In this article, we will look at how the Leasehold and Freehold Reform act 2024 and the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform act 2026 will (eventually) become law.

At the time of writing, the Leasehold and Freehold Reform act 2024 gained royal ascent on 24^th May 2024 and the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform act 2026 is a draft bill.

All future timelines are best estimates and could vary wildly from what actually happens so please take these as indicative and our best estimates as of September 2026.

We’ll start with the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform act 2026 as this still has to pass through many stages before it is granted Royal Ascent.

Stage 1: Pre-Legislative Scrutiny (January – May 2026)

Before introducing a Bill to Parliament, the government may publish it in draft form and send it to a relevant Select Committee for review.

What happened:

• Government published the draft Bill on 27 January 2026
• Housing, Communities and Local Government Select Committee reviewed it over four months
• They published their report on 27 May 2026

The Select Committee’s role is to scrutinise the proposals, take evidence from experts and stakeholders, and report on whether the Bill will achieve its aims. Importantly, they can recommend improvements – and they did. The committee concluded that the draft Bill is “a significant step towards giving leaseholders greater control of their buildings, but” the government “must go further and faster” on commonhold and leasehold reform.

The government then uses this feedback to refine the Bill before formally introducing it to Parliament.

Current status: Complete. The refined Bill should be ready for parliamentary introduction.

Stage 2: Introduction to Parliament (Expected Late 2026)

The Bill is formally introduced in the House of Commons. It receives a Bill Number and is published in its official form. Typically, there’s a First Reading – a ceremonial announcement with no debate.

Why it matters: This is when the Bill officially enters the legislative process. Before this, it’s just a draft.

Timeline: Expected autumn/late 2026, but not confirmed.

Stage 3: House of Commons Scrutiny (2026–2027)

Once introduced, the Bill goes through three “readings” plus a committee stage in the Commons. This is where the detailed work happens.

Second Reading: MPs debate the Bill’s general principles. “Do we agree, in principle, that we should reform leasehold law?”

Committee Stage: A smaller committee examines the Bill line-by-line, section-by-section. MPs can propose amendments. This is where specific wording is debated and fought over.

Report Stage: The whole House considers the amended Bill and any further amendments.

Third Reading: Final debate and vote in the Commons.

Duration: This typically takes several months. Complex bills can take a year or more in the Commons.

Current status: As the Bill hasn’t even been introduced yet, this process has not started.

Stage 4: House of Lords Scrutiny (2027–2028)

After the Commons approves the Bill, it goes to the House of Lords for the same process.

The Lords can propose amendments. The Commons can accept them, reject them, or negotiate a compromise. If they can’t agree, the Bill “pings” between the two houses until they reach consensus.

Duration: Several more months, typically.

Current status: Won’t happen until 2027 at the earliest.

Stage 5: Royal Assent (2027–2028)

Once both houses agree on the final version, it goes to the King for formal approval. This is largely ceremonial – a King doesn’t refuse bills unless there’s a constitutional crisis.

Current status: Many months away.

Stage 6: Secondary Legislation & Commencement (2027–2029+)

Passing a law is not the same as the law coming into force.

After Royal Assent, the government has to write detailed regulations that explain how the law actually works. This means such things as

• Content and form of the Commonhold Community Statement (Section 30 (CCS regulations))
• How leaseholders in new flats can exercise their right to acquire a commonhold unit (Section 52(7-8))
• Powers and procedures for enforcing commonhold obligations (Section 97)
• Detailed procedural rules for disputes about commonhold matters (Section 159) (Court or tribunal rules)
• Amendments to existing regulations like the Commonhold Regulations 2004 (Section 163(6)
• Writing guidance for tribunals and managing agents

……..and this is just a tiny sub-section of the secondary legislation that will be required. Each of these regulations typically requires a consultation period. The government publishes draft regulations, waits for consultation responses (usually 6-12 weeks), considers the feedback, and publishes final regulations. Then there’s a commencement date.

Different provisions might come into force at different times and there can be gaps of several years between completion of the first and last pieces of secondary legislation.

This is why the government’s written statements about implementation dates are vague. They don’t yet know exactly when they’ll have all the secondary legislation ready.

Why Is This Taking So Long? The Real Obstacles

1. Complexity

Leasehold law is genuinely complex. It touches property law, valuation methodology, building safety, insurance regulation, and tribunal procedure. A Bill that tries to reform all of this at once needs careful scrutiny. Courts will challenge it. Regulators will need to coordinate.

2. Court Challenges from Freeholders

In early 2025, major freeholders (including the Duke of Westminster and the Earl of Cadogan) launched a judicial review challenge against key aspects of the 2024 Act, including marriage value abolition and litigation costs restrictions.

The High Court threw out this challenge in October 2025. However, in April 2026, the Court of Appeal granted permission to appeal to five groups of freeholders seeking to challenge the decision. This appeal is likely to be heard in late 2026 or early 2027.

If freeholders win on appeal, it could delay or derail parts of the reform programme. Even if they lose, the litigation uncertainty is slowing things down.

3. Consultation Cycles Take Time

The government is genuinely trying to get the detail right. That means consultation. The valuation rates consultation, for example, only just launched in July 2026. It closes in September 2026. But setting the final rates into binding regulations will take additional months.

Each significant reform requires consultation, and these typically run for 8-12 weeks, plus time for the government to consider responses and draft final regulations.

4. Political Priorities and Parliamentary Time

Parliament has a packed agenda. Leasehold reform is important, but so are the NHS, schools, energy, housing supply more broadly. The Bill might not even be introduced until late 2026. Once it is, other bills might take priority. A complex bill like this could easily spend 12-18 months working through Parliament.

5. Practical Implementation Challenges

Once a law passes, it has to actually work in practice. New IT systems for tribunals, new training for managing agents, guidance documents, enforcement mechanisms – all of this takes time.

What You Should Do now?

If You’re Thinking About Extending Your Lease

If you have 83 years or more to run on your lease, then it may be worth waiting.

If your lease is close to or below 80 years, consider extending now under the current law. Marriage value kicks in with 80 years remaining and many mortgage lenders won’t consider leasehold properties with 80 years or less on the lease (in some cases, 85 years). As this is a “today” problem, we recommend dealing with it based on “todays” laws especially where marriage value isn’t a factor.

If you’re lease is in the range 60-70 years, you may face serious problems when you try to sell (lenders won’t lend, buyers won’t buy). In these cases, waiting 3 years for marriage value abolition to come into force could save you substantially on extension costs, even though your lease gets slightly shorter.

Given the reforms that are coming, many freeholders may be open to offers below what they may have quoted you.

If You’re Paying Unusual Insurance Fees

Challenge them now. The ban on insurance commissions isn’t yet in force, but it’s coming. If your service charge includes fees that aren’t clearly itemised, ask your freeholder or managing agent to justify them in writing.

If you’re being charged a “permitted insurance fee” that seems unreasonable, you can now take this to the tribunal. Regulations are being finalised, and your challenge could set a precedent.

If You’re In a Building With Cladding Issues

Check if your building is eligible for government remediation funding. The government has just opened new funding rounds (from 17 August 2026) for buildings under 11 metres with serious cladding fire safety defects. If your building qualifies, apply now. Timelines can slip.

Conclusion

Leasehold reform isn’t a simple story of “here’s a Bill, it’s becoming law, everything changes.” It’s a complex, multi-layered process involving two pieces of legislation, parliamentary scrutiny, court challenges, consultation cycles, secondary regulations, and phased implementation dates.

Understanding this complexity doesn’t make the news any less good – it just makes it realistic. Reform is coming. The intent is to make leasehold ownership fairer, more transparent, and less risky. But it’s coming over the next 18-36 months, not tomorrow.

In the meantime, don’t leave yourself worse off by waiting. Consider what the law allows today but make decisions based on professional advice specific to your situation, not on headlines about promised reform.

If you’d like to discuss your specific leasehold situation or need advice on whether reform timelines should affect any decisions you’re facing, Common Ground Estate and Property Management can help. We work with leaseholders and managing agents to navigate both current law and the transition to future reforms