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<p>The Government is taking forward a comprehensive programme of reform to end unfair
practices in the leasehold market.</p><p>We are moving towards legislation to ban
the sale of new leasehold houses, restrict ground rents to zero for future leases,
give freehold home owners equivalent rights to challenge unfair charges, and close
loopholes to prevent unfair evictions. We are also working with the Law Commission
to make buying a freehold or extending a lease easier, quicker and more cost effective
– and to reinvigorate Commonhold and Right to Manage. The Law Commission published
its report on options for valuation on 9 January, and we are now considering next
steps.</p><p>In October 2018 we established an independent working group, chaired
by Lord Best, to raise standards across the property sector, which also considered how
fees such as service charges should be presented to consumers in the leasehold sector. The
working group published its final report to Government on 18 July 2019. We are considering the
report’s recommendations and will announce next steps in due course.</p><p>In 2017,
the Law Commission also published a report of their review of event fees in the leasehold
retirement sector on behalf of this Department. The Government responded to the Law
Commission in March 2019, agreeing to implement the majority of the recommendations.
We are currently further considering two recommendations, on succession rights and
a database of leasehold retirement properties with event fees.</p>
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