Legal
Letting Away With It: The murky world of “secret commissions”
After a property maintenance firm claimed to "blow the whistle" this week, former lawyer Jonathan Monjack calls for an end to "secret commissions" throughout the rental sector..
Treasury targets holiday let tax dodgers
The Treasury is launching a new campaign to chase up landlords - including those with holiday lets - who don't pay every penny of tax due on rents they receive.
HMRC estimates that up to 1
Guidance published on advertising lettings fees
The Advertising Standards Authority has (finally) issued some guidelines on the compulsory inclusion of fees in advertising by lettings agents
Making a Mint: Property investment lessons from the Crown Estate
What can property investors learn from the Crown Estate's remarkable success, asks Nicky Richmond...
Root & Branch: Why the UK’s outdated property tax system needs a serious overhaul
Stamp duty is now at a level that jeopardises the economic viability of a property purchase; a sliding scale would make far more sense, says David Hannah...
Landlords policing immigration would be “bureaucratic and overly cumbersome” – RLA
The Residential Landlords’ Association has put in its official response to the Government’s consultation on plans to introduce mandatory tenant immigration checks (announced back in May) – opposing the pl…
Move Along: Traveller sites given marching orders
Eric Pickles has told local councils that they should clamp down quickly on illegal encampments and unauthorised traveller sites, as he announced a new set of guidelines that gives "more power and a stronger…
The Law Review: Floods, lightening and taking a chancel
Mishcon de Reya's round-up of the latest legal happenings in the property world
New Building Regs tackle carbon emissions, but may penalise smaller developers
The newly-toughened-up Part L of the Building Regulations has some very noble aims to tackle climate change by making new-build homes significantly more energy efficient
Sea Sure: How to buy coastal property (without getting swept away)
We all know waterfront positions can command serious premiums, but they can also land unwary buyers and developers in some pretty deep water
Mishcon boosts property litigation team
Olswang's head of construction Nick Lane is joining Mishcon de Reya's property litigation group, boosting Mishcon's formidable real estate team to 19 partners and 78 fee-earners (12 in property litigation)
Lost in Translation: Notes on advising foreign buyers
With unprecedented levels of overseas investment into the UK property market, the opportunities for good advisors are there, but the risks for the unwary are considerable