"There are many steps policymakers can take to simplify leasehold such as making enfranchisement easier, the lease extension process being simplified, and freeholders joining a redress scheme where there is no managing agent"
- Timothy Douglas - Propertymark
The Bill would make long-term changes to the residential leasehold property system in England and Wales.
CMA intervention has now seen 500 households, whose homes are owned by eight different companies, freed from ‘problematic’ leaseholds, which witnessed the ground rent they paid double every ten to 15 years.
In 2018, Propertymark released Leasehold: A Life Sentence? which surveyed over 1,000 people who bought a leasehold house to explore the extent of the scandal which has left thousands of Brits trapped in leases with third parties.
In July 2023, Propertymark issued a report called Leasehold 2023: Has anything changed?, which discovered that 78% of member agents found that they struggled to sell properties with escalating ground rents.
Furthermore, the study found that 72% of member agents believed that further restricting ground rents was the best way forward, with capping current rents being supported by 55% of respondents.
Regarding buyers, 60% of them request information about the lease before they view a property, but 54% of agents who sell property on behalf of developers state they do not always issue the pertinent leasehold information.
Timothy Douglas, Head of Policy and Campaigns at Propertymark, said: “It is vital that the UK Government considers a ground rent ban as part of the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Bill.
“There are many steps policymakers can take to simplify leasehold such as making enfranchisement easier, the lease extension process being simplified, and freeholders joining a redress scheme where there is no managing agent.
"Furthermore, developers are not expected to abide by any current minimum standards to work in the property sector and there are no statutory rules to guarantee that those buying and selling leasehold property are appropriately qualified, which must also form part of the legislation to provide great protections for consumers.”
