Ground rent cap to 'help millions of leaseholders'

MILLIONS of leaseholders across England and Wales stand to benefit from an overhaul of the leasehold system, with ground rents set to be capped at £250 a year.

- VICKY SHAW, NINA LLOYD, HOLLY WILLIAMS & ANNA WISE

The shakeup will see many leaseholders save more than £4,000 over the course of their lease, with more than five million leaseholders and future homeowners benefiting from stronger control, powers and protections, the UK Government said.

The move marks the end of residential leaseholders paying over-the-top bills for no clear service in return and it will also make house sales easier for people whose lives have been put on hold because of ground rent terms that make their homes hard to sell, it added.

But the announcement also sparked concerns over the impacts for investor confidence in the housing market.

Yesterday, savings and investment firm M&G warned of a £230m one-off hit from the plans. The company argued that the changes were “disproportionate” and would “negatively impact savers and companies that have chosen to invest in UK assets”.