Right now, millions of people are trapped in a broken leasehold system with spiralling charges, unclear fees, and unaccountable managing agents. Leaseholders are all too often left in the dark about what their service charges are being spent on, or slapped with shock bills for major works for repairs to roofs and lifts. Sadly that has also been the case in our city of Oxford, according to casework received by one of the local MPs, Anneliese Dodds.
The Government is pushing ahead to make reforms, and holding a public consultation on the best way forward to ensure they are robust, workable, and protect leaseholders effectively.
Anneliese has urged residents to have their say. She says: “I know that many leaseholders are fed up with poor service and unclear, sky-high fees. The changes proposed by Government to leasehold could turn things around for nearly five million leaseholders, including many here in Oxford. I hope that as many leaseholders as possible will take up this opportunity to shape the upcoming reforms.”
The planned changes include:
- Making service charges more transparent and easier to challenge.
- Scrapping the presumption that leaseholders have to pay their landlords’ legal fees even when they win their case.
- Changing the section 20 process to stop unexpected bills when landlords want to carry out ‘major works’.
- Ensuring that managing agents are qualified to do their jobs with stronger regulations and a new basic standard.
After the consultation, the Government will bring measures into force as quickly as possible – not only implementing the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024, but going beyond it as well. Later this year, the Government aims to publish a draft Leasehold and Commonhold Reform Bill, set out a reformed commonhold model, and consult on banning the use of leasehold for new flats.
Matthew Pennycook, Minister for Housing, said: “This bold package of reforms will arm leaseholders with greater rights and protections and empower them to challenge poor practice and unreasonable charges and fees – driving up leaseholder living standards as we work to bring the feudal leasehold system to an end as part of our Plan for Change.”
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Notes to editors:
The consultation can be found here and it runs until 26 September 2025: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/strengthening-leaseholder-protections-over-charges-and-services-consultation