The Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 looks set for change
Gemma Duncan and Lillee Reid-Hunt discuss the changing scene in housing.
In March 2023 the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities asked the Law Commission to carry out a review of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 as part of its Anti-Social Behaviour Plan to “revitalise high streets and town centres, creating thriving spaces which landlords, businesses and communities choose to invest in and use.”
The aim is to ensure that the legislation is up to date with the current commercial leasehold market and also that it reflects modern objectives such ESG goals and the Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards (MEES).
Some of the changes under consideration include:
- stricter rules on “contracting out” of the security of tenure provisions of Part II of the Act;
- simplification of the “contracting out” procedure;
- pre-action protocols for lease renewals and use of the FTT (First Tier Tribunal) to speed up the court process;
- widening “Ground F” to allow Landlords to oppose lease renewals to enable them to carry out energy efficiency upgrades
The Law Commission had initially hoped to publish its consultation paper by December 2023 however it has been delayed and it is now anticipated to be published in Autumn 2024.
About the speakers
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Gemma Duncan Gemma has extensive experience of all aspects of real estate transactions and specialises in large scale development and regeneration projects. Gemma works with a range of public and private sector clients on their commercial property portfolios to include freehold and leasehold acquisitions and disposals, title due diligence, agreements for lease, licences and development agreements. |
Lillee Reid-Hunt Partner Lillee specialises in commercial real estate and provides both private and public sector clients with pragmatic legal advice on property related matters. Lillee is a Partner in the firm’s real estate department experienced in advising on the property aspects of large-scale development and infrastructure projects, as well as working with clients on transactional real estate and conveyancing matters. |
