Proposed leasehold reforms would cover an estimated five million leaseholders in England and Wales, including people who can be required to pay landlords for simple changes to homes they have bought.
Commonhold and property-agent regulation
Under the proposed Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill, UK ministers want residents to collectively own and manage their buildings through a commonhold system.
The plans also include an independent property-agent regulator covering estate agents, managing agents and estate managers. The proposed regulator would be able to set codes of practice on conduct standards and complaint handling, while property agents would have to obtain licences.
The UK government said the regulator would be able to remove licences if agents breached the required standards.
Possible caps on leaseholder fees
Angela Rayner said new legislation would create powers to cap permission and administration fees paid by leaseholders to landlords.
The proposed caps would apply to freehold estates and privately managed estates. They would cover fees for cosmetic property changes and requests for documents such as building safety certificates.
The UK government would launch a public consultation to help determine the level of the permission and administration fee caps.
Ground rent and first-time buyers
Members of Parliament had called for the £250 annual ground-rent limit to take effect in late 2027 rather than late 2028.
Ministers had also announced a Your First Home policy to help first-time buyers in England with a 2.5% deposit.
Rayner said she planned to strengthen council powers to take over empty homes, with the aim of helping meet demand for council housing and tackling homelessness.
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Source: BBC News
