Nationwide has commented in response to the Government’s announcement on how it intends to address onerous ground rents and leaseholds, welcoming the measures outlined.
As an organisation owned by its members and with a core purpose of helping people save for a home of their own, Nationwide became the first major lender to address this issue back in May.
Chris Rhodes, Nationwide’s Director for Products and Propositions, said: “We welcome the Government’s positive measures in addressing onerous leasehold terms and escalating ground rents. We hope this encourages providers to review their lending criteria in this area and also guide homebuilders on future developments.
“This is the very reason why we made the decision back in May to become the first major lender to not lend on properties affected by unreasonable multiplying leaseholds that double every five, ten or 15 years. The maximum acceptable starting ground rent on all new build leasehold properties is limited to 0.1 per cent of the property’s value, while our minimum acceptable lease term on new build transactions are now 125 years for flats and 250 years for houses.
“Today’s announcement gives further momentum to this important issue.”
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