The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities published on 29 March 2024 a change to the building regulation guidance (known as Approved Document B) so that from 30 September 2026 residential buildings over 18m in height will require second staircases. The real estate press (such as the React News article in the link below) have highlighted some of the key discussion points from the decision for the real estate industry:  

• The real estate industry's reaction to inclusion of a requirement for a second staircase: There is concern that the inclusion of the second staircase requirement in the building regulations guidance distracts higher-risk building (HRB) owners/designers/constructors from ensuring each building (on its own design and construction) is safe. This could lead to other important elements of making buildings safe being ignored or deprioritised, such as compartmentalisation, insulation or detection systems. However, the Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA 2022) imposes ongoing duties on HRB owners to actively manage building safety risks in the building and maintain the golden thread of information on a building from day one of construction so building safety risks should always remain at the forefront. 
• Two tier values for HRBs? There are concerns of a creation of a secondary market for ‘older’ HRB stock with single staircases. The legal requirements implemented by the BSA 2022 on all owners of HRBs will hopefully ensure that the risk of a two-tier market in HRBs will be limited. Single staircase HRBs are still required to have appropriate safety measures in place and the BSA 2022 requirements will further ensure that owners keep a record of their maintenance and any safety risks that arise. As such, this could help minimise the likely impact on values for single staircase HRBs in the short term at least. In fact, ‘older’ HRBs may be cheaper to purchase than redesigning a new building that will require a second staircase (and will therefore have a smaller internal area for occupation in the building). 
• Lenders concern? High-street lenders on apartments in single staircase HRBs have confirmed there is currently no change to their approach on lending as a result of the second staircase requirement. Whereas, lenders of whole building HRB loans have been noted as being "anecdotally hesitant". However, much like the challenge for purchasers of HRBs in the new regulatory landscape for HRBs, as lenders become more familiar with the information being provided in respect to building safety it is anticipated they will get more comfortable with lending on HRBs (either with a single staircase or twin staircases).