North East estate agency group My Property Box has welcomed confirmation of Government plans to overhaul the leasehold system, describing the proposed reforms as a major step towards improving transparency and restoring buyer confidence in the apartment market.
The changes, confirmed in the King’s Speech through the forthcoming Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill, are expected to reshape how flats and shared residential developments are owned and managed across England and Wales.
Marie Reeve, Sales and Lettings Director at My Property Box – which has offices in Darlington, Newcastle, and Northallerton – believes the changes can stimulate activity, particularly among young buyers in the apartment sector.
She said: “The move towards commonhold has the potential to make ownership simpler and more transparent, while giving residents greater control over how buildings are managed.
“In turn, that should help improve buyer confidence and encourage activity in the apartment market, particularly among younger and first-time buyers.”
Among the headline proposals are measures to cap ground rents at £250 per year before reducing them to a peppercorn rate after 40 years, alongside plans to ban the sale of new leasehold flats and make commonhold the default model for future apartment developments.
The reforms could have a significant impact on urban housing markets in the North East, particularly in cities where apartment living has become more common through regeneration schemes and city-centre development.
Under the current leasehold system, homeowners purchase the right to occupy a property for a fixed period, while ownership of the land and building remains with a freeholder. Critics of the model have long argued that escalating ground rents, rising service charges and limited control over building management leave many homeowners financially exposed.
The commonhold model would instead allow homeowners to own their property outright while collectively managing communal areas such as entrances, lifts and car parks, removing the need for an external landlord.
Marie added: “Leasehold is less common in the North East because the housing market is still dominated by freehold family homes rather than large-scale apartment developments.
“However, these reforms are still significant for areas where city-centre living and regeneration schemes have expanded over the past two decades. In places such as Newcastle, Gateshead and Sunderland, more buyers have been purchasing leasehold apartments.”
