Archive

Shortly after the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act was granted Royal Assent in May, we surveyed members of the Association of...

NOBODY does pomp and ceremony like us Brits and, wow, it was on full display in Westminster last week. Despite the prestige...

The Conservative Party’s General Election manifesto has committed to resurrecting the Help to Buy Equity Loan Scheme and temporarily removing Capital...

The Liberal Democrat General Election manifesto has been published, promising more housebuilding, abolishing leasehold tenures and its own buyer support scheme. Its...

The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Bill was the final piece of legislation to pass before Parliament closed ahead of the General...

So we’ve been sent the ‘Save The Date’ card - it’s July 4. Now all we need is the invitation to the...

The task of obtaining material information is more difficult than it appears for estate agents, Rightmove has warned. The portal revealed in...

Typical consumer spending on mortgages and rents increased 3.6% in April – the first increase in the rate of growth since...

Sky News is reporting that up to 30 Conservative MPs are threatening to rebel against the government’s approach to ground rents...

Last weekend a story by The Sunday Times’ Deputy Political Editor indicated that the Government is proposing implementing a £250 cap...

Plans to set ground rents at a ‘peppercorn rate’ are reported to have been dropped amid opposition from freehold campaigners and...

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has secured agreements from eight freeholders to remove “problematic ground rent” terms from leases. The competition...

The complexities of the government’s leasehold reform proposals affecting millions of homeowners came under the spotlight at a seminar organised by...

Dave Sayce, Founder and Managing Director of Compare My Move, reflects on the legal changes that will make leasehold purchase more...

Parliamentary news may have been dominated by the fallout from the Rwanda Bill yesterday but another important piece of legislation also...

Leasehold campaigners are urging anyone responding to the Government’s consultation on ground rents reform to boycott all options but capping them...

The long-awaited Leasehold and Freehold Bill is set to be unveiled in Parliament today. The Bill aims to make it cheaper and...

The United Kingdom stands on the precipice of a historic overhaul in property ownership. With the King's speech unveiling the anticipated...

Three members of the Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners take a brief look at some of the trials and tribulations awaiting...

The Government has outlined five proposals to reduce ground rents for existing leaseholders as its latest attempt to reform the sector...

Campaigners and commentators have reacted cautiously to leasehold reform proposals put forward in the King’s Speech. The King took part in his...

Propertymark has given its backing to commitments from the Housing Minister on the long-awaited next steps of leasehold reform. Timothy Douglas, head...

All new houses in England and Wales will have to be sold as freehold properties under government plans to phase out...

Real estate consultants SHW is advising leaseholders not to wait to extend their lease. The call follows the start of the Government’s...

In simple terms, as you are probably aware, ‘lenders’ are the organisations who loan you something, in this case money to...

Housing Secretary Michael Gove has signalled that legislation to allow for further leasehold reform will be included in the next parliamentary...

Recent political changes – and there have been quite a few in recent weeks – have brought about something of a...

Thousands more leaseholders are expected to see ground rents cut and some may even receive refunds. It forms part of the Competition...

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has closed its investigation into alleged mis-selling of leasehold houses by Barratt Homes. It is the...

A parliamentary petition calling for ground rent charges to be extended to existing leases has reached the required number of signatures...

New rules on leasehold homes came in this week, banning ground rents on new leases but a property expert warns this...

You will hopefully have seen that the Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act 2022 has now received its Royal Assent, meaning it...

Propertymark has given its backing to the ban on ground rents for new leasehold properties and has reminded agents of their...

They say that in fashion, if you wait for long enough, clothes that are hanging at the back of your wardrobe...

Fifteen businesses which had bought freeh­olds from housing developer Countryside have now given formal undertakings to remove terms that cause ground...

Will he stay or will he go? You don’t need me to say who ‘he’ is - it’s the only story...

House and apartment sales are still being hit by confusion and worry over ground rents on existing second-hand leasehold properties. This is...

A probe by the Competition and Markets Authority has led housebuilder Taylor Wimpey to make changes for the benefit of leaseholders.  Taylor...

There’s been a very low expression of interest in Commonhold, despite the government pushing the new tenure as an alternative to...

The Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners (ALEP) has become the latest body to welcome the decision by Countryside Properties to scrap the requirement to pay...

One of the biggest campaign groups calling for leasehold reform has welcomed the action taken by the Competition and Markets Authority...

In what will be seen as the latest win for leaseholders across the UK, it’s been revealed that – following action...

The lack of progress on the much-anticipated government reforms of the leasehold system is leaving thousands of homeowners stranded, according to...

NAEA Propertymark says the news that two major players in the leasehold sector have reformed their activities must be just the...

The Competition and Markets Authority has struck a deal with house builders over leasehold abuses. Aviva has committed to remove certain terms...

Two of Britain’s largest house builders have reacted sharply to calls by Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick and the Competition and Markets...

The Competition and Markets Authority has written to two top house builders ordering them to change their leasehold terms. In September the...

Millions of leaseholders will be given the right to extend their lease by a maximum term of 990 years at zero...

A leasehold group has written to Housing Minister Chris Pincher pressing for an update on the government’s approach to reform for...

A right wing magazine once edited by Boris Johnson has called estate agents “spivs with tape measures” who conceal information from...

NAEA Propertymark has thrown its weight behind a Competitions and Markets Authority investigation into whether consumer protection law has been broken...

The Competition and Markets Authority is today opening enforcement cases focusing on the sale of leasehold homes by four leading housebuilders. They...

Wholesale reform of leasehold issues is still some years away, despite recent proposals by the Law Commission and pledges by the...

The long-awaited proposals for leasehold reform produced by the Law Commission suggests giving owners the right to extend their lease for...

It’s a big day for leasehold reform today with the Law Commission due to publish three residential leasehold and commonhold reports. They...

Allsop has staged its first principal residential auction entirely online, and has raised £28m. Some 76 per cent of all lots offered...

New research of the buying habits of first-time buyers in the UK we’ve undertaken here at reallymoving.com shows that Shared Ownership...

Trading Standards says agents must include more “material information” in property details even if this may not be a wholly positive...

There’s been a broad welcome from agents and other industry organisations for the latest report from the Competition and Markets Authority...

The government is being urged to make commonhold ownership compulsory on all new apartments - and the move could even begin a...

Unfortunately for consumers, buying and selling properties is rarely plain sailing. But fortunately for agents, this provides you with an opportunity to...

A leasehold reform campaigner claims estate agents face “growing calls to be held accountable for mis-selling leasehold properties.” Louie Burns, managing director...

The Law Commission has set out three ways to cut the cost that leaseholders have to pay to buy the freehold...

The government has given details of a scheme allowing 30 per cent reductions for what it calls ‘local first time buyers’...

With Brexit still unresolved, the domestic agenda has been pushed from the headlines by the seemingly overwhelming public and political discord...

A London estate agency says a new scheme of apartments being launched for sale this weekend will be the first ever...

A 10 point manifesto to drive forward leasehold reform has been published by prominent campaigner Louie Burns, of The Leasehold Solutions Group. The 10...

There’s no doubt that we live in politically charged times and every day appears to bring something new to the ‘party’. For...

The price premium paid by purchasers for a freehold property rather than a leasehold is at its highest for eight years. An...

A retirement development specialist is warning buyers on such schemes to beware unexpected clauses or restrictions which they may not have...

A leasehold reform campaigner says government proposals risk creating a two-tier market and do nothing to assist leaseholders already hit by...

The Competition and Markets Authority has formally launched an investigation into the sale of leasehold properties - including possible mis-selling. This follows...

A firm supporting leaseholders across the UK says the ongoing Competition and Markets Authority probe should “punish” what it calls “rip off...

So far in our contribution to the campaign to replace leasehold with commonhold we have outlined the stories of some of...

The National Association of Estate Agents has welcomed the commitment by the Competition and Markets Authority to investigate the mis-selling of...

The leasehold scandal continues to generate plenty of column inches, with fresh stories emerging almost daily of people living in unsellable...

The leasehold scandal has received plenty of press coverage, with horror stories of people living in homes that are impossible to...

Almost as soon as the government yesterday made its latest announcement to outlaw rogue leasehold deals, the measure was branded “pathetic. More...

A large-scale survey by a consumer group has revealed that over half of home owners regard stamp duty as a growing...

The leasehold system has created many unsellable and unmortgageable homes and should change, MPs say. The all-party Housing, Communities and Local Government...

The National Trading Standards Estate Agency team has issued new guidance for those seeking redress over leasehold disputes.  This guidance contains a...

Developers have continued to sell thousands of new-build houses with leaseholds, despite a government pledge to ban the “unscrupulous” practice a...

The cost of new-build leasehold properties has surged 16 times faster than freeholds according to research from property investment platform. The revelation...

The National Association of Estate Agents has welcomed the government’s move to ensure most future new-build houses are sold as freehold...

The vast majority of new-build houses are to be sold as freehold with ground rents for new leases capped at £10...

Almost all buyers of new build houses who purchased a leasehold regret doing so, and the vast majority say they definitely wouldn't...

Out and about recently, I got to thinking: how often do I actually have the call for cash anymore? Or, for...

A specialist property law firm is calling on the government to speed up changes in the law to avoid abusive leasehold...

The government says its funding schemes such as Help To Buy will no longer be applied to what it calls “unjustified...

At any given moment it’s difficult to say which issue dominates our marketplace, but I think it’s fair to acknowledge during...

The Court of Appeal is today expected to rule on a legal battle which may be critical in determining the value...

While there is a distinct market for flats held on particularly short leases, there is a middle ground where flat owners...

A specialist leasehold enfranchisement firm has branded government leasehold reforms as "incredibly weak". In an announcement lost in the noise following Damian Green’s sacking,...

Labour MP Justin Madders is working on a Private Members' Bill creating leasehold reform in a bid to help leaseholders who, he...

The All Party Parliamentary Group on Leasehold and Commonhold Reform has made a hard-hitting submission to formal government consultations on the...

Even so close to the event, I don’t think anyone will be deeming 2017 as the ‘summer of love’.  The summer of...

Without wishing to blow our own trumpet at this time, we did say at the start of the year that 2017...

There has been general support from the industry for the government’s apparent intention to ban new homes in England being sold...

The government says it wants to ban “unfair” leasehold charges imposed on buyers of new-build homes in England.  Under the measure, subject to...

A leasehold enfranchisement expert wants government action over what he calls the "forgotten casualties" of the recent ground rent scandal.    Louie Burns,...