Commercial property has never been a static asset class. Over time, it has evolved through cycles of legal reform, planning updates, tax changes, energy standards and court decisions that steadily reshape how risk is shared between landlords, tenants and lenders.

You may have seen some recent headlines about the reform of commercial leases; changes to business rates and a fundamental shift in the quality and purpose of EPC’s. However, what we are currently seeing in the UK is modernisation — a periodic recalibration of a market that has changed materially over the past two decades.

For commercial property investors, the real question is not whether change is happening, but how to understand it early and respond intelligently.

A market that periodically takes stock
From time to time, the commercial property sector pauses to ask a sensible question:

Do our legal frameworks still reflect how businesses actually operate today?

That question has been front and centre through 2025, with legislative reviews, Law Commission consultations and evolving case law examining commercial leases, dispute resolution, energy performance and occupier protections.

This process is not about weakening property rights. In most cases, it reflects a desire to:
• Update legislation written for a very different economic landscape (the law governing commercial was written in 1954!)
• Improve clarity and consistency across the sector
• Reflect more flexible patterns of occupation
• Align property law with sustainability and energy policy

Seen in that context, reform is best understood as evolution rather than disruption.