Following the announcement of a £250 annual cap on ground rents in England and Wales, alongside a swathe of other leasehold reforms, Leaseholder Action’s Liam Spender discusses the impact of these changes on leaseholders.
“The £250 ground rent cap sounds the death knell for leasehold in England and Wales.
“Some will no doubt be disappointed that ground rents are not being eliminated immediately and are instead being phased out over 40 years. However, crucially the cap will make it cheaper for people to buy the freehold and to extend their leases, both of which are priced by reference to ground rent values. Ending ever-increasing ground rents should also make flats easier to sell and mortgage because there is often a need to vary ground rent terms simply to get transactions over the line. Also welcome is the government’s promise to abolish forfeiture, which is the right of a freeholder to take back a flat with no compensation if as little as £350 goes unpaid.
“The government has set out an ambitious programme of wider reform, including stronger protections in relation to service charges. This includes ending the grotesque ability of landlords to charge their legal costs to leaseholders who dare to challenge them.
“Having delayed its announcement on ground rent, the government must now urgently deliver on its promises across leasehold, including ending the creation of new leasehold flats and enabling people to take real control of their homes through commonhold.”
Liam successfully challenged his own freeholder over secret insurance commissions, and Leaseholder Action is now taking on freeholders and insurance brokers for sharing commissions that have increased insurance charges by up to 60 per cent. Thousands of leaseholders have already joined the claim. If you think you may be affected, please sign up using the form below and a member of our team will be in touch.
Liam was interviewed on BBC Radio London, and his comments were published in The Times, The Guardian, The Telegraph, Daily Mail, This is Money, Bloomberg, Which? Magazine, Inside Housing, Housing Digital, Housing Today, Mortgage Strategy, Landlord Today, Landlord Knowledge, and New Law Journal.
