real estate all your real estate needs under one roof
Did you know? With over one hundred specialists, Howard Kennedy’s real estate team is one of the largest and most experienced in the UK. As the UK’s property market continues to gather momentum, our capable, experienced and responsive team of real estate experts is here to help you every step of the way. Working closely with a diverse mix of clients, we make it our business to keep abreast of the changing market conditions and trends affecting real estate in the UK.
Making the right decisions in a fast moving market Whether you are fighting to keep your competitive edge in a fast-moving retail environment, creating new spaces in which to live and work, or searching for the latest in high-end luxury residential, making rational and timely decisions about property will be an important part of your everyday activities. Getting those decisions right will result in greater market share and increased profitability. At Howard Kennedy, we have one of the largest and most experienced real estate teams in the country: a one hundred strong team that combines in-depth legal expertise with wide knowledge of the markets in which our clients work. Our strength is in our one London office – with all of our experts under one roof, we can provide you with the best advice as quickly as possible. If, however, you need cross-border advice, our strong international links mean that we can put you in touch with a trusted advisor in whichever jurisdiction you require. We cover all stages of the real estate life cycle, from planning and acquisition, through construction and handover, to sales and potential disputes. Whatever your issue, we can help. Big doesn’t have to mean impersonal and we pride ourselves on being one of the most approachable firms in the industry. Our partners will be closely involved in managing your work, backed by a wider team of associates and legal specialists to ensure that you receive optimum value for money. The result is clear and commercially focused advice to enable you to make the most of the opportunities offered by the UK’s dynamic property market.
2
3
Our services Our expertise is wide ranging, enabling us to advise on any commercial or residential real estate issue, including planning, construction, tax, finance, investment, portfolio management, plot sales and disputes. Our client base is also diverse: FTSE 100 companies, national retail and leisure chains, investors, lenders, property entrepreneurs, individual property buyers, restaurant and leisure entities and property offices – anyone who is involved in developing, buying, selling or leasing real estate. Many of our clients are household names – organisations such as Berkeley Group, Pizza Hut, Pandora, Galliard Homes and Marriott. Some of these relationships go back decades and some are just beginning. Large or small, whether you came to us 25 years ago or yesterday, one principle guides all of our client relationships: our commitment to delivering a commercial, responsive and cost effective service.
“The team at Howard Kennedy is a real alternative to Magic Circle firms”
“It’s not just about legal knowledge. Clients also want us to know about the fundamentals of their business. What’s driving their growth? Who’s snapping at their heels? What’s over the horizon? It requires a 360-degree approach – and we do our best to provide that.” Julian Hindmarsh, Partner: Head of Real Estate
Legal 500
4
5
We are Howard Kennedy Real Estate
Commercial investment
Our commercial investment team has a reputation for providing sound investment property advice. Our team deals with all aspects of day-to-day property management matters. We advise on acquisitions and disposals of all types of investment property, such as industrial estates, office buildings, retail parks, shopping centres and residential investment property, either as single lots or as a portfolio transaction.
Construction
Our construction team covers non-contentious and contentious legal advice for construction clients including developers, funders, contractors and investors. Our “life-cycle� approach means that we can provide advice on all matters relating to drafting, negotiations, funding, delivery and enforcement of construction projects.
Banking and real estate finance
Our banking and real estate finance team offers expert, clear and pragmatic advice on your financing requirements, whether you are a lender, borrower or an investor. We simplify and explain challenging and complex legal issues and provide you with the right advice at the right time. We recognise that transactions are often fast moving, and you may have already been involved in protracted negotiations over loans or investments by the time you engage us. Our fast, accurate and responsive advice will help you to close your deals securely and efficiently.
6
Corporate real estate
Our corporate real estate team can help you and your partners set up joint ventures, provide due diligence on acquisitions and investments, advise on corporate structuring for fund structures and support high-end residential property transactions through corporate vehicles. Our team acts for a wide range of clients, from individual entrepreneurs to corporates, developers, investors, joint ventures, intermediaries and funders including private equity, venture capital and debt providers.
7
Development and projects
Residential development sales
A large part of our portfolio comprises schemes that have transformed cityscapes, breathing life back into brownfield sites to create landmark residential and commercial developments. Our team includes specialists with extensive experience, adept at working on a variety of schemes including mixed use and regeneration applying technical expertise and a commercial approach. We provide the solutions to all your legal issues, helping you to create great places for people to live and work.
Residential real estate
Our development and projects team offers you sound commercial development advice. Drawing on the expert and diverse skill sets of our lawyers, we will work with you to achieve the best approach for your project.
Planning
Our residential real estate team advises High Net Worth Individuals on buying and selling their residential real estate assets. These assets are usually in the luxury, high end market with prime locations in London.
Our planning team works with developers on all aspects of planning law, from advising strategically on applications, drafting agreements and dealing with implementation issues, to handling any appeals.
We have worked successfully with a number of internationally renowned developers on a portfolio of prestigious and iconic developments across London and Greater London. Our internal team structure is set up and managed to ensure that we provide a high quality service to our clients while dealing with high volume transactions with the utmost accuracy and efficiency.
Our team focuses on London urban regeneration and development work. Our team works solely for developers and is known for promoting complex and politically sensitive redevelopment projects for renowned clients. We have the same fire power in terms of quality as a magic circle or silver circle firm.
Retail and leisure
Real estate dispute resolution
Our real estate dispute resolution team is one of the largest of its kind in London. We advise investors, funders, landlords, tenants, developers, high net worth individuals, hoteliers and retailers on contentious and non-contentious issues relating to all areas of commercial and residential property. We have particular expertise in dealing with all issues involved in property developments, including property portfolio management and leasehold enfranchisement. We also work closely with our transactional colleagues and provide early commercial advice to clients on potential issues that might arise from their transactions and on how to eliminate or mitigate future disputes.
8
Our residential development sales team deals with over 3,000 active transactions at any one time. Our team members are specially trained to deal with large numbers of transactions in short spaces of time. For example, on one London launch the team exchanged over 250 contracts in a single weekend, while on another site, we served over 800 completion notices for 800 units in a single day.
Our retail and leisure team works closely with established national and international retail and leisure brands including restaurants, gyms, golf clubs and casinos, advising them on leases and asset management. We also act for franchise businesses in the retail, restaurant and health and fitness market. We work with a range of hoteliers, from luxury brands and boutique operators to mid-sized chains, advising all stages of the business lifecycle.
9
“There are many competent real estate lawyers in London. However, the team at Howard Kennedy stands out. They are certainly very fine lawyers but what sets them above their peers is that they truly care about their clients and do everything possible to achieve the best outcome for them. Clients, rather than the number of chargeable hours, are their paramount concern and that’s refreshingly rare in today’s legal market.” European General Counsel at Bare Escentuals
10
11
No.1 London Bridge London SE1 9BG DX 144370 Southwark 4 Tel: +44 (0)20 3755 6000 www.howardkennedy.com @HowardKennedy_