Leasehold reform is one of the biggest shake-ups in UK residential property for a generation — and if you own or plan to buy a flat, it matters. The direction is clear: make extensions cheaper and easier, rein in ground rents, and move towards commonhold as the future model for flats. Here's where things stand and what it means for you. (Reform is moving quickly, so treat this as a map, not a final rulebook.)
The short answer
Leasehold has long been criticised as an unfair, feudal system — leaseholders paying ground rent for nothing tangible, facing expensive extensions, and having limited control over their own buildings. Reform aims to rebalance that, building on recent legislation and further bills working through Parliament.
A central plank is making it cheaper and simpler to extend a lease or buy the freehold, including longer standard extension terms and changes to how the price is calculated. For anyone with a shortening lease, this is the headline benefit.
Ground rent — a charge leaseholders pay for no service in return — is being curbed. Newer leases have already seen ground rents effectively cut to zero, and reform aims to reduce it for existing leaseholders too. Watch this space, as the detail affects flat values.
Commonhold is an alternative to leasehold where flat owners collectively own and run the building through a commonhold association — no freeholder, no lease running down, no ground rent. Reform seeks to revive commonhold and make it the default way to own new flats, bringing England and Wales closer to how flat ownership works in many other countries.
If you're buying a flat, ask where the lease and any ground rent stand today and how reform might apply. If you already own a leasehold flat, extensions and ground rent relief could improve your position and resale appeal. Because the picture keeps shifting, confirm the current rules — ideally with a conveyancer — before making decisions. Our leasehold vs freehold guide and service charges guide cover the fundamentals.
It aims to give leaseholders a fairer deal — cheaper and easier lease extensions, reduced and controlled ground rents, and a shift towards commonhold as the future model for owning flats in England and Wales.
Commonhold is a way of owning a flat where the owners collectively own and manage the whole building through a commonhold association, with no freeholder, no expiring lease and no ground rent.
Reform is moving away from leasehold for new flats and towards commonhold, alongside improving terms for existing leaseholders. The programme is phased and evolving, so the exact timetable and detail continue to change.
Yes — measures such as cheaper lease extensions and ground rent relief are intended to benefit existing leaseholders, though the precise rules depend on legislation as it takes effect.