Government proposes changes to unfair leasehold and ground rent agreements

Announcement 25th July 2017 from Department for Communities and Local Government and Sajid Javid MP headlines ‘Crackdown on Unfair Leashold Practices’.

Radical new proposals to cut out unfair abuses of leasehold have been announced by the government in a major move that will deliver a fairer, more transparent system for homebuyers.

Leaseholds on new-build houses could be scrapped and ground rents could be dramatically reduced, under government plans subject to public consultation.

Communities Secretary Sajid Javid has set out plans to ban new build houses being sold as leasehold as well as restricting ground rents to as low as zero. This can often expose homebuyers to unreasonable and long-term financial abuse.

Communities Secretary, Sajid Javid said:

“It’s clear that far too many new houses are being built and sold as leaseholds, exploiting home buyers with unfair agreements and spiraling ground rents. Enough is enough. These practices are unjust, unnecessary and need to stop.

“Our proposed changes will help make sure leasehold works in the best interests of homebuyers now and in the future”.

Read the announcemnt in full including all measures subject to 8 week consultation click here.

Allen Walkey

Highly experienced businessman with a successful career in property sales and investment both in the UK and abroad. Now a freelance writer and blogger for the property and Investment Industry, keeping readers up-to-date with changes and events in a rapidly changing world.

You May Also Enjoy

Breaking News

Nationwide extends six times lending to home movers and remortgage

Nationwide enhances support for people looking to move up the property ladder or get a new mortgage deal Five-fold increase in Nationwide loans to first-time buyers at or above 5.5x income in 2025, compared to 2024 Increased first-time buyer support follows regulatory changes to improve affordability Nationwide is today announcing a major boost to the…
Read More
Breaking News

Breaking Property News – 21/1/2026

Daily bite-sized proptech and property news in partnership with Proptech-X.   Jon Cooke steps down as Non-Executive Director at GPEA Jon Cooke will continue to focus on innovation within the property sector Jon Cooke has stepped down from his role as Non-Executive Director at GPEA, the business that owned Fine & Country and The Guild…
Read More
Breaking News

UK Finance Buy-to-Let Mortgage Market Update

UK Finance today releases its buy-to-let (BTL) mortgage market update for Q3 2025, looking at trends in lending to borrowers accessing the market. In Q3 2025 there were 59,467 new buy-to-let loans advanced in the UK, worth £10.9 billion. This was up quite significantly compared with the same quarter in the previous year, 22.7 per…
Read More
Breaking News

ONS Private Rent and House Prices Index

Average UK monthly private rents increased by 4.0%, to £1,368, in the 12 months to December 2025 (provisional estimate); this annual growth rate is down from 4.4% in the 12 months to November 2025. Average rents increased to £1,424 (3.9%) in England, £822 (5.7%) in Wales, and £1,018 (2.8%) in Scotland, in the 12 months…
Read More
Breaking News

UK House Price Index November 2025

The latest index shows that: The average monthly rate of house price growth in November was +0.3%. Average UK house price annual inflation was 2.5% in the 12 months to November 2025, up from the revised estimate of 1.9% in the 12 months to October 2025. As a result, the average UK house price currently…
Read More
Breaking News

Industry Comment on UK inflation rising to 3.4%

UK inflation rises for the first time in 5 months. Industry reactions on UK inflation rising to 3.4% Nathan Emerson, CEO of Propertymark: “To witness inflation creep back upwards again will no doubt be disappointing for many consumers who will have been hoping to see a drop as we move further into the first quarter…
Read More