Last reviewed: 5 Oct 2026
I’ll be blunt. A lot of what you’ve read about lease extensions since May 2024 is either wrong or early. Headlines announced that marriage value was dead, that every lease would get 990 years, and that ground rents were capped. Some of that is on the statute book. Almost none of it applies to a lease extension you start today.
I’ve watched leaseholders put off extending because of those headlines. Meanwhile their leases kept shortening and their premiums kept climbing. So here are the seven claims I hear most, and where each one actually stands.
The quick answer (England and Wales, October 2026): The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 received Royal Assent on 24 May 2024, but its main lease extension changes are not in force. A statutory lease extension on a flat still adds 90 years at a peppercorn ground rent. Marriage value is still payable on leases under 80 years. Premiums are still valued using the Sportelli deferment rates of 5% for flats and 4.75% for houses. The one big change in force is the end of the two-year ownership rule, on 31 January 2025.
1. “A lease extension now gives you 990 years”
Not yet. A statutory lease extension on a flat still adds 90 years to the remaining term, at a peppercorn (zero) ground rent.
This is the myth I hear most, and I understand why. The 2024 Act does raise the statutory extension to 990 years for both flats and houses. But a section of an Act does nothing until the government commences it, and that section hasn’t been commenced.
The extension you get today comes from the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993. A flat with 78 years left becomes a lease of 168 years, not 990.
Honestly, 168 years is plenty. No lender will blink at it, and it solves the problem you actually have. Don’t turn down a perfectly good 90-year extension because a 990-year one might arrive at some unknown date.
2. “Marriage value has been abolished”
No. Marriage value is still payable on every lease extension where the lease has 80 years or less remaining.
Marriage value is the uplift in a flat’s value that comes from extending a short lease. Under current law, the freeholder takes 50% of it once your lease drops to 80 years or below. That is why premiums jump so sharply at the 80-year line.
The 2024 Act abolishes it, and the High Court has upheld that reform. But the provision isn’t in force, and there is no commencement date. Until there is, the old valuation law is the law.
This is the myth that costs people the most money. I’ve seen owners sitting at 82 years decide to “wait for reform”, drift under 80, and hand over a share of marriage value they could have avoided. If you’re close to the line, the reform you’re waiting for may arrive after the damage is done.
3. “Ground rent on existing leases is capped at £250”
No. The £250 cap is only a proposal in the draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill, published on 27 January 2026. It is not law.
This one gets mixed up with the 2024 Act all the time, but it comes from a completely different piece of legislation that hasn’t passed yet. The draft Bill proposes capping ground rent on existing leases at £250 a year, falling to a peppercorn after 40 years. The only commencement date anyone has suggested is late 2028, and even that depends on Parliament.
Two things are getting blurred here:
- The Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act 2022 does apply now, but only to most new long leases granted from 30 June 2022. It doesn’t touch your existing lease.
- The 2024 Act’s 0.1% cap limits how much ground rent counts in the premium calculation, at 0.1% of the freehold value. It is also not in force.
If your ground rent is high or doubles every few years, a statutory extension removes it entirely today. You don’t need to wait for a cap.
4. “The government has fixed the valuation rates, so extensions are cheaper”
No. The government only opened its consultation on deferment and capitalisation rates on 15 July 2026, and the closing date has been extended to 21 October 2026. No rates have been set.
This is the myth I find most worrying, because the truth could go either way. Under the 2024 Act, premiums will be calculated with a Standard Valuation Method using rates the government prescribes. Once that happens, neither side will be able to argue for a different rate.
The deferment rate is the big one. Today’s benchmark comes from the 2007 Sportelli case: 5% for flats and 4.75% for houses. The consultation asks whether to keep those rates, update them with newer evidence, or use a different method.
Here’s the bit nobody puts in a headline. A lower deferment rate makes extensions more expensive for leaseholders. The government’s own figures estimate that a 3% rate for flats could mean leaseholders paying around £6.3bn more over 10 years. A 6% rate would mean about £1.1bn less.
So my view is simple: anyone telling you reform will definitely cut your premium hasn’t read the consultation.
5. “You no longer have to pay your freeholder’s costs”
Wrong. Under section 60 of the 1993 Act, you still pay your freeholder’s reasonable legal and valuation costs on a statutory lease extension.
The 2024 Act would rewrite this. Sections 38 and 39 move towards each side paying its own costs and repeal section 60. Neither section has been commenced. The government is also consulting separately on exceptions to the “pay your own costs” rule, so even the final shape of this reform is still open.
In practice, budget for two sets of professional fees: yours and your freeholder’s. That’s not a reason to avoid extending. It’s a reason to know your total cost before you serve a notice.
6. “The freeholders lost in court, so it’s all settled”
Not settled. The freeholders lost in the High Court, but the Court of Appeal gave five groups permission to appeal on 1 April 2026. A hearing is expected in late 2026 or early 2027.
The challenge was brought by some of London’s biggest estates, including Cadogan, Grosvenor and Howard de Walden. In Arc Time Freehold Income Authorised Fund v Secretary of State [2025] EWHC 2751 (Admin), the High Court found that the ground rent cap, the marriage value reform and the costs reform were all compatible with human rights law.
That was a strong win for leaseholders. But an appeal is live, and live litigation is one more reason commencement keeps slipping. I’d treat any article calling this “done” with suspicion.
7. “Reform is coming any day now, so just wait”
Unlikely. The government has said the 2024 Act’s flaws will be fixed through the new Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill. The parts that make extensions cheaper are effectively tied to that Bill passing.
As of October 2026, that Bill hasn’t even been introduced to Parliament. The government has promised it before Christmas 2026. The Housing Committee wants Royal Assent by mid-2027. After that come the valuation rate regulations and the commencement orders.
Put that chain together and my honest estimate is this: cheaper statutory extensions are not realistic before late 2027, and 2028 looks more likely. That’s my opinion, not a government date. No one has published one.
So should you wait? Here’s how I’d think about it:
- Well above 80 years (say 90+): waiting costs you relatively little. Watching reform is a reasonable choice.
- Approaching 80 years: act. Crossing the line brings marriage value into play, and nobody can tell you when it will be abolished.
- Already under 80: every year adds to the marriage value. Waiting is a bet on a date nobody knows, and the stakes grow as the lease shrinks.
- Selling or remortgaging soon: your buyer’s lender cares about today’s lease, not tomorrow’s law.
The one “fact” that is true: the two-year rule is gone
Since 31 January 2025, you no longer need to have owned your flat for two years before claiming a statutory lease extension. Section 27 of the 2024 Act made this change, and it was the first significant part of the Act to come into force.
In my view, this is the most underrated change in leasehold law in years. Buyers of short-lease flats can now serve a Section 42 notice from the day they complete. If you’re buying a flat with a short lease, the extension can be part of your plan from day one. You no longer have to wait two years while the lease shrinks.
Why some leaseholders choose a combined surveyor and solicitor service
With the law in this state, many leaseholders find that the hardest part of an extension isn’t the premium. It’s coordination. A statutory lease extension needs a valuation from a surveyor and a legal process run by a solicitor. Traditionally, the leaseholder appoints and pays each one separately.
Extension.Lease takes a different approach. It brings RICS-qualified surveyors and SRA-regulated solicitors together under a single fixed fee. Its model offers several practical benefits:
- The valuation and the notice line up. The premium proposed in a Section 42 notice must be realistic. When the surveyor and solicitor work together, the figure in the notice comes straight from the valuation, not from an email chain between two firms.
- Deadlines are less likely to slip. The statutory process runs on fixed time limits, including the freeholder’s counter-notice and the window for applying to the First-tier Tribunal. A missed deadline can mean a notice is treated as withdrawn. One team tracking one timetable lowers that risk.
- Fees are known upfront. A single fixed fee for the leaseholder’s own surveyor and solicitor makes budgeting simpler. Leaseholders still need to allow for the freeholder’s section 60 costs and the premium itself.
- Advice that reflects current law. Valuations are prepared under the rules in force today, including marriage value and Sportelli rates. That matters when so much online guidance describes reforms that haven’t started.
- One point of contact. Leaseholders deal with a single service rather than relaying messages between two firms.
For leaseholders weighing up “extend now or wait”, Extension.Lease’s combined model means the valuation and the legal advice arrive together. That makes the decision easier to judge on real numbers.
My verdict
Leasehold reform is real, it’s coming, and it will help a lot of people. But “coming” is doing a lot of work in that sentence. Today’s lease extension runs under 1993 rules: 90 years, marriage value under 80 years, Sportelli rates and section 60 costs. Plan around the law you have, not the law you’ve read about. If your lease is close to or under 80 years, get a proper valuation now so you know what waiting would actually cost.
Quick FAQs
Is the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 in force? Only partly. It received Royal Assent on 24 May 2024. As of October 2026, the main lease extension reforms are not in force. These are the 990-year term, marriage value abolition, the new valuation method and the costs changes. The removal of the two-year ownership rule has applied since 31 January 2025.
How many years does a lease extension add in 2026? A statutory lease extension on a flat in England and Wales adds 90 years to the remaining term, with ground rent reduced to a peppercorn.
Do I still pay marriage value? Yes, if your lease has 80 years or less remaining. The freeholder is entitled to 50% of the marriage value.
When will lease extensions get cheaper? There is no official date. The cheaper-extension reforms depend on the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill passing and on new valuation rates being set. The valuation rates consultation closes on 21 October 2026.
Can I extend my lease straight after buying? Yes. Since 31 January 2025, you can claim a statutory lease extension from completion.
This article reflects the position in England and Wales as at 5 October 2026. It is general information, not legal advice.