Labour pledges comprehensive ground rent caps
Posted by The Oracle Group on 8th July 2019 -
LEASEHOLDS
Labour pledges comprehensive ground rent caps
A Labour government would restrict property ground rent for all leaseholders, in proposals going further than the current Government's plans that focus on new leaseholders and houses, and not on existing residents and flats. Labour will suggest capping ground rents for existing houses and flats at 0.1% of a property’s value, up to a maximum of £250 a year. And other proposals, including ending ground rents for all new leasehold properties, are expected to be unveiled on Tuesday.
FIRMS
Dexters defied market trends with rise in profits
London estate agent Dexters recorded a surge in profits last year. The firm posted profits of £6.3m for the 12 months to September, up from £4.8m the year before, while revenues rose 16% to £87m, most of it from lettings. Dexters founder Jeff Doble said that despite warnings of a slowdown the market was still very strong compared with the years following the crisis. He added that the Government’s ban on charging fees from tenants was not a major threat because Dexters is less reliant on the charges than some of its competitors.
Clugston has announced that its CEO, Bob Vickers, has left the business having previously tendered his resignation. The Scunthorpe-based construction, logistics, facilities management and property development company has appointed Glynn Thomas as interim group CEO.
MORTGAGES
Knight Frank has become the first estate agent in Britain to set up a division advising grandparents how to use equity release to help their grandchildren. Simon Gammon, managing partner at Knight Frank Finance, said that baby boomers were trying to give money to their grandchildren rather than leaving their property wealth to the taxman when they died. The new division begins work with five advisers today.
RENTAL
Benefit claimants priced out of rentals
Rental increases and the benefits squeeze are making accommodation in large parts of London and Manchester inaccessible for people reliant on local housing allowance, according to research by London Councils. The study also found that in Swindon and Newbury only 2% of one-bedroom flats available on the private rental market are now affordable, and in Northampton just 3%. Fewer than one in 10 three-bedroom family homes are affordable in Ipswich, Milton Keynes, Rugby, Luton and Cambridge.
LEGAL
Group claims over cladding could bring in the money
Law firms could make huge profits from class action legal claims over Grenfell-style cladding. Some 58 residents at Greenwich tower block New Capital Quay have joined a claim group against developer Galliard Homes and landlord Roamquest Ltd to claim additional losses to cladding replacement. A letter from Leigh Day, the law firm representing them, says they could receive £3,000 each. Phil Stewardson, of Stewardson Developments, said: "You can already see it happening in other areas where law firms can lump together claims under a no win, no fee arrangement."
NHS trusts seek same rates relief as private hospitals
A High Court challenge is to be heard in November against 45 councils from 17 NHS trusts who believe they should be entitled to cut their business rates by 80%, in the same manner as some private hospitals, which are able to register for charitable status. The legal case was initiated last year in the wake of the 2017 business rates revaluation which has already seen hospitals’ bills increase by 42.8% over two years. If successful it could open the door for other public organisations to argue for charitable exemptions.
London gasworks redevelopment faces legal challenge
Residents living near to the redevelopment of a former gasworks in Southall, London, are preparing a legal challenge, claiming a petrol-like odour from the Southall Waterside site is making them ill and putting children’s lives at risk. It follows two years of complaints to Ealing Council, developers the Berkeley Group and environmental regulators.
HOUSING
The Telegraph interviews Pocket Living founder Marc Vlessing. The housing developer focuses on small units built for middle-income first-time buyers traditionally unable to afford London’s high prices, such as teachers and nurses. His solution is to use modular construction, and to design compact homes that only narrowly exceed the minimum sizes required by building regulations. So far Pocket has built around 500 homes and has about twice as many in the pipeline.
Intu to convert car parks into homes
Intu Properties, one of the UK’s largest shopping centre owners, will this week reveal plans to enter the residential market by creating more than 1,000 homes next to Lakeside shopping centre in Essex. The plans would mean demolishing two car parks and a House of Fraser store to make way for rental homes, open spaces and leisure facilities. The move comes amid a fall in retail valuations.
INVESTMENT
Foreign investors driving local buyers out of Birmingham
Investors from the Far East are pricing out Birmingham first-time buyers, as they buy up swathes of new developments in the city, cashing in on the city's multibillion-pound regeneration. Mark Evans, of Knight Frank, said that in the past year he had seen "an increased appetite from investors in the Far East into Birmingham". However, Paula Higgins, from the Homeowners Alliance, said she was worried that the trend was another example of properties being built to maximise profit rather than benefit those looking for homes.
Failed hotel deal hits investors
The Guardian says investors have been hit by the collapse of a deal that would have seen financier Gavin Woodhouse’s Northern Powerhouse Developments buy the Moorland Garden in Devon. Details of the failed deal were contained in documents submitted to the High Court. Phil Duffy of Duff & Phelps – appointed as an interim manager of the three businesses – said investments used to fund the deposit paid by NPD will have been lost.
PLANNING
Skyscrapers’ CO2 output causes headache
Research by the Times shows that six of London’s best-known skyscrapers produce more than 12,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide every year. Royal Institute of British Architects president Ben Derbyshire said it shows the “considerable” challenge for building owners to comply with the Government’s target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Asif Din, sustainability director at Perkins+Will, an architecture and design firm, added: “These figures show that in order to meet our climate commitments, we need to reassess the way we design and operate large glass commercial buildings.”
INDUSTRIAL
Flexible firms dominate warehouse space
Flexible storage companies have taken more warehouse space so far this year than any other sector, according to Savills, as they prepare to profit from a surge in demand if there is a no-deal Brexit. Third-party providers account for 31% of space leased in the UK so far this year, up from 17% last year. Online retailers account for 17%, down from 27%, amid competition from other sectors. The vacancy rate in all British warehouses stands at just 6.6%.
RETAIL
Spud firm looks to chip away at rents
Baked potato specialist Spudulike wants to close at least four of its 31 outlets and reduce rent at some stores to as little as 10% of turnover as part of restructuring attempts via a CVA. Landlords, who are being asked to approve the changes next week, say they are shocked that the scale of rent cuts being demanded are much more severe than previous companies had sought.
Select creditors owed £53m
Creditors of collapsed fashion retailer Select, which include landlords and HMRC, claim to be owed £53.1m as part of the firm's administration. Documents from administrator Quantuma revealed landlords want to reclaim almost £3.5m from the retailer as part of the unsecured non-preferential claims.
INTERNATIONAL
Moscow to house Europe’s tallest skyscraper
Moscow plans to build Europe's tallest residential building. The One Tower will be 405 metres high with 101 floors, said officials from the Moscow mayor's office. It will be constructed in the Moscow City business district, a cluster of skyscrapers on the bank of the Moskva River that is already home to six of Europe's tallest buildings.
ECONOMY
CBI: No-deal threat sees investment dip
The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has warned that Brexit uncertainty is dragging on investment, estimating that business spending is set to decline by about 1.3% in 2019, marking the steepest drop since 2009. With the economy growing by 1.5% in 2018, the business lobby group expects GDP growth will ease slightly to 1.4% in 2019, before a slight acceleration to 1.5% in 2020.
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