Complaints about leasehold homes rise by 67%

A new report by the Property Ombudsman shows complaints about leasehold properties soared by 67% in 2024.

The rise comes as the government pushes forward with plans to overhaul the leasehold system. 

Here, we explain the common issues that leaseholders are still facing, and outline the changes that are in the pipeline.

Leasehold complaints rise by 67%

The Property Ombudsman (TPO) says it received 6,649 leasehold-related complaints in 2024, up 67% year on year.

The service awarded £148,000 to consumers in disputes related to leasehold, block and estate management. 

However, it says many of the complaints it received related to the fairness of service charges on leasehold properties, which are outside its remit.

Interim ombudsman Lesley Horton says: 'We can consider and investigate complaints about the conduct of a business, but we don’t have powers to set or challenge service charges that cover a building’s operating costs, such as insurance, maintenance and repairs of external or communal areas.'

TPO has published new guidance for leaseholders, offering advice on how to pursue different types of complaints. 

• Find out more: TPO leasehold guide (pdf)

The problems with leasehold

Leasehold is a form of property ownership where you own the home itself, but not the land it is built on. 

The land is owned by the freeholder and is leased to you for a set number of years, for which you pay an annual fee called ground rent. 

Over the past decade, there has been a lot of controversy around leasehold, with many people being unable to sell their homes due to punitive ground rent 'doubling' clauses, high service charges, 'permission' fees to make minor alterations and problems extending leases.

Which? has reported extensively on these issues, including in a 2018 investigation which took in the experiences of nearly 200 leaseholders. 

New measures to support leaseholders

Successive governments have promised reforms to the leasehold system. Most notably, legislation to ban new-build houses being sold as leasehold became law in 2019.

In the final days of the Conservative government, the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 was passed. Key provisions of the legislation included:

• Making it easier and cheaper for leaseholders to buy their freehold
• Extending standard lease terms to 990 years
• Increasing transparency on service charges and requiring freeholders and managing agents to issue standardised bills
• Simplifying the process for challenging unreasonable charges at a tribunal
• Making it easier and cheaper for leaseholders to take over the management of their building.

Only some of the Act's measures have come into effect so far. The requirement to own your home for two years before you can extend the lease has been removed, and, from 3 March, more leaseholders will be able to gain the right to manage their block. 

Some of the other measures will require secondary legislation, and are therefore likely to take some time to come into force. 

• Find out more: leasehold vs freehold

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Will ground rents be abolished?

The Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act came into force in June 2022, banning ground rents on all new long leases.

These charges won't be abolished on existing leasehold properties, although developers have committed to stop using controversial 'doubling' clauses.

The government says it plans to 'regulate' ground rents for existing leaseholders, though specific proposals have not yet been published.

Commonhold could replace leasehold

The government is bringing forward additional plans via the Leasehold and Commonhold Reform Bill. 

These include commonhold replacing leasehold on newly built flats, as well as measures to improve the regulation of management agents.

On 3 March 2025, the government published a white paper outlining its proposals.