The change means that more than 500 households will not be subject to terms that cause their ground rents to double in price.
The ground rent terms come into force every 10 or 15 years and can leave the people trapped in homes that they cannot sell or properties they cannot mortgage. Their property rights may also be at risk if they struggle to meet payments.
Impacted leaseholders will see their ground rents return to the original fee amount, which is the amount charged when the property was first sold, and this will not rise over time.
| Current freeholder | Housing developer |
| Abacus Land 1 (HoldCo 1)
Adriatic Land 3 Limited and Abacus Land 4 Limited Adriatic Land 3 Limited Island Apartments Freehold Limited Madison Close Freeholders Limited Plaza 2 Surbiton Limited RMB 102 Limited Space in London Limited |
Limited Countryside
Miller Homes Redrow Taylor Wimpey Taylor Wimpey Taylor Wimpey Crest Nicholson Vistry |
(Source: CMA)
George Lusty, interim executive director for consumer protection and markets at the CMA, said: “This is another great win for leaseholders. Over the past five years, we’ve achieved real and impactful change, with over 21,000 households freed from issues such as costly doubling ground rents.
“We hope those affected by this update can breathe a little easier knowing they won’t have to struggle against this type of rising fee anymore – particularly when many are already grappling with high costs elsewhere.”
The CMA has been taking action around the “possible mis-selling of leasehold homes and contract terms” since 2019, with over 30 companies agreeing to remove problematic leasehold issues to date.
The firm said that, since the Leasehold and Freehold Bill includes proposals to cap existing ground rents, its “consumer protection law enforcement work in the leasehold sector is now largely at an end”.
The Leasehold and Freehold Bill is on its second reading in the House of Lords, so there are five stages before it becomes law.
Propertymark has been calling for ground rent to be set at peppercorn value, saying it will lead to a “fairer leasehold system”. This was in response to a government consultation on leasehold.
