Tag: Real Estate Law

Madrid Office Space Demanded by Law Firms

25/11/2014 – ExpansionPro

Economical and real estate improvement soaks in the law office market. The latest report by Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL), titled Law Firm Perspective Global 2014 states that the city of Madrid had left the ‘slump stage’ and entered in the ‘growth phase’ – just where it was before the boom.

Thus, as the study explains, rapidly shrinking supply of office space in Madrid makes many lawyers look for another location before the prices rise.

Further on, JLL points out that the most-desired Castellana street (aerial picture) may at most see refurbishment and redecoration, unless any new office project comes up. When it comes to the law firms, the company says they still show a traditionalist approach to picking a representative location, selecting compartmentalized, highest-quality buildings.

Speaking of the global market, the report informs the rental prices are expected to rise in 77% of markets of the Northern America, in 56% of the European ones, and in 43% of markets in Asia. Only 15% of all forecast some advance in tenant conditions or fall in prices.

Madrid Primary Area

The capital-based lawyers offices focus their search on the aforementioned Castellana avenue and areas nearby: the Salamanca neighbourhood in the east, and the Almargo and Zurbano zones in the west.

The smallest firms choose mixed-use and residential buildings. In turn, 96% of the 25 largest are found in one of the areas specified above.

To give a few examples of recent relocations, Hogan Lovells has occupied a 4.608 square meter office at numbers 36-38 Paseo de la Castellana, and White & Case a 1.142 square meter one at number 7 on the same street. Next to change premises was Dentons (number 53), as well as Amat & Vidal-Quadras (21 Ortega y Gasset street) and Martínez-Echevarría (33 Principe de Vergara street). Second Spanish branch of Arochi & Lindner opened at 28 Serrano. Also, Herbert Smith will move its team to a 4.000-square meter old office of Cuatrecasas, Gonçalvez Pereira situated at 43 Velazquez street. Finally, CMS Albiñana & Suárez de Lezo and Bird & Bird are currently eyeing the market in search of new premises.

 

Original article: ExpansiónPro (by Mercedes Serraller)

Translation: AURA REE

Government Brings to Trial the Andalusian “Anti-Eviction” Law & Demands its Suspension

The Council of Ministers approved on Friday an agreement through which the President of the Government is requested to bring an action of unconstitutionality interposition against the Article 1 of the Law 4/2013 from October 1st on the measures to assure compliance with the Social Funcion of Housing, the Article 1.3´s new version of the Law 1/2010 from the March 8th of the Housing Right Regulation in Andalusia. It includes Articles 25 and 53.1.a) and also against the additional provision prior to the Law 4/2013 metioned hereabove.

The paragraphs challenged by the central Executive, whose suspention he demands, are the ones related to “the declaration of public interest for the purpose of expriopriation (compulsory purchase) of the requirements coverage of the houses of people in serious social emergency”; the “definition of the uninhabited homes” and “the serious infrigment clasification” for the banking institutions which do not put these houses on the rental market.

Te recourse to the Andalusian law appears in the references that join the agreements approved by the Council of Ministers and made public on Friday. Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría, the vicepresident of the Government, did not mention the fact at the press conference after the government meeting on the compliant to the Constitutional Court (Spanish TC) on the Andalusian rule. (…)

The Very Motives for the Compliant

(…) Therefore, first of all, the Government admits inconstitutionality of the Law “defined by the core content of the right to homeownership, exercising the competencies in terms of housing and town planning of an autonomous community” and claims that “it cannot come along with the core content of the right of private ownership from the sector competencies of housing and/or town planning, as long as the regulation on the basic conditions which guarantee equality of all Spaniards in regard to exercise of the right and compliance with constitutional duties is not affected, due to the Article 149.1.1 of the Spanish Constitution giving the competency to the State, like the Article 149.1.8 of the Spanish Constitution gives the State compentence in terms of Civil Law”.

(…) The Executive reckons that the Andalusian law sets series of sanctions aimed at the home owners who have not rented their empty houses (…).

Finally, he says that the regulation sets “arbitrary discrimination” among the owners whose houses are involved in the eviction process, expropriating the right to the house usage for 3 years, “undermining the principles of equality and non-discrimination” which also refers to the Constitution. (…)

Approved in September

During the Andalusian Parliament plenary session on the law of the Social Funcion of Housing, which also presents the temporal expropriation of the use of the house from banks in case of social exclusion risk, was approved on September 25th, with assistance of PSOE-A and IULV-CA. (…).

Source: ABC.es