Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to regulate the growing property maintenance sector to protect leaseholders from increasingly expensive and sub-standard service.

The Government is committed to ensuring that those living in the leasehold sector are protected from abuse and poor service.

Property agents can play an important role in the management and upkeep of buildings and protect the value of people’s homes. Currently, anyone can become a property agent regardless of their background, skills or experience. Many take a professional approach, but others do not. The Government has announced that it will regulate managing agents and introduce a single mandatory and legally enforceable Code of Practice to set standards across the sector. We will also require agents to be qualified to practise.

The Government established an independent working group of housing experts, chaired by Lord Best, to advise Government on the regulation of property agents. The working group has presented its final report to Government  and we are considering its recommendations.