1/20 #leaseholdreform

Government timetable to make commonhold default tenure for new flats by 2029.

But technical issues mean delay to implementing new lease extension provisions.

New valuation rules to be consulted on next summer.

Full statement: questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statem… 2/20 As promised in recent weeks, the government this morning made a written statement setting out a timetable for implementing the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 and for moving to commonhold as the default for new flats by "the end of the Parliament".

1/19 Leasehold and Freehold Reform Bill (all 140 pages) published:

Explanatory notes here:

From a quick look, it is broadly as advertised in the press statements. Below some first reactions based on a skim reading.publications.parliament.uk/pa/bills/cbill…
publications.parliament.uk/pa/bills/cbill… 2/19 The bulk of the bill deals with changes to the calculation of premium payable for lease extensions / collectively buying the freehold.

As expected, this enacts the Law Commission July 2020 "Scheme 1", 990 year extensions, no marriage / hope value and fixing key variables.

1/11 Briefing notes on Leasehold and Freehold Bill announced in #KingSpeech published:

Pages 45 to 47 give a summary of the proposals.assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/654a2195… 2/11 There is limited time to pass this bill before the current Parliament ends late in 2024 (and perhaps earlier).

Unless this Bill is among the first 2 or 3 to be tabled in either house it probably won't pass in time.

Timing and detail are key.

1/12 Yet more specious garbage from the vampiric freeholder lobby.

They say commonhold directors must have appropriate qualifications and training if it is going to work.

But why not apply that to freeholders and managing agents across the board?

https://twitter.com/RFAssociation/status/1717501591341654109

2/12 Currently there is no effective regulation of any freeholder or managing agent.

Anyone with the money can buy up freeholds and head leases.

Very often the freehold interest in a residential block can be bought for the price of less than one flat.

1/8 Thank you to @LKPleasehold for writing up this story.

This is the reality of life under a professional managing agent (well, FirstPort) and a professional landlord (part of NatWest, on trust for the ARC Time Freehold Fund, managed by @RFAssociation member Freehold Managers).

https://twitter.com/LKPleasehold/status/1699707133078458536

2/8 I hope @AngelaRayner and @michaelgove will work together on delivering their common aim of meaningful leasehold reform.

No reform will be meaningful unless it includes effective sanctions for managing agents and landlords who break the rules.

1/11 In "Dog Bites Man" news, a man who makes living managing leasehold property for an Italian count pens piece on #leaseholdreform saying:

England still needs freehold system propertyweek.com/insight/englan… 2/11 This article is written by the CEO of Wallace Partnership Group.

This a freeholder actively dumping its own interests in cladding-affected buildings in the hope it will not be responsible for remedial works under the Building Safety Act 2022.

1/12 The government has made regulations capping prices for #leasehold / park home communal gas and electricity supplies and heating networks.

The caps are 21p per unit of electricity and 7.5p per unit of gas, excluding VAT and Climate Change Levy. 2/12 These prices differ from those applied under the Energy Price Guarantee for domestic supplies.

That is because communal supplies (lifts, corridor lighting, car parks) to blocks of flats and park homes are deemed to be commercial.

1/17 We await the results of the Financial Conduct Authority's review into leasehold insurance.

The interim report from May 2022 (fca.org.uk/publication/co…) suggested capped commissions and mandatory disclosure.

Will that help where brokers are boosting their profits by 43%? 2/17 And this is becoming a hot topic. @LordRoyKennedy has a Private Member's Bill in the Lords seeking to force mandatory disclosure, failing which landlords would not be allowed to collect insurance premiums:

bills.parliament.uk/bills/3321

1/10 Landlord offloading a cladding affected building? The phrase rats off a sinking ship come to mind, although it is possible that this is mere coincidence.

Selling up won't avoid liability. Whether it makes enforcing against that landlord difficult is a different question.

https://twitter.com/GlennSeat/status/1542544990768873473

2/10 The waterfall and some of the new claims to compel landlords to pay (eg Remediation Contribution Orders) apply to the landlord "at the qualifying time", meaning 14 February 2022.

So, selling won't get the landlord off the hook if it was the landlord on 14 February.

1/25 Round-up of thoughts on the #buildingsafetybill

The Bill cleared Parliament earlier this evening. It will now become an Act of Parliament.

The Bill will not come into force (be legally effective) for a period of some time, perhaps years in some cases.

https://twitter.com/LiamSpender/status/1519007135065063424

2/25 Two months from the date of Royal Assent, so roughly in late June 2022, leaseholders in buildings above 11 metres will have the benefit of the so-called waterfall.

#buildingsafetybill The Lords is currently voting on amendments to the Nationality and Borders Bill and then it will move on to the Building Safety Bill.

It looks as if there may be a few more votes before we reach the Building Safety Bill, so perhaps 30 minutes before the start You can watch proceedings live here:

parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/9c…

1/18 #buildingsafetybill is back in the Lords late tomorrow, after the Nationality and Borders Bill.

The Lords will be considering the changes made by the Commons last week.

The motions being considered are here: bills.parliament.uk/publications/4…

Explanation below. 2/18 As expected, the government is asking the House of Lords to vote to agree with all of the changes made in the Commons last week.

In simple summary, the Commons re-inserted the leaseholder contributions of between £10k and £100k where no developer or building owner pays.

1/25 Round-up on the #buildingsafetybill in the Commons this afternoon.

The Commons was considering the changes made to the Bill by the House of Lords (and there were several hundred amendments made there).

https://twitter.com/LiamSpender/status/1516762279110393864

2/25 The key issues for the Commons to consider were:

(1) what do about resident owned (enfranchised) buildings

(2) what to do about under 11 metre buildings and

(3) whether leaseholders should pay anything for non-cladding costs.

#buildingsafetybill Commons is now considering Lords Amendments.

The debate may last until around 4.30 today.

In simple terms, the government will ask the Commons to vote to remove certain changes made by the Lords and provides alternatives. The #buildingsafetybill was amended heavily in the Lords.

A key change was to introduce legal protection for leaseholders in buildings 11 to 18 metres tall.

These protections are explained here: leaseholdknowledge.com/government-dum…

1/16 #buildingsafetybill Where are we now?

The Lords completed Report stage today.

It crunched through 276 amendments in about 7 hours of debate, so only a superficial review of a Bill that will have far reaching effects on residential buildings for the next 30-40 years, plus.

https://twitter.com/LiamSpender/status/1508783364152647681

2/16 This is no way to make laws, particularly not in the self-styled Mother of All Parliaments.

This is serious and complicated legislation. Changes should have been considered most carefully.

The government has taken nearly 5 years since Grenfell to bring this Bill forward.

#buildingsafetybill thread.

I will post my thoughts (for what they are worth) on the Report stage debate here.

The Report stage will be in two halves.

The first half started at 11 and has just reached its first vote (division).

The second half will start around 3.15. This morning's session has seen relatively little change to the Bill.

The government has adopted Lord Best's amendment on articles of association, making it easier for RTM / RMC companies to appoint a designated director as accountable person.

1/5 #leaseholdreform took a step forward yesterday afternoon.

The Leasehold Reform (Ground Rents) Act 2022 received Royal Assent (hansard.parliament.uk/lords/2022-02-…)

The Act bans monetary ground rents for new residential properties. 2/5 Ground rents have become an increasing scandal in recent years, with some finding they are trapped in unmortgageable properties.

Ground rents also entrench a system in which third party investors take control of a block of flats for a fraction of the price of one flat.

1/8 #buildingsafetybill More amendments were tabled last night, here: bills.parliament.uk/publications/4…

The running list is here: bills.parliament.uk/publications/4… 2/8 As with all amendments, they may or may not become part of the final Act of Parliament.

We watch the amendments to see what ideas are being proposed and how the government reacts to them.

1/9 #buildingsafetybill

Further amendments have been tabled today, which you can read here: bills.parliament.uk/publications/4…

As with all amendments, they may or may not be adopted as part of the final Building Safety Act.

We still watch the amendments to see where the Bill may go. 2/9 In addition to last week's amendment suggesting that the government consult on all new buildings having staircases that meet BS-5395-1, there are 2 further amendments, one from Lord Young of Cookham and one from Lord Blencathra.

1/15 #BuildingSafetyBill with everything else going on today, I expect this will fall down the headlines.

Starting at roughly 2 p.m. this afternoon the Commons will conduct the Report and Third Reading stages of the Bill. 2/15 Unfortunately due to work commitments this afternoon, I won't be able to live tweet the proceedings.

Here is a thread with some details on what is happening today.

1/17 Hello Lucy,

For what they are worth, my views on today's announcement are below.

The headline is that this is a welcome step in the right direction, but we must see the detail on delivery to be sure it will solve all cladding and non-cladding issues.

https://twitter.com/lucyxwilliams/status/1480609096487350285

2/17 The positive development is that the focus is now squarely on building developers and material manufacturers to produce money to remediate cladding and non-cladding defects on buildings 11-18 metres tall.

Developers are being told to pay to fix all their buildings 11m+