Many people will have seen yesterday’s announcement by Sajid Javid that ground rents will be banned for new leasehold houses and that the government are going to look at consulting on this and other issues. This is an issue that we at B&S have been aware of and commenting on for some time. In particular Mark Chick has written a number of articles that have appeared in the sector press such as Flat Living and Leasehold Info.
Some of the recent press commentary appears here:
- The Telegraph: Ministers pledge to ban ‘feudal’ leases on houses which force families to pay exorbitant ground rents
- FT.com: It’s time to get political about leasehold property
- The Independent: Government unveils plan to ban sale of ‘unjust’ leasehold houses
- The Times: Scandal of leaseholds on new‑build houses to end in crackdown by Sajid Javid
We have been tracking developments since the government’s recent White Paper on Housing, particularly in relation to leasehold issues.
One theme that seems to be emerging from correcting the issue of high ground rents is the quality of advice that homeowners receive. This only emphasises further the importance of obtaining specialist legal advice in relation to leasehold issues.
Mark Chick commented as follows:
“It is good to see that government have sought to carry into effect one of the proposals in the white paper to deal with the issue of high ground rents and leasehold houses. These sorts of issues only serve to highlight the importance of specialist advice in relation to leasehold issues. In particular specialists like the leasehold team at Bishop & Sewell have been working for years to improve the quality of advice on offer in this sector, particularly through our involvement in bodies such as the Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners (ALEP).”
If you are affected by leasehold issues, or would like enfranchisement or other legal advice concerning ground rents and the advice that you have received around these then please do contact our expert team by emailing leasehold@bishopandsewell.co.uk.
