Real estate is now a global asset class. With a low interest rate climate set to remain throughout developed markets in Europe, Asia and the USA, and with the pace of urbanisation increasing across the rest of the world, the real estate sector continues to be an attractive destination for investors chasing keen capital returns.
The return of the banks to the sector in the UK over the last two years has given a rocket boost to development, but the pipeline for sites of any quality or scale is looking very skinny. The market is dominated by London, but prime values are overcooked. So Zones 2 and 3 are currently attracting the most interest. Anyone who is anyone in property will tell you that Peckham is the new Shoreditch, barely a couple of years after we were getting used to Shoreditch being the new Clerkenwell, or Islington, or wherever it was.
Plain vanilla development plots in these locations are very rare. Instead, sites are invariably complex with multiple occupations and big up-front infrastructure requirements. Political imperatives for affordable housing and the burden of CIL mean that the regulatory regime is also making development steadily harder. Construction price inflation is outpacing gross development values. All of this means that success requires a relentless focus on deliverability and bankability at every step of the development process.
That's why our vision at Herbert Smith Freehills is Real Estate Delivered Better. We understand the need for joined-up sector specialist advice across all of the disciplines that have to come together on any deal or project. From acquiring the site, identifying development constraints, corporate and tax structuring, winning planning permission and securing vacant possession, through to construction, letting, disposals and resolving disputes, we have the full service expertise to ensure successful delivery to market.
The purpose of our blog is to share some of our development know-how across all of these disciplines, with entries written by lawyers from the different practice areas within our real estate development team. We hope you will find it useful and that you will comment on entries that are of particular interest to you. Please do suggest topics that you would like us to cover in future.
Enjoy the blog!
Matthew
Disclaimer
The articles published on this website, current at the dates of publication set out above, are for reference purposes only. They do not constitute legal advice and should not be relied upon as such. Specific legal advice about your specific circumstances should always be sought separately before taking any action.