Comment: Scrapping leasehold ground rents “step in the right direction”

Jonathan Frankel, leasehold enfranchisement specialist and partner at Cavendish Legal Group, comments on the news of Countryside’s decision to scrap leasehold ground rents.

“Countryside are clearly doing the right thing by scrapping leasehold ground rents, albeit having been incentivised to do so following the investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority.

“Nevertheless, it is another step in the right direction following the announcement by Persimmon and Aviva in June to allow leaseholders to buy their freehold.

“We hope that it will encourage other housebuilders to do the same because the fact is leaseholders are in a state of limbo right now. They have been waiting months and months for the Government to move forward with the reforms announced in January, and in the meantime find it much more difficult to sell their property whilst the shadow of ground rents is over them.

“We also only hope that Michael Gove in his new role as housing secretary can move things along with more urgency than his predecessor Robert Jenrick.

“There is no good reason why homeowners should be paying ground rents in 2021 and developers and landlords across the country should be doing the right thing and enabling leaseholders to feel truly secure in their own homes.”

Kindly shared by Cavendish Legal Group

Main photo courtesy of Pixabay