Legal
High Court strikes out £1.5bn Candy lawsuit
Judge dismisses 'remarkable' action brought by businessman Michael Brown
A ‘sophisticated gang of fraudsters’ is targeting luxury rental flats in London
Estate agents tell of fraudulent tenants targeting luxury rental homes in London, while Benham & Reeves has flagged a 117% "surge in fake applications" in the wake of the recently-enacted Tenant Fee Act…
‘Dramatic’ CGT change could impact the resi market, warns law firm
Second home owners, landlords and property investors will have much less time to pay their tax bills as of April next year, notes Royds Withy King, and many may well be tempted to offload any surplus …
Airbnbs & Graces: A practical guide to short-term letting for luxury property owners
As short-term accommodation phenomenon AirBnB rolls out its 'Luxe' division, targeting the very top-end of the international property market, lawyer Laura Kearns flags up the key obligations, processes a…
‘Thousands’ of UK landlords & developers could seek SDLT rebates in wake of landmark case
The ruling handed down in P N Bewley Ltd and HMRC 'could have major implications for the UK housing market'
Gateley makes senior resi development hire
Moore Batch's Charles Cantoni joins law firm with the biggest specialist resi development team in the UK
Four Berkshire estate agents accused of illegally fixing fees
The alleged price-fixing cartel operated for almost seven years from 2008, says the Competition & Markets Authority
NCA slaps Unexplained Wealth Orders on three prime London properties worth £80m
Investigators are looking into how the acquisitions of three high-value homes were funded, suspecting a link to a politically exposed person believed to be involved in serious crime
Property Ombudsman issues revised Codes of Practice with ‘substantial’ changes for agents
TPO's new Codes for property agents comes into play on 1st June, including 'substantial' updates to reflect the Tenant Fees Act, Client Money Protection, GDPR requirements, and expanded guidance on dual …
Select Committee flags five money laundering loopholes
160 properties worth over £4bn have been 'identified as being purchased by high corruption-risk individuals', reports the Joint Committee on the Draft Registration of Overseas Entities Bill
‘It is clear that the UK’s current approach to Japanese knotweed is more cautious than it needs to be’ – Government Select Committee
A Government panel has declared that the property industry is 'overly cautious' about the notorious weed
Opinions sought on new money-laundering rules for high-end letting agents
The EU's Fifth Money Laundering Directive is slated to come into play in January, requiring UK letting agents dealing in rents above €10k per month to carry out AML checks on their clients.