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.

Landlords see opportunities in property sector despite tough economic climate

Despite the economic uncertainty, large portfolio professional landlords are in a confident mood, with the majority planning to acquire at least one new asset in the coming year, new independent research* conducted on behalf of property business expert Handelsbanken shows. Other key findings include: Six out of 10 are set to acquire more properties in the year ahead Of these, over half plan to diversify into new sectors 92% expect to see valuations rebound London and South East cited as most attracti

New fire safety laws will help to make high rise tenants feel safer at home

Letting agents and landlords have a big part to play in making sure that updated fire safety regulations improve standards for tenants living in taller buildings, according to No Letting Go. The specialist inventory provider says that alongside full compliance, landlords and agents can ease tenants’ worries about fire safety by improving communication. At the same time, the new regulations represent more work and increased costs for lettings professionals, who’ll need to find the most cost-effective way t

Soho Housing Association launches a pilot with EVO to accelerate its digital transformation and improve tenant experience

Soho Housing Association has partnered with digital repairs and property management platform EVO in its bid to digitise its repairs service as part of a drive towards improving services to residents. The partnership will see EVO take over the responsibility of the management and delivery of repairs, contractors and documentation relating to the repairs process for a pilot involving approximately a quarter of Soho Housing’s properties. The company will deliver a simple app to residents who will use it to r

Rendall & Rittner Appoints New Head of Consultancy

Leading property management agent Rendall & Rittner has appointed Clare Johnson as Head of Consultancy. This newly formed role seeks to further enhance the bespoke consultancy services on offer, providing tailored advice for a wide range of residential and mixed-use projects, building on Clare’s wide ranging expertise in property development and property management. Before returning to Rendall & Rittner in her new role, Clare has spent the past two years working as Build to Rent Director for brownfield de

The Stay Company celebrates its 100th serviced apartment – with further growth planned

Derby-based serviced apartment provider, The Stay Company, has revealed plans for further growth across the East Midlands – after celebrating the opening of its 100th apartment. The business, which has its HQ in Friar Gate, wants to add more high-quality sites to its Derby and Nottingham portfolio after achieving the centenary milestone by opening Phoenix Court. The Stay Company is currently exploring suitable opportunities in Leicestershire and is excited to introduce its stylish, high-quality serviced a

Angela Irvine elected president of Birmingham Insurance Institute

The Bletchley Group’s (“Bletchley”) sales director, Angela Irvine has been elected as the new president of the Birmingham Insurance Institute. Angela, who is also deputy chair of the West Midlands Region for the British Insurance Brokers’ Association, will serve a 12-month term having previously acted as deputy president. She replaces former president, Cat Harrison. A chartered insurance broker, Angela has gained more than 30 years’ industry experience in a career which has included senior roles at

Winners announced for The NOTB Footy Championship 2023!

We would like to extend a huge thank you to all the teams who participated in the NOTB Football Championship 2023 at Powerleague Shoreditch on 17 May 2023.  We had a fantastic day with lots of fierce competition in all of our groups throughout the day.  The final results were as follows.  Winner - JM2 Group  Runner Up - EV Chargers Ltd  Plate Winner - Jackson Sims Recruitment  Plate Runner Up - Urang Property Management    You can download the full fixtures and results via the link at the bottom of the

Whitley Stimpson shortlisted for major national award

Accountancy specialist firm Whitley Stimpson has been shortlisted for a top property industry award. The company, with offices in Banbury, Bicester, High Wycombe and Witney, made the cut in the Service Charge Accountancy Firm of the Year category of the 2023 ACE awards organised by the Association of Residential Managing Agents (ARMA). The awards, which are aimed at companies achieving best practice in their field, attracted a record number of entries this year with judges describing the quality of submis

ELM Group celebrates the 50th anniversary of its founding estate

This month, property management company ELM Group is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its very first retirement estate Vicarage Close - a grade II listed building steeped in history and now the home of retired residents in the East Sussex village of Ringmer. Starting out as the old Flint Vicarage, Vicarage Close soon became the UK’s first leasehold retirement independent living estate, offering a new concept for people of retirement age who valued owning their own property and saw the benefits of a pur

ALEP responds to news of delay in proposed abolition of Leasehold

The Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners (ALEP) has said that the complexities of leasehold ownership made it impossible for the Government to abolish the leasehold system this year.  The Housing Secretary, Michael Gove had recently stated that the Government’s intention remained the abolition of the leasehold system, telling MPs in January that the Government would "bring forward legislation shortly". The King’s Speech later this year is expected to include a Bill outlining further l

Anger as Government ‘waters down’ leasehold reform

The Government has taken a backward step after climbing down on a commitment to end the leasehold system this year. That is the view of Alan Draper, a leading campaigner for leasehold reform, after it was revealed the radical move would not now be happening due to a lack of parliamentary time. That is despite repeated promises from Housing Secretary Michael Gove to push through legislation to scrap leasehold schemes in 2023. Alan, Managing Director of property management firm Common Ground, said: “Despite

‘Loophole’ helps prevent families falling into inheritance tax trap

With more and more people becoming liable for inheritance tax (IHT), experts at Whitley Stimpson are urging families to consider using a little used loophole to reduce its impact. Under the “normal expenditure out of income exemption” rules, individuals can donate sums of any size if they can be considered part of “normal expenditure.” This means the amount donated should be in line with the individual’s general outgoings and made on a regular basis from their income which could consist of pensions, divid

© 2025 News On The Block. All rights reserved.

News on the Block is a trading name of Premier Property Media Ltd.

We use cookies to improve your experience on our site. By using our site you consent cookies.