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All GLA grant-funded shared ownership homes to have 999-year leases
All shared ownership homes built in the capital as part of the new Affordable Homes Programme will be sold with a 999-year lease as standard, the Greater London Authority has said.
Tom Copley, deputy London mayor for housing, has written to City Hall’s housing partners setting out the new expectation which will come into force with the new £4bn Affordable Homes Programme in April.
In the letter Mr Copley encourages developers to ensure that other homes they build, such as private leasehold homes, are offered on a similar long-lease basis where possible.
It comes two weeks after the government announced plans to make it easier for leaseholders to extend their leases to 990 years with zero ground rent.
London mayor Sadiq Khan said he supports these measures, but believes leaseholders can also be protected through the adoption of longer leases from the outset.
Shorter leases have an impact on the value of a property, as values tend to depreciate drastically when there are 80 years or fewer left on a lease.
Ministers first unveiled plans to tackle leasehold exploitation in 2017, though no legislation has yet come forward.
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Mr Khan said he will continue to urge the government to act quickly to introduce wider leasehold reform.
He added: “Shared ownership properties can be a helpful first rung on the housing ladder for Londoners.
“However, too many leaseholders continue to face unfair extra costs that increase stress for themselves and their families.
“Shared owners deserve to feel secure in their home for as long as they live there without the threat of an unreasonably costly and burdensome leasehold extension process hanging over them.
“I’m proud of my record on new genuinely affordable homes, including the action we’ve taken to start building more new council homes last year than in any year since 1983.
“It’s long past time the government enacted leasehold reform, and I’m determined to lead by example by doing everything I can within my powers to help leaseholders and improve shared ownership.”
Sebastian O’Kelly, director at the Leasehold Knowledge Partnership, said: “We applaud the London mayor for urging that all shared ownership leases should be for 999 years.
“The point of shared ownership is to give the least well-off a chance to get on the housing ladder.
“It is mortifying to come across cases where shared owners have taken years to staircase up to 100% ownership and then get kicked in the teeth because the lease needs extending, at the cost of another £20,000 to £30,000.
“Wherever possible, all shared ownership leases should be 999 years or no shorter than the head lease owned by the social landlord issuing these sub-leases.”
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