EG Property Podcasts

The top 10 property law cases of 2024

EG's legal & professional editor Jess Harrold is joined by court reporter James Lumley to count down the 10 most significant property and planning law judgments handed down during 2024.

Their carefully curated list includes such classic staples as forfeiture and the right to manage, major developments in the law of nuisance, and hot topic of recent years including restructuring plans and the Building Safety Act 2022. Not only that, but the year's cases touch on two of the most famous (and well visited) locations in all of the UK. And, if that isn't enough, there is also Weetabix.

Voice of the Region: Surrey – Diversity and resolution

Diversity of product offering has been key to surviving a difficult year plagued with economic and political uncertainty, according to Curchod & Co partner and registered valuer Piers Leigh.

Curchod & Co sits at the top of the Radius On Demand Rankings for Surrey, with 369,424 sq ft of occupation sales and lettings transacted over 89 deals in the year to date. It has also managed 72 deals in neighbouring Hampshire amounting to 321,751 sq ft.

Leigh believes that by having a broad range of property types on its books it has been able to pivot to where the demand is strongest over the course of 2024. He says industrial has accounted for the lion’s share of demand, but also says the retail sector has bounced back strongly in some locations but not all, while the office market is achieving super-prime rental figures.

Dealmaker of the Month: Rich Lowrey, Newlands Property

Brighton’s high streets are back in business with retail and leisure uptake pushing vacancy rates right down thanks in part to workers returning to the office, according to Newlands Property managing director Rich Lowrey.

Lowrey is October’s dealmaker of the month, topping the On Demand Rankings for combined deals in the South East with 11 completions totalling 19,603 sq ft. He also did more retail deals last month than anyone else in the UK.

The bounceback of the retail sector has definitely been felt in Brighton, says Lowrey, thanks to its cultural diversity and large student population which make it an attractive destination for retail start-ups. He also says the city benefits from a high proportion of local landlords who are more than willing to let to independent retailers.

The Law Commission's review of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954

Jess Harrold is joined by Professor Nicholas Hopkins, the Law Commissioner for Property, Family and Trusts, to discuss the launch of the Law Commission's consultation on the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 and the future of security of tenure for commercial tenants.

Hopkins outlines the background to the long-anticipated review of Part 2 of the 1954 Act, and explains the Commission's two-stage approach to the project, before presenting the four options for models of security of tenure on which views are being sought in this opening consultation.

Listen to the podcast, then have your say at the Law Commission website: https://lawcom.gov.uk/project/business-tenancies-the-right-to-renew/

 

How to be a better business

In this EG Property Podcast, EG editor Samantha McClary sits down with Grosvenor’s HR director Jo Banfield to talk about the changing nature of the employee/employer relationship.

With fresh pressure on employers set to come with changes to National Insurance and the Employment Rights Bills, proper communication, trust and understanding between worker and employer has never been more important.

Throw a more varied workforce than ever before into the mix and things get even more complicated.

But if real estate businesses are committed to attracting and retaining the best talent to ensure that they continue to thrive in this changing world, understanding the importance of people is a vital skill.

Dive into this special EG Property Podcast if you’re committed to being a better business.

Voice of the Region: Kent – the race for parking space

Car parking and the availability of outside space is more important than environmental or sustainability considerations when it comes to attracting occupiers to the majority of industrial and office space, according to Sibley Pares associate Ned Gleave.

Sibley Pares tops the Radius On Demand Rankings for Kent in terms of deal numbers so far this year, with 94 completions totalling 344,000 sq ft of space.

Gleave, who operates largely across Kent’s industrial market, says environmental considerations such as solar panels and EV charging are still considered sweeteners rather than necessities and that parking is often a more important factor than the building itself. He is also hopeful a middle ground can be found regarding regulation on future EPC minimum standards.

Dealmaker of the Month: Elise Evans, Lambert Smith Hampton

The industrial sector has made huge strides forwards in decarbonisation as landlords, tenants and even the customers of tenants all demand increasingly green credentials, according to Lambert Smith Hampton director of industrial and logistics Elise Evans.

Evans was the South East’s top industrial dealmaker in the Radius On Demand Rankings in September, with five deals totalling 68,201 sq ft of space. Among them was a 40,000 sq ft letting at Langstone Park in Havant in a building rated EPC A+ and powered entirely through rooftop solar PVs.

She says demand for the full spectrum of industrial classes remains strong on her south coast patch, where the docks of Southampton support a thriving logistics sector and advanced manufacturing and engineering flourishes further east.

In on the Act: The Renters' Rights Bill

Legal & professional editor Jess Harrold is joined by Guy Fetherstonhaugh KC to discuss the Renters' Rights Bill currently making its way through parliament.

Fetherstonhaugh addresses the social context and political history of residential leasehol that has led to the bill, and its central feature - the abolition of section 21 "no fault" evictions.

He goes into detail on how the bill will reform the law in this area, and the ways in which it differs from the Conservative government's failed Renters (Reform) Bill.

Fetherstonhaugh outlines the other major provisions in the bill, and highlights some areas for improvement he hopes will be addressed as the bill proceeds through parliament.

The Future of Living: Delivering multi-generational development

In this episode of the EG Property Podcast, EG editor Samantha McClary takes a deeper dive into a special roundtable event held in partnership with Montagu Evans at the London Real Estate Forum.

That discussion brought together a panel of leading experts to explore the evolving landscape of alternative living, focusing on the integration of multi-tenure and multi-generational communities in large-scale regeneration initiatives.

You can read a write up here: https://www.egi.co.uk/news/can-multigenerational-communities-solve-a-multitude-of-problems/

In this discussion, Simon Century, managing director, housing, asset management division, at Legal & General, Matt Steere, data and insight director at Birchgrove, and Jon Neale, head of research and strategic insight at Montagu Evans take a deeper look at the barriers currently blocking the growth of multi-generational living in the UK.

Listen in as the trio discussion funding challenges, the need for greater understanding of the power of the living sector, and the need to turn traditional thinking on its head.

Why London is the ideal place to foster the synergies between science and AI

In this episode of the EG Property Podcast, EG senior reporter Evelina Grecenko sits down with Tom Mellows, head of UK science at Savills, Michael Samuelian, founding director – Ubrna Tech Hub, Cornell Tech NYC, and Amy Hockley, head of innovation leasing at British Land to investigate London’s unique position to nurture the burgeoning science and technology sectors, and the role that the real estate sector can play to support this.

 

Listen in for lessons from the United States, how London is maturing and what landlords need to deliver to be able to attract best-in-class occupiers.