Q&As

Q&As

These Q&As seek to briefly address common questions faced when dealing with Property matters.

The Q&As supplement and link to other more detailed content within Lexis+®, but are intentionally short. It is anticipated that a brief Q&A will be most helpful when you need a quick overview of an issue and its likely impact. This might arise, for example, for lawyers needing to provide advice, provide business development or training at short notice. The Q&A content on Lexis+® is date stamped. This date is the publish date and states the law at the date of publishing.

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Latest Property News

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government sets legal deadlines for cladding remediation in social housing

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has announced new legal deadlines requiring landlords to remediate unsafe cladding on residential buildings by 2029 or 2031, depending on height. Published on 17 July 2025, the update includes a new Remediation Bill and £1bn in government investment to support social landlords. Those failing to comply risk criminal sanctions, with new enforcement powers enabling government intervention.

RICS launches consultation on updated cladding valuation standard

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) launched a consultation on 14 July 2025 on the second edition of its secured lending valuation standard for multi-storey, multi-occupancy residential buildings with cladding. The updated standard, intended for RICS members conducting valuations for secured lending purposes on residential blocks of flats, will reflect changes in fire safety regulations, government guidance, and leaseholder protections introduced since the first edition in 2021. It aims to provide proportionate criteria to assist valuers in determining when external wall system remediation works could materially affect a property’s value during a standard inspection. RICS is seeking views on the clarity of the updated criteria, the structure and usability of the guidance, and any technical areas requiring improvement. The consultation closes on 31 August 2025, with the final version scheduled for publication later in 2025.

MHCLG updates guidance on Planning and Infrastructure Bill

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has updated its guidance on the Planning and Infrastructure Bill. The update includes new documentation, such as government amendments introduced during the House of Lords Committee Stage of the Bill, and correspondence between the Minister of State for Housing and Planning, Matthew Pennycook, and the Office for Environmental Protection concerning amendments to the Nature Restoration Fund provisions in Part 3 of the Bill.

UK Real Estate—an end to upwards-only rent reviews?

Property analysis: On 10 July 2025, the UK government published its ‘English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill’, saying it aimed to let local people ‘take the reins in driving growth’. But tucked away in a 338 page Bill dealing primarily with government powers devolved to mayors, strategic authorities and local government is section 71 which is intended to prohibit certain terms in commercial leases, including those prescribing what are known as ‘upwards-only rent reviews’. The government did not undertake prior consultation on this and suffice to say, this has caught the commercial property industry entirely by surprise. We’ve taken a first look at the Bill and how the new provisions might operate if they become law. Written by Tim Reid, counsel at Hogan Lovells.