Property Focus: The Interview – Danny Revitt

Danny Revitt heads Irwin Mitchell’s national property litigation team from the law firm’s Sheffield office.

He joined the firm nearly 20 years ago and has been a partner since 1999 and deals with all areas of property litigation for a broad client base which includes developers, investors, retailers, financial institutions, charities and property management companies.

What are your views of the current state of the commercial property and property development markets?

Right now, from talking to investors, developers and tenants, my overall analysis would be that it’s “steady” at best.

Everyone’s remaining cautious, developers are struggling to secure funding and the main investment activity is still coming from those with decent cash reserves who don’t have to approach the banks.

What key challenges and pieces of legislation do you think will most affect your sector over the coming months?

The biggest bone of contention remains the steady chipping away at empty rates relief. As a litigator, it’s completely changed the advice that you give to a landlord with a defaulting tenant.

A few years ago, a landlord with a tenant in administration would be asking for urgent advice as to how they could get the property back from the administrator. Now, to avoid having to pay rates on an empty building, they want to know whether they can refuse to accept a surrender from the administrator!

Why do you think Yorkshire is a good place to do business?

You certainly get more for your money in Yorkshire than a lot of other places. The property industry is very close knit both in the Sheffield and Leeds City Regions and I think that this helps in getting deals done quickly and efficiently. 

What is your favourite building/development in Yorkshire and why?

I think that the Peace Gardens in Sheffield are a well designed and attractive central landmark

If you could change anything about Yorkshire what would it be?

If they’d allow Stoke City to relocate the Britannia Stadium so that it’s a five minute walk from my house in Sheffield then I’d be a lot more popular with my wife, abandoning her for two hours rather than seven hours every other Saturday!

What was your first job and how did you enter your current line of work?

Just before I left home for the University of Sheffield I worked in Stoke as a door to door central heating salesman – in the middle of the summer! My speciality was waking up shift workers with large dogs.

In terms of career choice, I followed the tried and tested path of wanting to be a rock star or professional footballer, taking a law degree because it sounded interesting, deciding that I might as well go to law college and then deciding that I might as well become a solicitor.

What do you most enjoy about your work?

Knowing my area of specialism well, building up longstanding relationships of trust and friendship with clients and intermediaries and finding solutions to my clients’ problems quickly and cost effectively.

What barriers have you faced during your career and how have you overcome them?

As my career has progressed, I’ve found myself with an increasing number of plates to keep spinning. I’ve not smashed any so far through constantly reassessing priorities and that magic solution of “putting in the hours”.

What is the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?

A saying from the mother of one of my longest standing mates – “you’re only as good as your friends.”

And the worst?

I spent two years shelling out a lot of money on a spray that was supposed to prevent the onset of premature baldness. It was a dismal failure!