Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will make an assessment of the operation of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 in respect of the imposition of service charges for part-owners of shared equity properties and whether such charges are set at a reasonable level; and if he will make a statement.

Between April 2010 and March 2015 we have delivered 41,000 new shared ownership homes. Shared ownership is an integral part of the Affordable Homes Programme and we will continue to encourage providers and local authorities to consider shared ownership as a way to meet the needs of households who aspire to home ownership but may otherwise be priced out of the market.

The Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 provides rights and protections for service charge payers, including those purchasing under shared ownership. The Act states that only relevant costs shall be taken into account when determining a service charge to the extent that they are reasonably incurred, and where incurred on the provision of services or works, only if the services or works are of a reasonable standard. Where they are believed to be unreasonable, leaseholders have the right to challenge them at the Property Chamber of the First-tier Tribunal.