Property Insights
26 February 2021
The pandemic has
changed us all in some way and with it, the way we look at the
world around us. Despite the challenging times we are
still experiencing, Covid-19 has forced ESG to the top of the
business agenda in all industries. This month we are delighted
to feature Dan Mead on what our longstanding client Bywater
Properties are doing to move ahead of the market on ESG
matters. Bywater's mission is to create future-facing
sustainable buildings that are both loved and deliver strong
returns. We are proud to be working with Dan, Theo Michell and
Patrick O'Gorman at Bywater to create an innovative suite of lease
documents with extensive and in many cases novel ESG
provisions. It is important to us to be involved with and
help lead clients for whom ESG is high on the agenda. With
Bywater this is demonstrated through all aspects of our working
relationship, including contributing to their charitable purposes.
The other topic on
all our minds is the role of science and, in particular, vaccine,
in getting us beyond the pandemic. As several of our featured
items show, these issues will have a direct impact on how people
use and invest in property, from vaccine passports to investment
choices about the buildings which will house life sciences and
healthcare businesses. While we wait to see what next week’s
Budget may bring, it is increasingly clear that we won’t be
returning to pre-pandemic business quite as it used to be and that
there are plenty of opportunities for positive change.
As always, please contact us if
you would like any further advice.
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Vaccine passport to shop?
Vaccine passports,
whether domestic or for international travel, are a contentious issue
at the moment. It is easy to see the logic behind them but there are
a number of issues to be ironed out, including the potential for
discrimination against those unable to get vaccinated and also how
they would actually be used in practice...Read
more
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The Cladding Crisis - the government's 5 point
plan
More than
three and half years since the tragic events of 14 June 2017,
the housing secretary, Robert Jenrick MP, announced a 5-point
plan, "which
will provide reassurance to homeowners and confidence to the housing
market"...Read
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Lenders: time to start experimenting in the life
sciences sector
According to JLL, the
volume of life sciences real estate transactions increased 166
percent in the past three years in the UK alone. Real Estate Capital
has reported that investment banks, commercial banks, insurers and
debt funds are quoting for loans against life sciences properties and
some lenders are making formal allocations in their budgets...Read
more
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National
Security and Investment Bill
Just a brief comment on
the relevance of this Bill, which is progressing through Parliament,
to real estate transactions. The Bill is designed to increase the
Government’s ability to scrutinise investments on national security
grounds. It is “live” and will capture deals from 12th November 2020
onwards...Read
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Commercial
activities on the village green - the Supreme Court decides its a
game of give and take
The Supreme Court ruled
last week that an area of concrete on a working quay side in Essex
was correctly registered as a Town or Village Green (“TVG”), dismissing
the landowner’s appeal that classifying it as such criminalised their
commercial activities on the land...Read
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Launch of
"Who Lives in Build to Rent?" report
The British
Property Federation (BPF), the UK
Apartment Association (UKAA) and London
First have launched a report entitled “Who Lives In Build To
Rent?”, which provides an insight into the demographics of people
living in BTR developments in London based on an analysis of ten
large BTR schemes. The report was formally launched with an
online webinar and panel discussion on 3 February 2021...Read
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Sustainability wins...
Hong Kong developer
Tenacity Group has been granted planning permission for an office
redevelopment at 70 Gracechurch Street, London, which has
sustainability at the heart of its design. Tenacity hopes the
building will be one of the first BREEAM ‘Outstanding’ rated offices
in the Square Mile...Read
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Healthcare property investment - a potential way
forward in 2021?
It is no secret that
the last year has thrown a spotlight on the healthcare sector and
this, combined with an ageing UK population, is adding to the
popularity of the sector’s property assets with investors.
CBRE’s latest healthcare market and sentiment survey has shown a
large majority are highly optimistic about demand in the sector
during the short and medium term future...Read
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Code clarity required as action on "not
spots" gathers pace?
As O2, Three and
Vodafone reveal a £1 billion programme to clear up areas of poor
digital coverage within the UK, the Government has announced a consultation
on changes to the Electronic Communications Code. The code regulates
the rights of operators to install and maintain their equipment on
public and private land. Having listened to operators and
landowners, the government now believes that some aspects of the code
are in need of an update...Read
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