Legal
Once a house, not always a house: Hosebay and de Walden triumph in the Supreme Court
It's been decided: a house is not always a house.
The Legal View
All the latest property law news in one handy briefing from Mishcon de Reya.
HMRC sews up Stamp Duty loopholes
HMRC is cracking down on SDLT avoidance schemes, making it far more tricky for property buyers to avoid paying stamp duty.
Estate Agents ignored over Property Misdescriptions and Estate Agents Act changes
So the Property Misdescriptions Act has been repealed and the Estate Agents Act has been amended.
Required Reading: OFT guidance for property sales businesses
The Office of Fair Trading have released a handy 66-page guide for estate agents that explains (at some length) the whats and hows (but rarely the whys) of the repeal of the Property Misdescriptions Act…
Capco appoints Anne Byrne as first legal counsel
Capital & Counties Properties PLC (Capco) has appointed the well-respected Anne Byrne as legal counsel, the company's first in-house lawyer.
RIBA “disappointed” with listed building consultation
The Government's consultation process has once again been heavily criticised for being too short and poorly thought-through.
Stealth approach to Estate Agency Act consultation riles industry
Tomorrow's deadline for the consultation on amending the Estate Agency Act (more here) has taken some agents by surprise, causing a bit of backlash from the industry according to Estate Agent Today.
Spicerhaart FINE not fine with Fine & Country
The High Court has decided, eventually, that Spicerhaart's FINE brand is a "passing off" of Fine & Country's brand.
Required Reading: resi tax crib sheet
The legal gurus at Mishcon de Reya have produced a very handy guide to taxes on UK residential property.
The reality of the Community Infrastructure Levy
As the Community Infrastructure Levy comes into force, Mishcon de Reya's Daniel Farrand and Jade Chalmers look at how this new charge - of up to £50 per square metre - on extensions and new resi builds…
Gazumping is part of property market “flexibility” – Shapps
Grant Shapps, the Housing Minister, has ruled out any reforms to tackle gazumping in the property market in a reply to a Commons question from Tory MP Gordon Henderson (Sittingbourne & Sheppey).