All Comment articles – Page 17
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Insight
MAPP’s Rowan Packer on why optimising sustainable energy choices is key to reaching net zero
As the government-imposed climate targets for commercial buildings start to bite and the industry continues to lead efforts to tackle climate change, chosen net zero pathways are emerging, focusing primarily on accounting for the elusive scope-three or value chain emissions.
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News
Building safety still a concern
Six years ago this week, the nation awoke to the horrific news that a fire had broken out in the night at Grenfell Tower, a residential block in west London. The tragedy ultimately cost 72 lives, with many residents trapped in their homes unable to escape the smoke and flames.
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Insight
‘Hope value’ plans are ill-conceived
Editor: I write further to your ‘Hope versus housing’ column, which weighed up the latest proposals of the existing Conservative government and the expected Labour government towards the use of compulsory purchase orders in delivering much-needed housing.
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Insight
Modular homes vision falls flat
I can almost set my watch by it. Every 10 years, it seems, I convince myself that this time, modular housing is finally set to take off. My latest enthusiasm for modern methods of construction (MMC) looks more short-lived than usual.
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Insight
A new age for the London office sector awaits
Editor: News that London is experiencing record volumes of office refurbs undermines some of the more pessimistic predictions we are witnessing for the future of the ‘office’.
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Insight
ULI’s Lisette van Doorn on tackling sustainability certifications, standards and frameworks
Real estate is often perceived as lagging behind other asset classes, but in tackling ESG targets the evidence shows something different.
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Insight
Moorfield Group’s Sadie Malim on the social case for institutional capital in residential
In 2021, before this critical period of economic malaise, John Myers, Ben Southwood and Sam Bowman published The Housing Theory of Everything. A cost-of-living crisis later, and that hypothesis now appears very plain.
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Insight
House prices: who knows?
The two leading house price indices (HPIs), from Nationwide and Halifax, provide the most timely measure of sentiment in the housing market but also the most partial. The picture that each paints of what is going on – and the commentary provided by the lenders’ in-house experts – can often ...
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Insight
Boosting capacity of planning departments is vital
While I welcome the efforts made to attract new people to the planning sector, it is crucial we also address the more pressing issues with the planning system – namely, the strain on planning departments has resulted in insufficient resources and unmanageable workloads that are exacerbating the housing crisis.
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Insight
Developers must avoid being blockers
As Labour positions itself for “builders, not blockers”, there’s a risk real estate will find itself in a surreal position: branded a blocker.
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Insight
Who holds all the aces in NYC?
Two proposals have emerged as front-runners in the great New York City casino chase. SL Green, Gotham’s largest commercial landlord, is teamed with Caesars Resorts and, surprisingly, rapper Jay-Z in a prospective bid to create a gaming mecca in Times Square. Related Companies hopes to kickstart construction of Hudson Yards’ ...
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Insight
Arcadis IBI’s Maja Nesdale on bringing wellbeing into law
Environmental, social and governance (ESG) sits at the top of the agenda for many developers and investors.
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Insight
Avamore’s Michael Dean on Labour’s housing policy: balancing ambition and practicality
Labour’s housing policy aims to address the pressing issue of the housing crisis in the UK. With a focus on affordable housing and streamlining the planning system, the party presents ambitious goals for becoming the ‘party of home ownership’.
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Insight
Shopkeepers’ Campaign’s Vivienne King on businesses thinking big in the north
It has been a momentous fortnight for those of us caught up in the mission to keep Britain’s high streets alive and kicking.
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Insight
Hope versus housing
Labour’s attempts to portray itself as the party to get Britain building have begun in earnest, with a couple of policies floated so far that appear surprisingly bold and more than a little divisive.
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Insight
Reed Smith’s Katherine Campbell on why something needs to give for high street rates
More than 17,000 shops closed in the UK in 2022 – nearly 50% more than in 2021.
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Insight
Planning system is not underfunded
I write in response to comments by Ian Fletcher, director of planning at the British Property Federation (BPF), that “England’s planning system has been underfunded and under-resourced for at least a decade” and government needs to increase fees to “bolster planning teams”.
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Insight
RIF vehicle could help stimulate economic growth
Your piece ‘Planned RIF vehicle promises to boost property investment’ referred to my lead role campaigning for the Reserved Investor Fund (RIF) in the context of a welcomed HM Treasury and HM Revenue & Customs consultation on the RIF.
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Insight
Peter Bill on the property industry’s nervousness and optimism
Last Thursday lunchtime in the City, Montagu Evans managing partner Rob Bower summed up the mood of the sector as “jittery”. There is reassurance at the mending economic outlook, but jumpiness each time higher-priced money causes a financial fuse to blow, resulting in yet another repossession in a market hardwired ...
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Insight
Puma’s Eliot Kaye on opportunities for developers in the strong student market
In the not-so-distant past, a mention of student accommodation would bring to mind mouldy rooms, unreliable appliances and – worse – landlords who would take a month to send someone around to fix the boiler.