The UK government's ambition to abolish the leasehold system and replace it with commonhold faces significant challenges, with experts suggesting the transition could be more complex than anticipated. While there is broad political support for reform across major parties, including former housing secretaries and the Liberal Democrats and Greens, the practical implementation of commonhold presents difficulties.
Professor Sherry notes that while commonhold is a "workable" system, "stuff can be tricky." He advocates for commonhold because he believes "people who don't live in homes should not own the underlying land and get the benefits that flow from that." This sentiment aligns with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government's stated goal to "transform the experience of flat ownership in England by giving homeowners 'more power and control over high costs.'"
However, the compensation sought by current English freeholders is likely to be substantially higher than under existing systems. Scotland's current system, which shares similarities with commonhold, "generally works," according to Gerber, though he acknowledges that issues can arise when individuals are unwilling to contribute financially.
Despite potential complications, there is optimism that commonhold reform will proceed. Hopkins believes that legal challenges are unlikely to derail the process, stating that "a lot of the arguments, I think, have really been lost" after a judicial review failed comprehensively. The political landscape appears favorable, with former housing secretaries Angela Rayner and Michael Gove having previously backed reform.
The path forward, however, remains politically charged. The next prime minister's appointment of a housing secretary will be crucial in navigating the "technical and long" draft bill, indicating that the manifesto pledge to reform leasehold has a considerable way to go before becoming a reality. The successful transition to commonhold will depend as much on political will as on policy execution.