Helen O'Neill

Expertise

Helen is an experienced specialist residential development lawyer, working with local and national developers. She advises on acquisitions, strategic sites, site assembly and disposal. Helen also advises on policy and other matters, including most recently NHQC (producing and updating standard documents for various national and regional developers) and cladding issues (including the property matters associated with the government agreement, structure and licences).

She also acts for registered providers, in particular on supported housing schemes and retirement accommodation/ villages. Helen has worked on a large number of large-scale housing and mixed-use developments.

Helen’s work includes advising on sites from inception, reviewing and advising on heads of terms and initial constraints, through to negotiation and settlement of contracts, options, land promotion agreements and transfers and leases. She also has experience with site assembly and multi landowner sites, including project management on large scale development sites, coordinating all parties, satisfaction of preconditions and all necessary documentation.

Experience

• Advising a national developer on property matters relating to cladding replacement works and funding.
• Advising 2 national developers on NHQC compliance, including updating standard documentation for use with plot sales.
• Acting for residential developers on Homes England schemes and project managing the delivery of these schemes and an additional two schemes within demanding timescales, including the disposal of part of the site to registered providers including title and infrastructure matters.
• Dealing with a number of large-scale regeneration schemes, most recently on the phased acquisition of land from a local authority and registered provider, including subsequent disposal to a registered provider of the affordable units, profit share / partnering arrangements with the local authority.
• Acting for a supported housing provider on the acquisition of 4 portfolios comprising over 500 units.
• Acting for a supported housing provider on over 300 schemes of varying sizes, including mixed use schemes, nomination and void agreements.