More than 500 households will no longer be subject to terms that cause their ground rents to double, after eight more firms agreed to remove problematic clauses from their leasehold contracts. Their decision follows action by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). Some leasehold contract terms, which kick in every 10 or 15 years, can
The Government has announced proposals to cut ground rents to help homeowners in leasehold properties. Housing Secretary Michael Gove has launched a consultation that will set out options including capping ground rents at a so called “peppercorn” rate for existing leaseholders, freezing ground rents at current levels and capping the ground rents at a percentage
UK house prices have risen slightly on a monthly basis, but the overall trend is still downwards, according to the latest figures from the Land Registry. The annual percentage change for average UK house prices was 3.5% in the 12 months to April 2023, compared with 4.1% in the 12 months to March 2023. The
A new insurance scheme has been developed to enable people living in high-rise buildings to sell their homes in the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire tragedy. Following the fire in 2017, mortgage lenders became reluctant to lend to buyers of flats in high-rise buildings, and sales dropped rapidly. To provide assurance, a building industry
House prices across the UK increased by an average of 12.4% in the year to April 2022, according to the latest figures from the Land Registry. It means the average property in the UK is now valued at £281,161. On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, house prices increased by 1.1% between March and April 2022. The UK Property Transactions Statistics showed
The government is introducing new rules to ensure that new homes and buildings in England will have to produce significantly less carbon dioxide as part of the battle against climate change. Under the new regulations, CO2 emissions from new build homes must be around 30% lower than current standards and emissions from other new buildings,
The government is closing a loophole that allows owners of second homes to avoid paying tax by claiming their often-empty properties are holiday lets. The changes will target people who take advantage of the system to avoid paying their fair share towards local services in popular destinations such as Cornwall, Devon, the Lake District, Suffolk,
Parliament has just passed The Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act 2022 which will impose a peppercorn ground rent in new leases of flats. There will be a few exceptions such as shared ownership properties and in Islamic financing – they will continue to include rent. Ground rents will also be allowed to remain in flats
The government scheme to help key workers and local first-time buyers on to the housing ladder has now got under way. A nurse and a police officer from Derbyshire are among the first people to benefit. The First Homes scheme offers homes at a discount of at least 30% of the market price to local
Taylor Wimpey has agreed to remove terms from leasehold contracts that cause ground rents to double in price every 10 years. The effect of these increases has been that people have often struggled to sell or obtain a mortgage on their home. Their property rights can also be at risk if they fall behind on