Category: Residential property

Leasehold Reform: England Is Still Waiting

Leasehold reform in England currently occupies a curious position. The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 (LFRA) is law. It has passed Parliament, but is currently being challenged in the Courts, and much of it remains unimplemented. Most of its central provisions were never meant to commence immediately and require…

Renters’ Rights Act 2025: what this means for property owners and tenants

The Renters’ Rights Act 2025, which received Royal Assent on 27 October 2025, represents the most significant reform of private renting in England for a generation. This article deals only with the changes to the law in England, separate regulations will apply in Wales and Scotland. Much of the legislation…

Overseas Entities – The New Rules on Delivering Documents to Companies House

On 22 September 2025, Companies House published the Register of Overseas Entities Rules 2025 which set out the form, manner of delivery and method of authentication for documents delivered to the registrar of companies in respect of the Register of Overseas Entities. The Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Act 2022…

Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024: two-year ownership requirement removed with effect from 31 January 2025

On 23 January 2025, the Government enacted a principal provision of the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 (LAFRA) and abolished the two-year ownership rule with effect from 31 January 2025. This is good news for leaseholders as they will no longer need to wait to have two years of…

The Impact of SDLT changes under the Autumn 2024 UK Budget on Property Purchases for Investors and Overseas Buyers

Stamp Duty Land Tax Following the Autumn Budget 2024, significant changes to the Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT)  effective today impact investors in UK property, particularly those form overseas and those  purchasing second homes or rental properties. The Chancellor has announced an increase in the SDLT surcharge from 5% to…

Lease extensions

Lease extensions are a common feature in London where there are many thousands of flats in both purpose built blocks and  converted houses held on long leases. Why do long leasehold flat leases need to be extended? Historically, flats were mainly sold off on 99 or 125 year leases.  Leases…

Leasehold and Freehold Bill – Should I extend my Lease now?

As announced in King’s Speech, the Government are pushing through changes that will affect leasehold property. The Leasehold and Freehold Bill will ban leaseholds for new houses but not new flats in England and Wales and increase the standard lease extension period to 990 years. Whether you proceed to extend…

Register of Overseas Entities Owning UK Real Estate

The Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Act 2022 (the Act) received Royal Assent on 15th March 2022, this being one of the steps towards the government’s agenda to increase transparency.  The Act introduced a new requirement for overseas entities that own/hold UK property to register the details of all beneficial…