Virtual Conference: Current Property Issues 2021: Recorded 9th December

A practical review of recent commercial property and landlord and tenant cases, which will include:

• Service charges and due proportions: good news for landlords: Criterion v McKinsey
• “Good condition” trumps repair: Pullman v Welsh Ministers
• Waiver and Alienation - Court of Appeal help for the landlord: Faiz v Burnley
• Problems for developers and development land: Alexander Devine; Thomson v Collins; Bernel v Canal & River Trust
• The government’s reviews of “outdated landlord and tenant legislation”­ and “commercial rents & Covid 19” – where are we?

Sarah Thompson-Copsey, Non-Practising Solicitor, Legal Lecturer and Trainer

One of the consequences of the Covid 19 pandemic has been the acceleration of market change and this has become a massive challenge for valuers in all markets but especially in those where structural change that would normally take years to evolve has happened virtually overnight. This has proved difficult to navigate with many investors unwilling to accept substantial falls in Market Value. This alone would be a challenge but 2021 will prove to be a year which will change the landscape for valuations for the next decade with professional bodies and national and international governments making pronouncements that will impact property market dynamics and thus market values. This talk will look at these initiatives in depth. Namely...

• The RICS Independent Review of Real Estate Investment Valuations
• The Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy MEES Consultation
• The IPF Shopping Centre Valuation Research
• The IVSC, RICS & TEGoVA evidence to EBA/EU on Prudent Value

In addition, the talk will look at the implications for valuation in changing markets:

• Changes to the high street and the move away from retail zoning
• Office valuations in a world where fixed desk space is less important

Nick French, Real Estate Valuation Theurgy, Property Education

In different ways, all markets have been affected by the impact of covid. More than ever, the inter linkages between different sectors has been highlighted as short-term “lockdown” behaviour has challenged many sectors whilst overnight long-term structural change has created an economy of winners and losers. The pandemic will end but the question of “when?” will be determined by the success, or otherwise, of the vaccine roll-out worldwide, the development of more effective treatments and the trend in society to live with the virus. It will be a combination of all three that will determine when markets return to a semblance of normality. This talk will look at the possible scenarios for UK property going forward.

• The impact on Retail, Office, Industrial and Leisure/hospitality Markets
• The need to understand and plan for highest and best use
• Government initiatives to support, or hinder, the property markets
• Consumer behaviour – the new “roaring 20s”

Nick French, Real Estate Valuation Theurgy, Property Education

The UK Government has confirmed that it intends to ratchet the minimum standard for lettings over the course of the decade to make it unlawful to let properties with an EPC rating below B by 2030.  By the government’s own figures, this means that 85% of the leasehold property market would not currently meet this requirement and would therefore be unlettable.  Whilst providing tenants a multitude of opportunities for negotiation and strategic advantage, this talk will also look at the challenge faced by Landlords who will need to sharply focus on substantial measures to bring their portfolios up to B+ over the coming years, including:

• Perilous acquisitions – how to avoid purchasing a liability
• Portfolio assessment – how to identify which properties will prove most problematic
• Lease structuring – how to best deflect the cost of MEES
• Property Management – strategies to minimise MEES risk and costs
• Lease end – managing an EPC upgrade amongst a dilapidations claim
• Reletting/sale – how to dispose of an unlettable building

Ben Strange, Director, Mobius Building Consultancy Ltd

An insolvent tenant will not only struggle to meet its leasehold covenants but the very act of insolvency will narrow the landlord’s remedies for the tenant’s breach of covenant. This practical session will explore the different types of insolvency and concentrate on the most practical remedies available to a landlord looking to maintain its income stream:

• Rent reductions, compulsory turnover rents – what the New Look, Regis and Debenhams CVAs have meant for landlords and practical options that remain
• Guarantors, AGAs and GAGAs: a bullet proof option?
• Pursuing rent deposits and sub-tenants: tips and traps
• The implications for landlords of the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 and the Coronavirus Act 2020

Sarah Thompson-Copsey, Non-Practising Solicitor, Legal Lecturer and Trainer

Managing property has often been about implementing the landlord's objectives for their property, collecting rent promptly, cutting costs and enforcing lease covenants with little attention to the needs and requirements of the occupiers. In 2021, such strategies if continued will undoubtedly lead to increased vacancy rates, increased costs and potential bankruptcy or administration for the landlord. So how can the modern-day property manager assist, what skills will they need and how can they help their client(s) navigate these uncertain times? This talk will review the continued importance of good property management and how managers can continue to add value. It will also highlight the changes the management industry is or needs to embrace. This talk will review:

• The renewed case for good property management
• Adopting a collaborative approach with clients, occupiers and stakeholders
• How to manage a service charge in the modern era
• Adoption of sustainable objectives and aligning to core ESG policies
• Understanding the impact of workplace design, technology, digital transformation and the importance of wellbeing

Paul Jenkins, Chartered Surveyor, Asset and Property Manager and Senior Lecturer at Oxford Brookes

5.00 pm CLOSE OF PROCEEDINGS