Solicitors Blog | Allan Janes

What Is Japanese Knotweed? And Why Does It Matter When Buying Or Selling A House?

October 13th 2023 | residential property

Japanese Knotweed is an invasive weed that has weeded its way into the disclosure obligations of a seller. No, this blog is not a lesson on horticulture! Moreso a look into why when you buy or sell a home, you will come across a question of knotweed. It seems random read more...

What Is Conveyancing And What Does A Conveyancing Solicitor Actually Do?

September 22nd 2023 | residential property

Conveyancing is the legal process for transferring the ownership of property in England and Wales. Whilst this may sound simple, there are a number of matters and risks associated with the transfer of property, and no two pieces of land are the same. Buying a property is one of the read more...

Voluntary First Registration - Is It Worth It?

August 25th 2023 | residential property

All land in England and Wales is currently, slowly but surely, being registered at HM Land Registry. Soon the days where lawyers have to delve through old deeds trying to read what some poor legal clerk once wrote by hand will be gone. There is not much land left that read more...

Japanese Knotweed: Seller Faces £200,000 Court Bill After Denying The Intrusive Plant Was Growing In The Garden

February 7th 2023 | residential property

Jonathan Downing, a furniture designer bought his three-bedroom house in South London for £700,000 in August 2018 from Jeremy Henderson. However, his dream home soon became a nightmare when he discovered Japanese knotweed canes behind the shed. The invasive plant is notorious for its propensity to spread and damage the read more...

Property Auctions: A Quick Intro

January 16th 2023 | residential property

Whether you looking to buy or sell a property it is well worth looking at property auctions as each year thousands of commercial and residential properties are bought and sold this way making auction popular with individuals and investors alike. A significant benefit of auctions is their speed, you can read more...

How To Add Value To Your Flat Without Carrying Out Any Works

November 24th 2022 | residential property

Another week’s news, another plethora of depressing articles about dropping house prices and predicted double digit percentage price falls got me thinking about how you can add value to your property. The obvious way to do this is to improve the property by renovating it but it is not the read more...

UK Stamp Duty Cut: All you need to know about the biggest tax reductions since 1972

October 10th 2022 | residential property

What is stamp duty? Stamp Duty Land Tax is a levy on home and land purchases. It is a cost that buyers must pay if the transaction value exceeds a certain amount. This tax applies to both freehold and leasehold properties – whether you’re buying outright or with a mortgage. read more...

A Step-By-Step Guide to Conveyancing

January 26th 2022 | residential property

Buying or selling property can be a very stressful experience, and it can be difficult to understand why the process seems to take a long time when you don’t know what is going on behind the scenes. Conveyancing is the process of transferring legal title of a property from one read more...

Law Society Publish Guidance on Blocks of Flats and Cladding

August 19th 2021 | residential property

Buyers of flats are recommended to read the recent guidance provided by the Law Society with regard to the problems which continue to surround fire safety issues with blocks of flats and the requirement, or otherwise, for a Form EWS1, designed by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors to assist read more...

The Importance of Checking the Identity of the Developer with New Homes Warranties

March 19th 2021 | residential property

The recent case of Sehayek and another v Amtrust Europe Ltd [2021] highlights the care which should be taken to ensure that a Buyer is covered by a new homes warranty policy wording. In this case, the Buyer bought a newly built property from Grove End Gardens Ltd, however, the read more...

The Stamp Duty Holiday Has Been Extended

March 5th 2021 | residential property

As expected, the chancellor announced a three-month extension to the Stamp Duty holiday. This tax break will now finish at the end of June, at a cost of about £1 billion to the Exchequer. The Stamp Duty nil-rate band will then be increased from £125,000 to £250,000 until the end read more...

Government Help for Leaseholders with Post-Grenfell Fire Watch Costs

February 8th 2021 | residential property

For those Leaseholders in buildings over 17.7 metres high with unsafe cladding, the Government announced on 31 st January 2021 a £30m fund to provide relief from the costs of providing 24 hour fire wardens (“waking watch”). Lessees have in many cases been burdened with sky-rocketing service charges following the read more...

What is Chancel Repair Liability?

February 2nd 2021 | residential property

This is a financial burden, falling on owners of certain properties built within an area where the property lies within a parish containing a medieval church built before 1536. This came about following the dissolution of monasteries by Henry VIII when the rectories acquired by monasteries came into lay ownership. read more...

Buying a House with Solar Panels? Here's What You Need to Know...

January 26th 2021 | residential property

If you’re buying a house with solar panels, you do need to be aware of certain checklists and procedures, in order to avoid a problem later on. There are several reasons why solar panels have proved popular with homeowners: Environmental benefits of using renewable energy rather than fossil fuels Cheap read more...

EWS1 Form Only Necessary for Buildings with Cladding

December 3rd 2020 | residential property

The EWS1 form was designed by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (“RICS”) in December 2019 to allow building owners to confirm that an external wall system on a residential building had been assessed for safety by a suitable expert. When the EThe EWS1 form was designed by the Royal read more...

Self-builders risk losing Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) exemption

November 12th 2020 | residential property

A recent appeal case decision has underlined why it is essential that self-builders serve the Assumption of Liability Notice and the Commencement Notice on the Local Authority before starting work on a development which would otherwise be liable to CIL. Under the 2010 CIL Regulations, self-builders are able to claim read more...

Future change in Help to Buy: Equity Loan Scheme

September 29th 2020 | residential property

The existing Equity Loan Scheme run by the Government via Homes England comes to an end on 31st March 2021. From that date, an entirely new scheme will be available for first-time buyers from developers who are separately registered under the new Scheme. The developers will be required to offer read more...

Government announces extension of 3-year Higher Rate period for SDLT

June 11th 2020 | residential property

The Government announced on 3rd June 2020 that it intended to extend the 3-year time limit for the refund of the Supplemental 3% Stamp Duty Land Tax charge which is paid when purchasing an additional property. There are a number of caveats to what might at first sight seem a read more...

Monitor Your Property – Protect Yourself Against Fraud

June 4th 2020 | residential property

Currently, more than 85% of land in England and Wales is registered at the Land Registry. The Land Registry is working hard to encourage landowners to register their land, and has committed to registering 100% of land in England & Wales by 2030. While this will assist in establishing ownership read more...

Land Registry Help During Covid 19

May 6th 2020 | residential property

As of Monday 4th May, for a temporary period, the Land Registry will not require “wet signature” documents and will accept deeds signed in pen, witnessed in person and scanned and sent in PDF, JPEG or similar means to their lawyer who will attach those details to the final agreed read more...

Right of Light and City Centre Development

April 17th 2020 | residential property

The recent decision in the case of Beaumont Business Centres Ltd v Florala Properties Ltd makes clear that developers of city centre buildings should not assume that the Courts will not grant an injunction for breach of rights of light where they have completed construction of offending works. In such read more...

Problems With New Build Properties: New Homes Ombudsman

February 26th 2020 | residential property

The Government announced on 24th February that it will introduce legislation for a New Homes Ombudsman, to provide buyers of new homes with a free, independent complaints procedure to resolve problems with newly-built homes. All developers of new homes will have to belong to the scheme (which will be separate read more...

Telecoms Operators can Gain Access to your Property under 2017 Electronic Communications Code

January 9th 2020 | residential property

A court can order a landowner to grant certain rights over their land to telecommunications operators under the 2017 Electronic Communications Code (the “Code”) if an agreement cannot be reached between the parties. The Court of Appeal has upheld the decision of the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) that the read more...

Enfranchisement – Good news for Landlords, bad news for Tenants

December 2nd 2019 | residential property

A recent decision by the Supreme Court ( Sequent Nominees Ltd (formerly Rotrust Nominees Ltd -v- Hautford Ltd [2019] UKSC47) determined that it was reasonable for a Landlord to decline a Tenant’s application to apply for planning permission for change of use of a property to residential, where that would read more...

Buyers and Owners Beware – New Rules for Septic Tanks Discharging to Surface Waters from 1 January, 2020

October 31st 2019 | residential property

Since 1 January, 2015 it has not been permissible for new septic tanks to discharge into surface-waters (essentially streams, rivers and lakes) however, an exemption was provided for existing, non-polluting, septic tanks, but this exemption expires on 1 January, 2020, by which stage any such systems must be upgraded under read more...

5G Mobile Phone Mast Consultation

September 4th 2019 | residential property

Designed to support the deployment of 5G networks across England, the Government has proposed reforms to the development rights belonging to electronic communications code operators under the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015. The proposed reforms, designed to extend geographical network coverage, would allow Code operators read more...

Help to Buy Loans: There's No Such Thing as a Free Lunch

August 6th 2019 | residential property

Help to Buy in England was introduced to assist those buying a home on a new-build development. The Government, via Homes England, will provide an equity loan of up to 20% (outside London) and 40% (in London) subject to a maximum purchase price of £600,000 and on which no interest read more...

CMA Finally Launches Investigation Into the Leasehold Housing Market

June 19th 2019 | residential property

The Competition and Markets Authority (the “CMA”) have initiated investigations to look into potential breaches of consumer protection law in the leasehold housing market. Particular concerns raised relate to the mis-selling of leasehold properties, potentially onerous and unfair contract terms pursuant to escalating ground rents; exorbitant service charges, consent and read more...

The Law Society Introduces New Freehold Management Enquiries Form (FME1)

May 22nd 2019 | residential property

The surge in freehold properties subject to estate/service charges (particularly on new developments) have led to the Law Society introducing a new standard form, Freehold Management Enquiries (“FME1”). The form includes standard questions that can be asked when acting for someone who is buying a freehold property that shares services read more...

Domestic Garden Cricket Net - a ‘Building’ Requiring Planning Permission

April 15th 2019 | residential property

A cricket practice ‘net’ erected on 3.6 metre high posts which had been concreted into the ground was put up in the rear garden of a dwelling. The Local Planning Authority issued enforcement proceedings requiring the removal of the structure, on the basis that it was a “building” and required read more...

Letting Agents Must Join Client Money Protection Scheme

March 25th 2019 | residential property

The Client Money Protection Schemes for Property Agents (Requirement to Belong to a Scheme etc.) Regulations 2019 come into force on 1 April 2019. The Regulations include a requirement for letting agents to join a government approved client money protection scheme, which provides a level of compensation of at least read more...

Right of Way for Owner's Adjoining Land is Only Ancillary

February 21st 2019 | residential property

A recent Court of Appeal case has re-confirmed that if land ceases to be used for an ancillary purpose, it can no longer be accessed via a right of way benefitting adjoining land. Parker and another v Roberts [2019] EWCA Civ 121 (7 February 2019) involved a case where in read more...