The government has issued a white paper on their plans to have “commonhold” as the form of ownership tenure for new blocks of flats. The white paper proposes ways to revitalise the system by improving the accessibility, management and regulation of commonhold properties, in an effort to encourage its wider adoption.
In its latest tranche of reforms, the government has promised to tackle what it describes as unfair service charges. This is part of Labour’s reform marking a significant shift in government policy, aiming to replace the leasehold system in England and Wales with commonhold stating this gives greater ownership security and control for residents.
While this offers potential benefits, careful consideration of the associated challenges and implications is essential to ensure a smooth and equitable transition, Commonhold has been available for since 2002 but has not been attractive or widely taken up.
The Labour government’s Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 is now law – but is far from being implemented.
The first elements of this Act have been to remove the requirement for a leaseholder to have had ownership for two years before being able to extend their lease, as well as to enabling more leaseholders in mixed-use buildings to apply for Right To Manage; and finally there is now limits on the costs that leaseholders can be made liable for.
The white paper, published in March 2025, proposes selling new leasehold flats would be banned with commonhold being “reinvigorated” within a new legal framework as part of a draft Leasehold and Commonhold Reform Bill which will be published later this year, according to the government. Click This Link to read the white paper.
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