Featured Articles

The Upper Tribunal has held that, on registration, a buyer of property for valuable consideration took free of an order appointing a manager made under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987. Facts In Urwick v Pickard, a listed building containing twelve flats was let to tenants on 999 year leases.  The flats shared communal grounds and gardens with six freehold houses. The estate was owned and managed by Ditton Place Management Company Ltd (DP) but after complaints about the way it managed the estate, the tena

Issue 105 of News on the Block has now been published. This issues includes some of the following articles:  - Grenfell charges delays frustrating, say families - Elevate the importance of lift records - Who looks after your fire alarm system? - Why you need a reserve fund - What you can do if you want to buy a flat with a short lease - Can someone just sort out the bin store? Special Insurance Feature Including:  - The challenges surrounding insurance against terrorism - 10 reasons to review your

This article was first published on the Winckworth Sherwood website.  Leases are used to give ownership of an envelope of land whether it is commercial or residential in nature for a period of time and to regulate the relationship between landlord and tenant i.e. set limits around the alterations the tenant can make, document who is to be responsible for repairing what and to restrict the use to which the premises can be put. It is often assumed that the terms of that contract can’t be amended unilaterall

FirstPort has joined a select group of companies to be named as one of the UK’s 2020 Top Employers. FirstPort is one of only 82 companies to be given this prestigious certification by the Top Employers Institute, and is the only organisation in the property management sector to receive the status this year. It follows a rigorous review of the organisation’s HR practices based on standards reviewed by the Institute across more than 600 HR practices. Plus an external audit benchmarking against the very best

What’s goin’ on ’ere then? A development of 32 luxury apartments on the site of a former Solihull police station is to be looked after by Principle Estate Management. The MIA Properties Group has appointed Principle to manage the three and four-storey block currently under construction on the site of what was once the Shirley police station on the Stratford Road. The new property will be known as Sir Robert Peel Court, named after the man regarded as the father of modern British policing, owing to his fou

Fire detection and alarm systems are installed in residential and commercial buildings primarily in the interest of life safety. They are designed to provide an early warning of a fire to enable occupants of the building to escape in a calm and safe manner.    As a life safety system, it is important that your fire alarm system is appropriate for your building, being designed, installed, commissioned and maintained regularly by a suitably qualified and competent company.    How do you know who is suitably

Hyperoptic unveils new research assessing the key factors motivating home movers and the developers that build and maintain property. The study is one of the largest of its kind, some 228 housing professionals and 2,000 homeowners or renters were quizzed about their expectations regarding property. The clear finding is that broadband is now the ‘4th utility’ – on a par with water, gas and electricity. Some 86% of the public claim that having a decent connection in their property is ‘important’ to them whi

The issue of how remedial works and interim measures will be funded is an emotive and challenging one, with many competing interests at play. Brady Solicitors’ Adam Fotiou reviews the options for freeholders and managing agents seeking to fund these essential works. Owners and developers who had installed cladding in good faith are refusing to pay for remedial works and many are looking to the leaseholders to fund these works under their service charge, should the leases to the flat permit them to do so.

National Apprenticeship Week (3rd – 7th February 2020) shines a light on the opportunities open to those who choose not to enter into higher education and instead undertake an apprenticeship. The UKs leading independent property management agent, Rendall & Rittner, is committed to supporting young people and helping them develop their careers within the sector. Rendall & Rittner’s apprenticeship scheme provides young people with the opportunity to build their skills whilst learning on the job. Liam Barrat

QUESTION  I own my flat and have a share of the freehold. My neighbour upstairs had a blocked sink recently and it leaked into my property causing damage.   The board members have insisted that I use a rogue builder who do not speak English and whose qualifications have not been provided. They have put pressure on me to use this builder.  I didn't accept their conditions so they have now refused to help. They are not willing to provide my details to the owner above who has tenants in the flat. I now have

Recently, when purchasing a case of my favourite beer at the supermarket I had a mischievous urge to ask what their profit margin was on each can.  I figured that in the run up to Christmas, when there is consumer demand for booze, the supermarket must be earning a profit and selling it to me for a mark-up of at least 15% - which seems entirely reasonable. However I had bought the rather large case at a discounted price. If I bought only four cans, then theoretically their margin was in excess of 50%. Thi

Martin Hurrell MRICS CMaPs joins Earl Kendrick’s London team as Head of Surveying. Julian Davies MRICS RMaPs MFPWS, Managing Director of the Earl Kendrick Group of Companies, tells us “We’ve welcomed Martin to lead our London team of senior surveyors. He joins us at a time when Earl Kendrick’s geographical reach is expanding across the UK and his appointment enables us to continue embracing our core values as agile surveying experts in the property management sector. Martin’s role is crucial to our contin