Landlords who have properties within ‘problem’ leasehold blocks have been given some good news following housing minister Matthew Pennycook (main image) confirmation that Labour will ‘end leasehold’ and make commonhold the ‘default’ tenure before the end of this parliament.
Delivering the decision within a prepared statement to fellow MPs in parliament, his speech also promised that Labour will regulate the managing agents, some of whom he described as ‘unscrupulous’.
Pennycook said that over the course of the current parliament, his government willl honour its manifesto commitments and “finally bring the feudal leasehold system to an end”.
Many may wish him luck – the Tories also tried to end leasehold using similar rhetoric, but the efforts of Michael Gove when he was Secretary of State, came to very little.
Pennycook added: “For far too many leaseholders, the reality of home ownership has fallen woefully short of the dream – their lives marked by an intermittent, if not constant, struggle with punitive and escalating ground rents; unjustified permissions and administration fees; unreasonable or extortionate charges; and onerous conditions imposed with little or no consultation. This is not what home ownership should entail”.
The previous government’s Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 was passed in the ‘wash-up’ period prior to the dissolution of the last parliament.
But it enacted only a handful of Law Commission recommendations relating to enfranchisement and the right to manage, although Pennycook admits that the Act has “rendered the process of holistic and coherent leasehold and commonhold reform more challenging”.
He added: “While limited in nature, the Act introduced a necessary set of reforms that will provide immediate relief to those leaseholders and residential freeholders subject to unfair and unreasonable practices.
“As set out in the King’s Speech, it is therefore the government’s intention to act as quickly as possible to provide homeowners with greater rights, powers and protections over their homes by implementing its various provisions”.
Commenting on the proposals to regulate managing agents, the Council for Licensed Conveyancers says: “We warmly welcome the government’s announcement today that it will be looking again at Lord Best’s report on the regulation of property agents.
“Professionalisation of managing agents and ideally regulation of the industry, can contribute very significantly to the transformation of home buying and selling, leading to a faster, more certain, more secure and less stressful conveyancing process. We look forward to next year’s consultation.”
Timothy Douglas, Head of Policy and Campaigns at Propertymark, says: “We welcome further reforms to leasehold to strengthen protections for consumers and make it easier for people to buy, sell and rent homes.
“It is encouraging that the Minister is looking again at Lord Best’s report and understands the value of qualifications for agents and professionalising the property sector. Propertymark looks forward to continuing to work with the UK Government to ensure these requirements are extended as widely as possible across the property sector.”
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