Any developer looking to acquire a specific site upon which to develop properties should take expert legal advice from the earliest possible moment to ensure the transaction runs as smoothly as possible.  Matters that will need immediate attention are any planning permissions required or currently in place, environmental investigations, and the commercial aspects of the…

On the face of it ‘retrospective planning permission’ sounds like a fairly esoteric legal issue, most likely pertaining to matters like guttering which protrudes past the roof edging by too many inches, or the wrong shade of slate used to patch a roof. The fact of the matter is, however, that applying for planning permission…

On one level, every property development, at least in the earliest stages, is an example of a potential opportunity which may or may not be realised dependent upon the actions of the owner and any development agency they might employ. The more possible variables that can be set in stone at the outset, in the…

Introduced in 2015, the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES) require landlords to achieve a minimum rating of E on their energy performance certificates (EPC) to avoid incurring hefty fines and penalties for non-compliance. These requirements are set to become even stricter as of 1st April 2023 with existing leases that were granted before 1st April…

It has been well-reported that physical shops and retailers have been struggling in recent years due to the shift to internet shopping. Back in 2021, in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, Local Data Company (LDC) analysis of shopping centres in England, Scotland and Wales, suggested that 70 shopping centres across the UK were at…