Asked by: Bob Stewart (Conservative - Beckenham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent progress his Department has made on bringing forward legislative proposals to change the valuation process of extending a lease so that landlords can only charge a nominal amount.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
The Government has committed to making enfranchisement cheaper for leaseholders by reforming the process of valuation they must follow to calculate the cost of extending their lease or buying their freehold. We will abolish marriage value, cap ground rents in the calculation, prescribe the rates to be used and introduce an online calculator.
Leaseholders will be able to extend their lease with zero ground rent on payment of a premium. The length of a statutory lease extension will increase to 990 years, from 90 years (for flats) and 50 years (for houses).
The Government has already legislated via the Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act 2022 to protect future leaseholders. The Act will mean that if any ground rent is demanded as part of a new residential long lease, it cannot be for more than one literal peppercorn per year.
We understand the difficulties some existing leaseholders face with high and escalating ground rents. This is why we asked the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to investigate potential mis-selling of homes and unfair terms in the leasehold sector, which has resulted in commitments benefitting over 20,000 leaseholders. The CMA continue to engage with a number of firms and we urge other developers to follow suit.
We have been clear about our commitment to addressing the historic imbalance in the leasehold system. We are due to bring forward further leasehold reforms later in this Parliament.
Asked by: Bob Stewart (Conservative - Beckenham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent progress his Department has made on bringing forward legislative proposals to reduce ground rent to less than a peppercorn.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
The Government has committed to making enfranchisement cheaper for leaseholders by reforming the process of valuation they must follow to calculate the cost of extending their lease or buying their freehold. We will abolish marriage value, cap ground rents in the calculation, prescribe the rates to be used and introduce an online calculator.
Leaseholders will be able to extend their lease with zero ground rent on payment of a premium. The length of a statutory lease extension will increase to 990 years, from 90 years (for flats) and 50 years (for houses).
The Government has already legislated via the Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act 2022 to protect future leaseholders. The Act will mean that if any ground rent is demanded as part of a new residential long lease, it cannot be for more than one literal peppercorn per year.
We understand the difficulties some existing leaseholders face with high and escalating ground rents. This is why we asked the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to investigate potential mis-selling of homes and unfair terms in the leasehold sector, which has resulted in commitments benefitting over 20,000 leaseholders. The CMA continue to engage with a number of firms and we urge other developers to follow suit.
We have been clear about our commitment to addressing the historic imbalance in the leasehold system. We are due to bring forward further leasehold reforms later in this Parliament.
Asked by: Bob Stewart (Conservative - Beckenham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will take steps to allow leaseholders to extend their leases by 999 years.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
The Government has committed to making enfranchisement cheaper for leaseholders by reforming the process of valuation they must follow to calculate the cost of extending their lease or buying their freehold. We will abolish marriage value, cap ground rents in the calculation, prescribe the rates to be used and introduce an online calculator.
Leaseholders will be able to extend their lease with zero ground rent on payment of a premium. The length of a statutory lease extension will increase to 990 years, from 90 years (for flats) and 50 years (for houses).
The Government has already legislated via the Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act 2022 to protect future leaseholders. The Act will mean that if any ground rent is demanded as part of a new residential long lease, it cannot be for more than one literal peppercorn per year.
We understand the difficulties some existing leaseholders face with high and escalating ground rents. This is why we asked the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to investigate potential mis-selling of homes and unfair terms in the leasehold sector, which has resulted in commitments benefitting over 20,000 leaseholders. The CMA continue to engage with a number of firms and we urge other developers to follow suit.
We have been clear about our commitment to addressing the historic imbalance in the leasehold system. We are due to bring forward further leasehold reforms later in this Parliament.
Asked by: Bob Stewart (Conservative - Beckenham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent progress his Department has made on bringing forward legislative proposals to abolish marriage value.
Answered by Lucy Frazer
The Government has committed to making enfranchisement cheaper for leaseholders by reforming the process of valuation they must follow to calculate the cost of extending their lease or buying their freehold. We will abolish marriage value, cap ground rents in the calculation, prescribe the rates to be used and introduce an online calculator.
Leaseholders will be able to extend their lease with zero ground rent on payment of a premium. The length of a statutory lease extension will increase to 990 years, from 90 years (for flats) and 50 years (for houses).
The Government has already legislated via the Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act 2022 to protect future leaseholders. The Act will mean that if any ground rent is demanded as part of a new residential long lease, it cannot be for more than one literal peppercorn per year.
We understand the difficulties some existing leaseholders face with high and escalating ground rents. This is why we asked the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to investigate potential mis-selling of homes and unfair terms in the leasehold sector, which has resulted in commitments benefitting over 20,000 leaseholders. The CMA continue to engage with a number of firms and we urge other developers to follow suit.
We have been clear about our commitment to addressing the historic imbalance in the leasehold system. We are due to bring forward further leasehold reforms later in this Parliament.
Asked by: Bob Stewart (Conservative - Beckenham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of extending the length of time sponsors of Ukrainian refugees can claim accommodation payments through the Homes for Ukraine scheme.
Answered by Eddie Hughes
Lead sponsors are eligible for monthly payments for as long as the guest remains living in their accommodation for up to 12 months. Further information can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/homes-for-ukraine-guidance-for-councils.
Asked by: Bob Stewart (Conservative - Beckenham)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department is taking steps to provide (a) guidance and (b) support to Ukrainian refugees seeking new accommodation after living with a sponsor.
Answered by Eddie Hughes
We are actively exploring options to find suitable long-term accommodation for Ukrainians who stay in this country beyond their sponsorship.