Leasehold Reform Is Far From Over Election Result Crucial To What Happens Next

[@propertyaccelerator]

Grab the FREE Leasehold Reform Ebook here - marketing.property-accelerator.co.uk/leaseholdebook

[@Juliukas101]

Interesting vid. I didn't know Labour were purporting to ban new LH flats. I've got 77 years left on mine and I applied 2 weeks ago to extend my lease : 990 years / peppercorn GR / zero marriage val. I got a dry old response from the managing agents saying: "As the components of the Act have not come into force, their client's position has not changed." Not a big deal for me as I will simply extend it when their client's position does change. I set my terms down to them and I am sticking to them. No poxy marriage value / sols fees - I'm just not having it. I don't care if I never extend the lease either - I can always let my flat out, and it just means the FH won't get any money out of it during the course of their lifetime! What I don't understand is how an act can be voted into law and yet be ineffective straightaway. You would think it would immediately supersede the previous legislation.

[@propertyaccelerator]

Yeah from speaking to lease solicitors a lot of people will just wait for the law to be active. I wonder if your agent even passed the offer onto the freeholder. If someone offered me the money to extend on those terms knowing that I would have no choice but to accept in future I would take the money. Great positive comment thanks for your contributions. 🙂

[@scienceevolves4417]

The Act is effective because it's been passed into law (although it applies in a limited way). But when it comes to most provisions, it does delegate their commencement orders to the Secretary of State for Housing. So whatever government there will be after the elections, they'll be free to proceed as they please.

[@shafiagnes]

Absolutely agree with you

[@shafiagnes]

One more of your best upto date videos, your speech is so clear and can be understood by lay people..thank you for updating us...your one of the best...i have forwarded your videos to all my friends here who are into property business...i am your great fan already.❤

[@propertyaccelerator]

It's my pleasure

[@PabloTBrave]

Not just the cost with leasehold it's the sometimes ridiculous terms amd condition that apply to some leaseholds regarding any alterations to property not just extensions

[@propertyaccelerator]

Agreed.

[@LindaScirocco]

Hi James great video thank you would you say that the value of leasehold apartments will increase significantly once the reform act becomes active?

[@propertyaccelerator]

I think they will by about 5% in the next 2 years once this comes into effect.

[@mariemclaughlan5404]

Hi James I bought a short lease flat in 2018 am please of the way you explain it sounds great. Thank you so much. Use to be very worried about it am not now.

[@propertyaccelerator]

Yes this is very good news for you.

[@BeNice252]

What about paying the freeholders legal costs? Currently, the leaseholders pay both sides legal costs in a dispute.

[@propertyaccelerator]

Correct that is going so freeholder would pay their side.

[@davidwilson9460]

@@propertyaccelerator when does this come into effect (paying freeholder legal costs) - I have dispute challenging insurance and they have issued a claim in court despite me making some payments and in constant communication - the legal costs are roughly 75% on top of the claim (ie.£600 insurance dispute ) £2300 claimed in administration and legals - plus I have had to get my solicitor involved to respond

[@scienceevolves4417]

​​​​​@@davidwilson9460since yours is an ongoing action already, those new rules won't cover you mate. Also, the separation of legal costs you mention will only be relevant to lease extensions and enfranchisements (the new section 19A LRA 1967 for houses or the new section 89A LRHUDA 1993 for flats). Not relevant to standard disputes regarding everything else.

[@JonDoe13443]

You haven't taken into account the deferment rate (which hasn't been set yet) that will have an impact on the lease extension cost and pretty much abolish the savings of the marriage value abolishment (which is great)

[@propertyaccelerator]

Yeah we need that to come through.

[@zaink7037]

Lets hope this goes through. Ive looked at a flat where the lease will be extended to 125 years (from 76 years) after completion and purchase. Would assume ground rent will be £0 🤔

[@propertyaccelerator]

Yes after the lease extension the ground rent will go to zero.

[@silentgirltears782]

Hi @propertyaccelerator, Does having a council leasehold flat work in my favour as opposed to having a leasehold in a private company?

[@propertyaccelerator]

It will be the same, but this new law is good for you.

[@anthonycooper3573]

@propertyaccelerator With regards to maintenance / service charges, how would these reforms affect houses where you pay a maintenance fee for amenity areas? Would you need the majority of people who live on a particular housing estate to agree to deal with the maintenance themselves?

[@propertyaccelerator]

Yes you would need the majority to agree.

[@paulmurphy63]

Another excellent video, James. It was very clear and easy to follow. I'm eagerly waiting to see the cost of lease extensions, as I've heard they are easier and much cheaper to renew. I'm disappointed that Labour has retracted their promise to abolish all leaseholds within 100 days of taking office. We're one of the few countries, along with Wales, where leaseholds still exist. I'm tired of being burdened with high service charges and exorbitant insurance premiums.

[@propertyaccelerator]

I think it was just an impossible task to complete within 100 days. Lets hope they have it as a top priority.

[@stevefairbanks835]

What is the current situation re leasehold reform, I’m looking to buy a flat but concerned about the current situation and what’s coming

[@propertyaccelerator]

Waiting on law becoming active could be 6 months to 18 months. I needed to extend so shared the info with the freeholder told them what was coming and said if we can agree on new deal I will proceed now if not will wait until law. they went for the money now so you can always ask.

[@giuseppinasolinas]

A friend of mine is a leaseholder and is about to buy the freehold of his house together with the other leaseholder. Do you think he should not spend this money now? If things will be worse for freeholders, then it's probably best for him to still stay a leaseholder?

[@propertyaccelerator]

No I think if he is getting a good price he should go for it. I would ask the solicitor he has, will the price change if I wait for this law to be active.

[@giuseppinasolinas]

​@@propertyacceleratorhe says that the surveyor has looked at it and confirmed it's not worth anything, maybe a few hundred pounds as third parties cannot develop and the 2 leaseholders in the house have long leases and peppercorn ground rent. The lease is clear about service charge so nobody can suddenly charge high service charge, only ad hoc for specific repairs I hear. Would you agree that it's more or less the same then? Roughly same pros and cons on balance?

[@giuseppinasolinas]

​@@propertyacceleratorit seems that it might take many years for this section of the law to be enacted as all freeholders in the country will drag their objections from court to court as they will want to be compensated for their losses.

[@Chrisheron78]

It would be fantastic if there was some sort of template letter (Martin Lewis style), to send dirext to property management companies to challenge RTM and Service charges!!

[@propertyaccelerator]

I will look to create that good idea.

[@MrPeterJohan]

You say, ‘When you extend your lease, your ground rent get’s abolished’. Is this true?

[@propertyaccelerator]

Yes that is already law has been a while.

[@anthonycooper3573]

@@propertyaccelerator That is what confuses me, so surely the way to go after this passes is to just extend the lease to 990 years and pay no ground rent and therefore effectively be a freehold? Unless the cost of extending the lease becomes comparable to buying the freehold (I have no idea about the costs of either).

[@scienceevolves4417]

​​@@anthonycooper3573while it could be argued 990 years plus is a virtual freehold but it's still not freehold. Because when the building gets dismantled after very long time, landowner will still own that piece of land. Enfranchisement is a process whereby you effectively can acquire the freehold title off the freeholder.

[@judyforsyth61]

Does the leasehold reform cover council properties leases?

[@propertyaccelerator]

Yes it does.

[@richardphelps3476]

My freeholder has stated the premium removal of the marriage value will start on the 24th of July and has begun changing their procedures for complete removal. They have stated indirectly, at least, that it's a complete removal of the premium, not a recalculation.

[@propertyaccelerator]

It needs to be a bit clearer agreed.

[@nuray3486]

what does that mean exactly?

[@richardphelps3476]

​@@nuray3486 I've downloaded and searched the new reform bill, which states " no marriage value or compensation" in the new act. I've got 78 years left on my lease, so I have been desperate for answers from my freeholder, and they've suggested after various phone calls last week, from the 24th of July, the only fees payable are the legal fees of both parties and the admin charge. So basically, these are the same fees you would currently pay on an 85-year lease renewal. But I agree with the comments. It needs clarity. I could be completely wrong on this.

[@scienceevolves4417]

​​@@richardphelps3476 Why would you be so desperate? The lease is under 80 yrs, so it makes sense to wait. Also, under the rules in the 2024 Act, you'll not have to pay another party's costs for extension or enfranchisement. It's worth waiting for sure.

[@richardphelps3476]

​@@scienceevolves4417 I was in the process of selling the flat so just needed it extended. Luckily the last few days a cash buyer has purchased it and is going through. Not for the full amount granted but I was happy with it. If it goes through 🤞 problem over and back to owing a freehold house.

[@grolfe3210]

Can we get a valuation based on the new rules yet? If I serve notice on a Freeholder I need to put in an offer of a "fair price", and that price should now be lower with the removal of marriage value. But my understanding is that the formula is not yet in place to confirm the price. Are people who want to extend still hanging on or can we go for it now? (Freeholder wants £25k, neighbour got a stat route extension for £12k so without marraige value I am guessing that may now perhaps be around £6k)

[@propertyaccelerator]

Correct we are waiting on the new formula, that wont happen until after the election. You can offer anything you want to freeholder letting them know what is coming. They dont have to accept it but some will just to get money now.

[@grolfe3210]

@@propertyaccelerator Thanks for your reply James (and all your content), I have a couple of years before present mortgage runs out so still got time but I cannot leave it. I got as far as asking their figure and offering far less but got a very firm no from them. So I am waiting to get a valuation at new formula and give notice. I am quite surprised that they did not grab my old stat formula offer last year given the changes were flagged up by then. I guess there must be a lot of leaseholders waiting on the new regime.

[@scienceevolves4417]

​@@grolfe3210 we do know more than we could hope for. Do look up sections 35-37 and schedules 4-7 of the 2024 Act to find out more details on this.

[@lovejetfuel4071]

@@propertyaccelerator How long until Commencement of the new law takes place?? I want to buy my fathers flat, he will gift it to me, there would be about 200K in equity. The issue is though, he only has 2.5 years left on the Mortgage term (in 2.5 years he will be 75yo), and we cant sell or re-mortgage until after the reforms are in place as we cant afford 80k to extend the lease, but we could afford 40k. The mortgage was an interest only mortgage, but over the last 5 years we have paid off about 10% of the debt

[@chriskraszewski1776]

Are new regulations coming in to landlady’s who rent there property to small businesses?

[@propertyaccelerator]

No its only for residential.

[@marty5489]

I have 81.5 years remaining on my lease, would you think it would be worth waiting until January 2025 before trying to renew? (I've already been holding but obviously want to avoid marriage value) Thank you for the continued easy to understand breakdowns;

[@propertyaccelerator]

If you wait you could extend to 990 years thats the only real difference. But you have the risk Labour change the law and something goes wrong. What I would do is say to the freeholder, this is coming into law in a few months. Can you extend to 990 years and I will proceed now giving you money sooner. From speaking to leasehold extension solicitors they say about 80% of freeholders agree to this as they want money now.

[@scienceevolves4417]

I would proceed to extend or enfranchise if you have a good (valid) reason to do so. If not, nothing wrong with waiting. But it may be even until 2025-26-27 until the latest reform in this area comes into force. No one knows yet. So obviously if you do hold on for another 1.5 years and you go below 80 years and the latest reform won't have come into force, your only option at that stage will be to just wait it out. Hope this helps.

[@marty5489]

@@propertyaccelerator Redwing (operate on the north west) are the freeholder - they confirmed their policy is to wait for the new regulations to take full effect before offering the 990 years but was definitely worth a try

[@bye-72]

Hi I have 82.5 years left, I’m extending by 90 years now. This new legislation will probably take two years to come through.

[@livvyBardoe]

Lease hold it immoral. If you buy a bike , the bike is yours If you buy a hat the hat is yours Why do we not own a house that's lease hold. Only one is on land. So you buy an apartment. It should be yours Simple I would say...

[@propertyaccelerator]

👍

[@HarryNicNicholas]

it's about time people took the hint, tory MP's just want "prime minister" on their cv, they don't want the job though, or they want the job just long enough to propose a £43 million invisible bridge then do a runner with the money. it looks like even tory voters have twigged that they are being fleeced too, how long has it taken?

[@propertyaccelerator]

🙏

[@scienceevolves4417]

How's your legal case going good Sir?

[@HarryNicNicholas]

@@scienceevolves4417 mid next month i can say.

[@scienceevolves4417]

​@@HarryNicNicholasah okay. Good luck for the hearing.

[@kellywalker4494]

rishi sunak doesn’t even look like he wants to win 😀😀😀😀

[@propertyaccelerator]

He wants a nice long Summer Holiday!

[@lucapuzzoli8363]

Following this one closely 👀 😀 👍

[@propertyaccelerator]

👍

[@Kelly-qy4yr]

Thank you for this, this has solidified my vote! 🌹

[@propertyaccelerator]

👍🏻

[@manveencheema8559]

Hi i have just 28 years left of my mums house which was handed down to me recently after her death. I have been quoted almost £60k to buy the freehold. My mum paid just £7p per year in ground rent. I think its worth extending the lease by 990 years when it becomes possible and then sell the house rather than paying the 60k plus expenses. I am not desperate to sell, just anxious about the period of lease remaining. What would you recommend. If it was possible to extend by 990 year could the freeholder try and rip me of by charging ridiculous ground rent as part of extending by 990 years. Appreciate any advice you could off. Thanks Dal

[@propertyaccelerator]

I would wait until the law passes and extend by 990 as you said. I have a free guide that will help you out - marketing.property-accelerator.co.uk/leaseholdebook

[@scienceevolves4417]

Any extension whether now or later will remove the rentcharge completely so that's no concerns there.

[@manveencheema8559]

Thankyou for your help

[@manveencheema8559]

Thankyou for your help

[@manveencheema8559]

Thankyou for your help

[@dominicsryan]

Law states marriage value to be abolished, did not say would be reduced by 50% as this video claims, either he has some further information or is making things up. Also, there will be no compensation for something that is a clear scam.

[@propertyaccelerator]

The Gov website said its going to cost roughly 50% of previous cost to extend.

[@livvyBardoe]

Leasehold of any kind is immoral

[@propertyaccelerator]

👍

[@soniaarthur9550]

Interesting!

[@propertyaccelerator]

Glad you think so!

[@rhatid]

Good time to review. Thanks.👏👏

[@propertyaccelerator]

No problem 👍

[@frze5645]

RE 'NO MARRIAGE VALUE' - having said that there would be NO marriage value, you immediately go on to say it will be half ??? so... there WILL be a marriage value. A bit of clarity would be helpful.

[@propertyaccelerator]

Marriage value is GONE, there is a new calculation which they will release details on that will cost half the price to extend.

[@spencer2721]

They should ban it all, it’s essentially another con to make poor people even poorer, and the rich richer. There is no transparency and there should also be laws brought to make sure that estate agents explain to buyers what leasehold means and what it will mean for them. It could easily be a mis-selling scandal like PPI in the future, I believe a lot of people have been mis-sold leasehold houses & flats

[@jonathangems]

You bet they have. Estate agents should be mandated to tell buyers the truth about leaseholds or be fined.

[@propertyaccelerator]

🙏

[@scienceevolves4417]

But we know what a leasehold means. It means you're buying a lease (called a long lease if it's over 21 years) aka a legal title to an estate in the land for a term of years absolute. Doesn't take a genius to work that out!

[@scienceevolves4417]

​@@jonathangems I prefer the current approach of people simply doing their due diligence prior to making any steps forward. After all, you'd think buying real estate is a little more complicated than buying an apple from a grocery store.

[@kellywalker4494]

Wouldn’t touch a leasehold property.

[@mattanderson6672]

Thank you Sir

[@propertyaccelerator]

👍

[@scienceevolves4417]

Capping rentcharges seems like such a strange idea (glad it's not been passed). So suppose someone is paying a grand or two already, capping that at 250 surely would be a disadvantage to the freeholder. So who would then compensate freeholders? I know that people say oooh if it's over 250 it's classified as an ast. But surely a much healthier way is to simply exclude that from ever having to become an ast. And that's quite aside from the fact, has any leaseholder ever struggled to pay 250 quid or so? That's for a year all right, not per month, it's per year. If people can't really afford to set aside several hundred or even several thousand pounds per year, I just don't think they should be getting these properties in the first place.

[@propertyaccelerator]

Yeah it would be a mess to implement.

[@frze5645]

For CRYING OUT LOUD.... move to the left hand side of the whiteboard before you start writing.

[@propertyaccelerator]

😬

[@marcwaters2600]

sunak wants labour to win

[@propertyaccelerator]

Seems he wants an early Summer holiday.

[@conkers66]

I thought that a while ago 🤔.

[@frze5645]

I CANNOT WATCH THIS VIDEO.... it is infuriating - like, he has a massive board to write on.... and he squeezes everything into the tiny right hand side... WTF?.... either move your body or move the board. I'm off.

[@propertyaccelerator]

👍

[@livvyBardoe]

Leasehold is immoral

[@propertyaccelerator]

👍

[@livvyBardoe]

Lease hold it immoral. If you buy a bike , the bike is yours If you buy a hat the hat is yours Why do we not own a house that's lease hold. Only one is on land. So you buy an apartment. It should be yours Simple I would say...

[@propertyaccelerator]

👍