Michael Gove’s recent comments in support of leasehold reform have been welcomed by Keystone Law’s residential property partner Katie Cohen, although she insists that certainty and detail are still missing from government plans and the current system is unlikely to be abolished entirely.
Speaking on Sky News on Sunday, the levelling up secretary insisted that the government plans to make it easier for leaseholders of flats to bring their buildings into common ownership to avoid paying ground rents and management fees on their properties. Gove added that that the current leasehold system is “unfair” and that “in crude terms, if you buy a flat that should be yours… you shouldn’t be on the hook for charges that managing agents and other people can land you with”.
The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities has launched a consultation that could usher in a change to the system, offering leaseholders more power.
However, Cohen – who advises on leasehold enfranchisements, acting for both landlords and tenants – said abolition of the leasehold system is unlikely, although reform to the system is very much needed.
“The comments concerning the government’s continued commitment to leasehold reform, whilst encouraging, do not provide the degree of certainty required to fully advise both freeholder and leaseholder clients,” she commented. “It has been over a year since the government opened its consultation entitled ‘Reforming the leasehold and commonhold systems in England and Wales’ and there has been no formal report published on its outcome.
“The daily requests from leaseholders and freeholders alike concerning the proposed reforms are ongoing and our advice remains the same: extend now if your lease is approaching or has fallen below 80 years or if your property is unmortgageable or unsaleable due to adverse ground rent provisions.
“The abolition of the leasehold system in its entirety is unlikely. The reform to improve the system and its operation going forward is highly likely and very much needed,” Cohen added.
It’s a non story as Gove won’t be in the next government, no Tory will. The present Tory party isn’t the Tory party we all know and have previously voted for. Then the priority for Labour will instead be fixing the UK generally.
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Labour will fix nothing
They will raise tax to pay for rubbish like shamima begum and people who have loads of kid they cant afford
All starmer ever talks about is the right of men who dress up as women
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I don’t think even Starmer is bothered about cross-dressers! The term you are probably looking for is a transgender woman.
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Labour may well be the next government [God help us!], but they, too, say they will reform leasehold, and Gove says they will bring legislation before Parliament by the end of the year. There are 4.5 million leasehold homes out there, each with at least one vote. The Tories need to do everything possible to garner support, and this, more than anything the government could do in the run up to the election, would affect leaseholders’ and their families’ lives for the better.
The evidence for abolishing, let alone reforming leasehold, is overwhelming. Supported by the extensive consultations from the CMA, and the ongoing work of the APPG for leasehold, and the #NationalLeaseholdCampaign.
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12 years of Tory rule, 12 years of mismanagement, 12 years of jobs for the boys, 12 years of barely veiled back handers, 12 years that frankly beggar belief and Brexit!
Amazes me that people still seem to think Labour could do a worse job… Blair (with the exception of Iraq) did a fine job of managing UK finances for well over a decade…the only time in the last fifty years the UK had a balanced budget was in 2001 under Labour. Starmer isn’t far of that “almost Tory” stance, I for one welcome the change, absolutely sick of the elitist, incompetent, party first muppets we are currently enduring.
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