Estates Gazette Property Podcasts

What is Manchester’s future?

Manchester’s ambitions are big. By 2050, it wants to be a zero-carbon city; it aims to continue to entice major occupiers out of the capital with its lower rents, and keep its pool of graduate talent by offering a better standard of living; and it wants to keep regenerating and developing its local areas. But with a growing homelessness crisis and a need to create a real estate portfolio for all areas of society, what role does property play in ensuring Manchester and its surrounding areas to grow sustainably without leaving anyone behind?

Football stadiums and planning

With the new football season now in full swing, EG’s Jess Harrold is joined by Sue Chadwick, Arsenal fan and strategic planning adviser for Pinsent Masons LLP, to discuss some of the major planning issues involved in football stadium developments and redevelopments.

Chadwick considers how football cases have helped shape planning law in key areas, including in respect of assets of community value and environmental impact assessments, looks at how increasingly technologically advanced stadiums are at the forefront of data protection issues, which she predicts will come to play a major part in the planning process in the years to come – and shares the pet peeve that really annoys her about Alan Shearer and other football analysts on TV.

Bricks & Mortar: How to change your career path

For a decade, residential property lawyer Anna Favre worked in fashion journalism. But after reading a book on civil liberties, she was inspired to make a change of career. A period of part-time study followed, before she qualified as a lawyer and specialised in property.

Hear Anna discuss with EG's professional and legal editor, Sarah Jackman, how she effected that change, why there are benefits to entering a career with some work experience already on your CV and why ultimately property has proved to be the ideal sector to practice in.

Farewell to the AST? The government’s latest proposals on tenancy reform

The leasehold reform agenda gained further momentum last week, with the publication of a new consultation seeking views on how best to implement the proposals announced in April to abolish section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 and replace it with a strengthened section 8 process – including the removal of assured shorthold tenancies or ASTs. The consultation is open for 12 weeks, with responses due on or before 12 October.

To explain the detail of the consultation paper, EG’s Professional & Legal Editor Sarah Jackman is joined in the studio by residential property litigation partner Eleanor Murray of law firm CMS. She delves into the detail of the proposals - including the potential replacements for the AST and how they might operate - looks at the government’s position on rent controls and comments on whether the proposals achieve a fair balance between the landlord and the tenant.

Bricks & Mortar: Supporting candidates through the APC journey

Counsellors and supervisors have a critical role to play in supporting candidates through the APC process. That support can take many forms, from providing regular feedback on their work and testing them on their competency and ethics knowledge to recommending when they're ready for final assessment.

To explain how the relationship works on a practical level, the structured RICS guidance that governs it and who is best placed to assume the two roles, Rachel Saint - co-founder of Property Elite - joins Sarah Jackman in the EG studio for the latest episode of Bricks & Mortar.

Rachel draws on her extensive experience of providing training support to APC candidates and suggests how they can get the most out of the relationship to ensure that they pass the APC the first time around.

What the future holds for student housing investment

Investment in the UK’s purpose-built student accommodation sector is set to reach £53bn by the end of 2019. Meanwhile prime yields have now sharpened to some 4.5% across the UK.

With student numbers broadly predicted to rise, and demand for affordability and certain locations broadening alongside this, the case for investment in student housing is tempting more UK and global investors and developers. However, there is some disparity between key university cities, which looks set to widen.

To discuss how these factors will inform decision-making among the leading market players in the future, EG is joined in the studio with Gavin Eustace, head of residential development at Octopus Real Estate; Nick Hayes, group property director at Unite Students; Alex Pease, group investment director for Watkin Jones Group; and Jon Wakeford, group corporate affairs director at UPP.

This podcast was recorded on 2 July 2019.

Future of Real Estate: Occupiers are willing to pay more for connected buildings

Research from Radius Data Exchange and others has demonstrated the value of connected buildings. Occupiers are willing to pay more, and landlords who prioritise connectivity are reaping the rewards. Joining Damian Wild on this week’s Future of Real Estate podcast are Cluttons’ John Gravett and Wired Score’s Cassie Wheeldon and Tom McClellan.

 

On the Case: Supreme Court rules on retail planning condition

Kathryn Hampton, senior knowledge lawyer at Hogan Lovells International LLP, explains the Supreme Court decision in Lambeth Council v Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government [2019] UKSC 33; [2019] PLSCS 122.

The council won a Supreme Court fight to restrict the type of goods that can be sold from a Homebase store in Streatham, and Hampton dissects the decision - as well as considering what it means for similar cases going forward.

The end of ground rents? The government response on leasehold reform

The government has published its response to the consultation on “Implementing reforms to the leasehold system in England”, which was carried out from October 2018.

Tim Reid, senior associate at Hogan Lovells, outlines the main points to be aware of - including an effective ban on ground rents.

Reid covers the limited exceptions, implications for landlords and investors and likely timeframe for implementation.

Bricks & Mortar: How to adapt to an APC referral

APC assessment is often the culmination of several years hard work and intensive study. So it inevitably comes as a huge disappointment for a candidate to receive a referral.

Ralph Charlwood, DeLever APC expert coach, mock interview assessor, RICS chair and APC assessor tells Sarah Jackman why candidates might be referred, what they need to do to prepare for a resit and how, ultimately, they should aim to turn a negative experience into a positive.

As he reflects: "Those around you are likely to judge how you deal with it rather than the referral itself. Try and reframe this as an opportunity to demonstrate maturity and grow as a professional. In the years to come you will look back and see it - in the context of other challenges that you will have faced - as a minor setback and hopefully one that you successfully overcame."