for quality rental homes is intense, capital is available and the development pipeline is substantial.

Watling marketing Grade II Fitzrovia apartment block for £11 million

A substantial apartment block in the heart of Fitzrovia in London has gone on sale for offers over £11 million.  Watling Real Estate has been instructed to sell Emerson Bainbridge House on behalf of Oliver Haunch and Hina Patel of Grant Thornton, the joint administrators of Zeba Properties Ltd. 

The FirstPort Group forms dedicated Energy Team to meet new regulatory standards

Property management company The FirstPort Group, which manages over 100 heat networks across the UK, has set up a dedicated Energy Team. The team will support clients in meeting the requirements introduced under the Energy Act 2023 – a landmark reform set to transform the management of communal heat networks and enhance service reliability for residents.   

Industry Leader Matthew Strong Joins Glide Property Management as Senior Technical Property Manager

Glide Property Management has appointed Matthew Strong as Senior Technical Property Manager, strengthening its national team with one of the most experienced and respected professionals in the block management industry.

Estate Agent Fees Explained: What You’re Really Paying For - And Whether It’s Worth It in 2025

Selling your home is a big life moment. It’s exciting, emotional, and, let’s be honest, a bit stressful too. One of the biggest questions sellers ask is, “What exactly am I paying an estate agent for?” With so many different selling routes available today, from traditional estate agents to online agents and fast-sale companies, it’s easy to feel unsure about which path to choose.

Commonhold Won’t Work Without Managing Agent Reform

As part of its wide-ranging leasehold reform agenda, the government has made clear its intention to breathe life into commonhold – a model that offers flat owners ownership of all shared areas, a perpetual title and collective control over their buildings. With a new Leasehold and Commonhold Reform Bill on the horizon, there is an expectation that commonhold will become mandatory for all new-build flats.

87,000 home moves happen in December - Here’s 6 tips for a stress-free Christmas move

With an average of 87,000 home sales taking place during the month of December, Property DriveBuy has compiled practical advice for those due to complete this festive season, a time already known for being one of the busiest and most emotionally charged periods of the year. Despite this bringing the potential for a more stressful move, the analysis also reveals that there are actually significant advantages to making the big move around Christmas. 

A Third Way for Flat Ownership

As government, in its imminent Leasehold and Commonhold Reform Bill, prepares to mandate commonhold as the default tenure for new flats, one developer is already offering an alternative that balances consumer control with the impetus for change.

THE DIRECTOR’S CUT – Edition No.1

If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance you’re a leaseholder who somehow found yourself sitting on the board of your RMC (possibly share-of-freehold) or RTM company. Welcome. You’re in the right place.

Worcestershire estate agency offers to help landlords prepare for new private rental law

Expert guidance for landlords on how to prepare for legal changes in the UK’s private rental sector is being offered by a leading Worcestershire estate agency. 

Five real estate opportunities to watch in 2026

The 2025 Autumn Budget offered limited stimulus for the housing market and, persistent headwinds such as sticky inflation, higher for longer interest rates, elevated construction costs, and slow planning processes continue to impact development viability. But there are still reasons for cautious optimism. The UK economy is forecast to grow by 1.4 per cent this year.

LRG New Homes: why 2026 could be the year the market turns

In property sales there are people who need to move and people who want to move. In the last few years, only those who have had to move have been active. Once conditions improve, those who want to move return to the show homes too. That shift creates a positive market: it increases the customer base, keeps chains intact and reduces fall throughs. It does not require a revolution in economics to trigger that change - a further modest reduction in interest rates early next year could be enough to move us over the line. On that basis, I expect to see a noticeably stronger market in early 2026. 

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