Millions of leaseholders to benefit as government unveils £250 ground rent cap
Ground rents will be capped at £250 a year for leaseholders across England and Wales, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has announced.
Millions of leaseholders across the UK are set to benefit from relief after the government announced a cap on ground rent.
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Announced by the government on Monday, the £250-a-year cap will benefit leaseholders across England and Wales.
Ground rents will be capped at £250 a year for leaseholders in England and Wales as part of sweeping changes announced by the Government.
New leasehold flats will be banned and existing leaseholders will get the right to switch to commonhold in a bid to give homeowners greater control over their properties.
Making the major announcement in a video posted on TikTok, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said: “I’ve spoken to so many people who say this will make a difference to them worth hundreds of pounds.
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“That’s really important because the cost of living is the single most important thing across the country.”
The reforms will be published in the draft Leasehold and Commonhold Reform Bill, which will be introduced on Tuesday.
“That’s really important because the cost of living is the single most important thing across the country.”
The reforms will be published in the draft Leasehold and Commonhold Reform Bill, which will be introduced on Tuesday.
The Residential Freehold Association (RFA), which is the trade body representing professional freeholders, said the ground rent cap was “wholly unjustified” and warned over the impact on the UK’s reputation for investors.
A spokesperson for the RFA said: “The inclusion of a ground rent cap in the draft Leasehold and Commonhold Reform Bill represents a wholly unjustified interference with existing property rights which if enacted, would seriously damage investor confidence in the UK housing market and send a dangerous and unprecedented signal to the wider institutional investment sector.
“Property rights and contract law are fundamental drivers of domestic and global investor confidence in the UK.
“Instead of focusing on those reforms which address the issues that leaseholders care most about, the Government’s draft Bill will tear up long-established contracts and property rights, which are pillars of the UK’s investment reputation.
“This is, despite the previous government’s own impact assessment showing compensation could exceed £27 billion."