It’s easy to think that once you have completed a transfer of land, all legal rights in the property have been obtained and the matter is concluded. However, people often forget that legal interest in property is not transferred until the documents have been registered at Land Registry. This is equally true of any interest […more]
In the latest Practical Property Guide 2017 instalment, we are contemplating some of the key considerations when instructing a lawyer on a real estate transaction. Like any professional relationship, the choice of lawyer has to fit you, fit the transaction and fit your budget. Cost can too often be the sole motivation for instructing (or not instructing) a particular […more]
Despite the obvious attraction of providing an excuse to leave the confines of the office for a few hours, physical site inspections by real estate practitioners are often underutilised on property transactions. Their importance is not something that should be overlooked and they should be seen as a central part of the due diligence process […more]
Squatting in residential premises has been a criminal offence since 2012, when legislation was enacted following a public consultation which looked at ways of better protecting homeowners. However, the offence does not extend to commercial premises. At the time, the British Property Federation warned that squatters may seek to exploit this gap in the legislation […more]
As January hurtles by, I wonder how many of those New Year’s resolutions have we all managed to stick to? On a personal level, I am still managing to pull on my trainers most days. However, my wife keeps telling me that drinking Sauvignon Blanc isn’t what is meant by a ‘dry’ January… Whilst some […more]
In an exciting expansion of the existing garden towns programme, the locations of 14 new garden villages (including sites in East Northants, North Cheshire, and Lincolnshire) have been announced by the Government which could deliver more than 48,000 new homes across England. The new garden villages will have access to a £6 million fund over […more]
It’s that time again. Christmas is becoming a distant memory as we all embark on the journey that will be 2017. New goals? Invigorated strategies? Best intentions! For most of us, 2016 was a year of infamy. And best left behind. Even in its final throes, 2016 was dishing out celebrity deaths, war and conflict […more]