Lead by the landscape

Over 100 new apartments are in the works in the Surrey town of Oxted, offering countryside living within commuting distance of the capital. Alison Dowsett, managing director of St William Homes, explains how the team utilised a design concept that... View Article

Regulations affecting private landlords up by a third

The number of laws creating an obligation on private landlords has increased by 32 per cent since 2010 according to new analysis undertaken by a leading landlords organisation. The Residential Landlords Association claims the total number of regulations affecting landlords... View Article

Extra funds to help councils crack down on criminal landlords

The Government has made an additional £3.8 million available for councils to tackle criminal landlords in the remainder of the current financial year. The money is to support projects which take effective and targeted action against criminal landlords, support good... View Article

New homes plan to replace derelict garages

Derelict garage sites across Walsall in the West Midlands could soon be transformed into new and energy efficient housing developments, after whg revealed its modular homes vision. Social landlord whg currently houses over 40,000 people in 21,000 properties, across 18... View Article

South London council breaches the Home Standard

Lambeth Council has been found to have breached the Home Standard over a series of longstanding failings with regard to asbestos, fire and gas safety which potentially exposed a significant number of tenants to the risk of serious harm. The... View Article

Homelessness cost councils over £1bn last year

Analysis of Government figures by the housing charity Shelter has revealed the amount being spent by councils on temporary accommodation for homeless households in England rose to over £1billion last year. Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, said: “These figures are... View Article

Fire at student block raises further cladding safety fears

Concerns about the safety of high-pressure laminate cladding have intensified after fire ravaged a six-storey block of student accommodation in Bolton town centre. HPL cladding is believed to be used on thousands of homes and it has already been the... View Article

Hot under the collar: What rights do landlords have?

The recent news story about a London landlord who boxed off a thermostat in one of their residential rental properties has raised questions surrounding what landlords are entitled to do when it comes to utilities. Actions such as blocking off... View Article

COBE has built new headquarters for adidas in Germany

The Danish architecture firm COBE, headed by Dan Stubbergaard, has designed a new multi-purpose building for the world-famous sports brand adidas’ corporate headquarters in Germany. The building was officially opened last year, and now, the photos have been released for... View Article

Retiring gracefully

Ian and Tina Huckle struggled to find a place to build a ‘lifetime’ home after some health problems, until they realised the solution was right under their noses, in their own back garden in Hampshire With their two children having... View Article

Bamboo flooring: the sustainable alternative

Rob Wooldridge from Moso Bamboo Surfaces looks at the many merits of bamboo flooring – and provides some installation tips for self-builds Bamboo flooring may not be your first thought when considering what flooring to lay in your new build... View Article

Strategic glazing specification

Kevin Bonnar of Velfac explains how to get to market faster and improve return on investment with strategic glazing specification. Glazing is one of the most important building products in any low rise or ‘plot by plot’ housebuilding project. High... View Article

The aluminium renaissance

Steve Bromberg of Express Bi-Folding Doors looks at why he believes that more housebuilders than ever are ditching PVCu in favour of aluminium When it comes to the design of a residential or commercial property, the finer details can make... View Article

JKP completes Huitong Hybrid Tower in Shenzhen

Huitong Hybrid Tower is a novel idea in skyscraper design—it is part world-class office space and part high-tech car park. By efficiently and seamlessly integrating parking spaces into the design, JKP increased buildable area under zoning regulations and maximized the... View Article

Developers advised to prepare for Green Brexit

After a decisive win in last week’s general election, Prime Minister Boris Johnson will now push on with his plans to ‘get Brexit done’ but it’s the Government’s proposed ‘Green Brexit’ which Ward Hadaway’s planning team is advising developers to... View Article