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Experts are warning businesses and employees to brace themselves for a major rise in National Insurance payments in April. Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Chancellor Rishi Sunak have confirmed that the plans will see employees, employers and the self-employed pay 1.25p more in the pound for National Insurance for a year as they look to boost NHS coffers following the pandemic. Currently most workers pay 12 per cent of their income between £9,568 and £50,270 each year in National Insurance and two per cen

BauMont Real Estate Capital (BauMont) and its operating partner Addington Capital have acquired a residential portfolio from a private investor. The portfolio consists of 318 houses and apartments in East London, which are primarily leased to young professionals and families.  The portfolio has been acquired for £99 million. This deal is a follow-on for BauMont and Addington, who together acquired a portfolio of 182 apartments of mainly converted Victorian and Edwardian houses mostly in the borough of Cro

A contract to look after a Grade II-listed farmhouse in Solihull that has been converted into four luxury apartments has been awarded to MetroPM. The leading property management company, with offices in Birmingham and Cheltenham, will be managing Flats 1 to 4 at Hillfield Farmhouse on Libbards Way, a tee shot away from Widney Manor Golf Club. The farmhouse was converted into apartments in around 1987 and they were previously self-managed, but the residents wanted an experienced property management company

Adil Riaz, who joins the expanding property management company from HML Property, has previous experience at Centrick Property, Countrywide Estate Management, Scanlans and Mainstay. Mr Riaz, from Worcester, will look after a portfolio of freeholder and residential management company clients, as well as new-build and traditional blocks of flats. Andrew Winstanley, senior associate director at Principle, said: “We’re delighted to have appointed Adil who join us with over a decade’s experience in the industr

Mainstay, part of the UK’s leading residential services provider FirstPort Group, has won the operational management contract for Gasholders London, the iconic residential development on the King’s Cross Estate. Mainstay was selected for its high quality and innovative approach to management services, which will provide Gasholder residents with an exceptional level of service. The appointment follows an extensive, competitive pitch process for the open market tender.  Charles Lucas, Business Development D

Leading managing agent Rendall & Rittner has appointed Guy Lambert as Head of Marketing and Communications. This is a new position at Rendall & Rittner and will be key to ensuring sustained business growth and the successful implementation of the company’s market leading new property management platform. Guy comes with extensive experience in Marketing and Communications in the real estate sector. Most recently, he was Head of Marketing and Communications at NHBC, establishing a commercially driven mark

The Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners (ALEP) has commented on new legislation designed to protect leaseholders that will ban ground rents on new leasehold properties.  The Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Bill has received Royal Assent, making it an Act of Parliament.   The new Act, (which is not in force yet) will apply to leasehold properties in England and Wales. It will restrict ground rent owed on new leases to a ‘peppercorn’ rent – effectively zero – and aims to make leaseho

The largest national leaseholder event of the year, Leaseholder Expo 2022, is taking its highly anticipated conference virtual for the first time by partnering with online events platform Vfairs.   Leaseholder Expo 2022 aims to arm leaseholders with the knowledge they need to understand their lease, including service charges and lease extensions. On the day leaseholders can speak with experts from across the industry including solicitors, insurance agents, service charge brokers and many more.   As well a

Lord Stephen Greenhalgh, Minister of State for Building Safety and Fire made ‘a clarion call for proportionality’ last year and has since communicated a clear need for innovation to help solve some of the issues facing lessees caught up in the UK’s building safety crisis. His call has been answered by intelliclad – a pioneering alarm system designed to be integrated into the external facades of buildings where materials in the external wall system pose a risk. The system uses smart sensors which are fitte

A leading property agency has welcomed government plans for new laws to protect leaseholders living in apartments from exorbitant costs by forcing industry to pay to remove cladding. But MetroPM has pointed out that the legislation could be very subjective, will be closely considered by all and could result in costly court battles. The comments follow tough new laws unveiled by Michael Gove, the secretary of state for Levelling Up, which could result in any developers and product manufacturers who do not

Strangford Management Ltd, a specialist block management agency in the City of London, has announced the promotion of Lauren Bode to Property Manager. Lauren Bode joined Strangford Management in 2020 as a Junior Property Manager and has since excelled in her role leading to her promotion to a Property Manager, managing her own portfolio of clients. Lauren will be managing a portfolio of clients based in Central London ranging in sizes from 10 to 250 units. Managing Director, Michael Paul said: ‘Lauren has

MetroPM, the national property management company with offices in Birmingham and Cheltenham, has taken the initiative to install defibrillators at a number of the sites it manages. Managing director Matthew Arnold said it was a conscious decision by the board to create a community resource that could save lives. “It’s not just older people that have heart attacks, we have seen young fit sportsmen such as the footballers Fabrice Muamba in March 2012 and Christian Eriksen during Euro 2022, have their lives