The future of commonhold: what to expect in 2026

Sebastian Wahlstrom, Associate

Following the introduction of the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill 2026, significant changes are on the horizon for property ownership structures in England and Wales. This article takes a closer look at the planned developments for commonhold and what they mean for property owners, developers, and conveyancers as the bill progresses.

Beside the intended: 

1. ban on leasehold flats; 
2. cap on ground rents; 
3. ending of forfeiture as a relief and; 
4. reducing the threshold of consent to convert leasehold property to commonhold from 100% to 50%,

the Bill is set to receive great popularity. This follows not only the White Paper issued in March 2025, but also growing social pressure for a comprehensive overhaul of leasehold tenure in England and Wales.

The question remains, however: does commonhold provide a sound framework for property ownership?

The main reason leaseholds even exist is because, amongst other factors, it was seen as impossible to sell a piece of property that was effectively in the air and not a piece of physical ground. Additionally, you needed a legal framework for enforcing so called ‘positive covenants’ against flat owners which you cannot do as easily with freeholds. To the layman, this may seem feudal and lends itself to a much desired overhaul. 

Whilst a sound theory, commonhold, like any change in legal framework, is bound to bring a period of troubleshooting not only in practice but also for mortgage lenders and insurers.  

It will mean that each flat owner will own their flat outright, similar to a freehold property, and they will also have a stake in the freehold of land, including the building on top of it, alongside all other owners. This brings with it liability, which is spread between all flat owners, and they must balance this between them and ensure proper management of repairs, insurance, and maintenance on top of  managing day-to-day disputes and upkeep. It is likely that that professional managing agents will still have a role to play in this, as flat owners will not have the capacity (or capability) to undertake this role. 

It is also important to note that beside developments on the use of commonhold, as of January 2026 the government has also introduced an absolute ban on the sale of new build houses (as opposed to apartments) as leasehold property and must now be sold as freeholds only. This comes as a result of the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024, parts of which remain to be brought into practice.