Estate agents ‘failing to give flat buyers basic material information’
Paula Higgins of the HomeOwners Alliance tells MPs potential buyers are often not told whether a flat is leasehold or freehold.
Estate agents have been accused of failing to inform potential buyers whether flats are leasehold or freehold.
Paula Higgins of the HomeOwners Alliance told MPs many agents do not give buyers essential upfront information.
Higgins, who was giving evidence on the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Bill to a public bill committee, also said that agents don’t know what their obligations are.
Not happening
“Even though estate agents are supposed to provide basic up-front information, when we did our report on leasehold, half of the estate agents on things we were looking at were not even providing the information that the property was leasehold or freehold,” said Higgins, who is founder and CEO of the HomeOwners Alliance.
They are not regulated; they don’t know what their obligations are.”
“We know that work is going on, and that estate agents are supposed to provide up-front information—we understand that there is the BASPI form—but the reality is that it is not happening.”
She added: “They are not regulated; they don’t know what their obligations are.”
Ban the sale
Under the bill, it will become the norm to statutorily extend leases to 990 years, and only charge a peppercorn ground rent. It also proposes to ban the sale of leasehold houses, but not flats.
It was announced in the King’s Speech in November along with the Renters (Reform) Bill.
Fundamental
Labour has called the bill “unambitious”, and promised to carry out a fundamental overhaul of the leasehold and freehold system.
Read a report of the full debate here
Picture credit: BBC
