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Tenant eviction firm Landlord Action says London's county courts are struggling to keep up with demand, listing its current busiest courts for landlord possession claims as Central London, Willesden, Barnet, Clerkenwell & Shoreditch, and Croydon. According to Landlord Action, the number of people renting in London now accounts for around 25% of the capital's population, but many of the systems and processes to support this have simply not kept pace. The firm says London courts are overstretched by the l

The Leasehold Knowledge Partnership recently held an all-party meeting on commonhold in the House of Commons. More than 50 delegates from the Commons, Lords, civil service and leasehold sector attended the event, which was organised by the LKP’s Co-director, Martin Boyd, and hosted by MPs Ed Davey (LibDem), Sir Peter Bottomley (Conservative) and Jim Fitzpatrick (Labour). This was the first high-level discussion on the subject since 2002, when the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act was introduced. There

A new collection of apartments in Cambridge is proving to be a deviation from traditional student digs thanks to a range of modern technologies and intelligent design. The Newton, on Humberstone Road, consists of 23 contemporary studio and one-bedroom apartments. Each provides a robust yet comfortable living space, integrating leisure, sleeping and study zones, and including an en suite shower room and contemporary kitchen. Features such as underfloor heating and a video entry system can all be monitored

Tenants of commercial buildings could be able to acquire the freehold interest against the will of the landlord, following a legal ruling. In Mount Eden Land vs Bolsover Investments, the landlord of an office building on a 999-year lease was appealing against an earlier decision that it was not reasonable for it to withhold consent to tenants’ plans to turn it into 16 or 17 residential flats. The court rejected the landlord’s argument that if consent were not refused, its freehold interest in the buildi

The News on the Block Championship was held for the first year last week and brought out the competitive spirit in the Leasehold Sector. Teams from across the industry travelled far and wide to take part and were delighted to play under the Wembley arch. An intense and action-packed final between Warwick Estates and Pier Management climaxed in Craig Stevens and his team being crowned the Champions with a score of: 2-1 to Warwick Estates.  I hear the whole team will be celebrating in style on the party is

A developer has lost a legal dispute over proposed work on the roof of a residential block of flats. In the case of Waites vs Hambledon Court, the freeholder leased the airspace above the garage blocks to a developer with the intention of constructing a flat on top of each one. However, the flat owners opposed the plans on the basis that their leases of the garages gave them ownership of the parts proposed to be developed. Litigation ensued, initiated by the developer seeking to clear off the tenant’s ch

The case of Brightbest Ltd v Meyrick arose after the claimant leaseholder investigated whether they were permitted to purchase the freehold to the two properties, which comprised one main building and a cottage. However, this raised questions as to whether the properties could be classed as a house, given that they had been converted into flats and bedsits and used as a hostel.   Mark Vinall, a partner at Winckworth Sherwood Solicitors, commented: “The court applied the principles from the Supreme Court

Leaseholders in Wales will soon no longer be required to sign notices personally when exercising their rights under the Urban Development Act 1993.   The Welsh Assembly has passed an amendment to the Housing (Wales) Bill, bringing the principality into line with England, where the Leasehold Reform (Amendment) Act 2014 received Royal Assent on 13 March this year and came into force on 13 May.   When collectively enfranchising or extending their leases under the 1993 Act, the need for tenants to sign no

The government-backed Leasehold Advisory Service (LEASE) is conducting research into leasehold housing. The research is focussing on two areas: the current issues mainly affecting leaseholders, and which organisations they turn to for help, advice or advocacy. "We want to find out whether the issues that our data highlight are in fact the day-to-day issues for leaseholders, and also identify who represents or helps leaseholders to ensure that we are coordinating with them," says Anthony Essien, Chief Exe

The Competition and Markets Authority’s (CMA) study into the provision of residential property management services in England and Wales has identified a number of causes for concern about how the market works. The authority is now seeking views on possible remedial action to improve the performance of the market and secure better outcomes for leaseholders. The study, which was launched in March by the CMA’s predecessor, the Office of Fair Trading, looks at whether the market is working well for leasehol

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has issued an update on its market study into the provision of residential property management services in England and Wales. The study, which was launched in March 2014 by the CMA’s predecessor the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), is looking at whether the market is working well for leaseholders and whether there is effective competition in the sector. The CMA has identified a number of causes for concern about how the market works. Some leaseholders appear to s

Eric Pickles MP has announced an end to the rules that prevented the short term letting of private homes. This comes as excellent news to property owners who are now legally allowed to rent out their property to London visitors on a short-to-medium term basis. One great option for these short-to-medium term lets is FlatClub, a London-based startup that specializes in such stays. Bookings made on FlatClub average about 30 days, which is significantly more days (and therefore more money) than their nearest