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European Residential Investment Webinar

24 February 2023

If you are wondering which key issues are affecting European residential investment at the moment and how different jurisdictions are approaching them, watch the recording of our global webinar that took place on 21 February 2023.

In the webinar, we explored the key themes running across five jurisdictions, looking at the opportunities and challenges they present for cross-border investors. Our lawyers from different parts of the globe reported on similarities and differences between approaches in the UK, Germany, France, Italy and Spain.

In France, we explored the fact there is a well-established regime in place to protect tenants, with comparable restrictions being in place in Germany. Italy, on the other hand, has emerged as more of a nation of landlords with the regime there being somewhat less stringent, but still in favour of tenants. In the UK, a key piece of legislation on investors’ agendas is the new Building Safety Act which sets out widespread obligations in relation to new buildings but also requirements for remedying existing defects, which will form a key piece of due diligence for investors. On that front, we saw that in Italy due diligence on the wide array of planning agreements is becoming particularly important as they contain not only infrastructure delivery specifications but also vital information in consents and permits. In Spain one of the key issues we are seeing is an inconsistent approach in the local zoning regulations to different types of residential properties as well as the major theme of the increasing importance of social housing provision.

This recording will enable you to take a plunge into the future of European residential investment and the issues to consider. We saw that there are huge amounts of consistency across the jurisdictions, with topical themes such as ESG, increasing protections for tenants and possible rent restrictions being pertinent across the board. The sector holds many opportunities for investment, especially cross-border, and we expect 2023 to be an exciting year in this sphere.

Click here to view the full recording.

Authored by Hannah Quarterman, Stella Bliss, and Ingrid Stables.