---
title: "Leasehold Reform Timeline to 2028 and How We Are Preparing"
url: https://manage.management/blog/leasehold-reform-timeline-to-2028-how-manage-management-is-preparing
description: "Leasehold reform timeline to 2028: the 12 November regulations, the Bill due before Christmas, commonhold.property updates and our product commitments."
author: "Franklin Baeza"
published: 2026-11-13T10:07:03.000Z
updated: 2026-11-13T11:07:40Z
categories: ["Lease Extensions & Freehold","Governance & Compliance"]
publisher: Manage.Management
language: en-GB
---

# Leasehold Reform Timeline to 2028 and How We Are Preparing

Leasehold reform timeline to 2028: the 12 November regulations, the Bill due before Christmas, commonhold.property updates and our product commitments.

Leasehold reform in England now has a timeline running to the end of 2028. Five sets of service charge regulations were laid in Parliament on 12 November 2026, leaseholders gain information rights and protection from landlords' legal costs from 1 April 2027, and standard demands, accounts and annual reports start on 1 November 2027 for private landlords, including RMCs and RTM companies. The Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill, which would cap existing ground rents at £250 a year and replace forfeiture, is due before Christmas 2026.

This post sets out the latest from [commonhold.property](https://commonhold.property/), the plain-English leasehold and commonhold reform tracker run as an editorial project by Manage.Management, the UK block management platform for RTM and RMC directors, leaseholders and managing agents. It also explains how we are supporting the changes, and our commitment to build our product to meet each legal requirement on time and go further where leaseholders and directors need it. It covers England and is general information, not legal advice.

## Key takeaways

- On 12 November 2026 the government laid five sets of regulations to switch on the service charge reforms in the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024. Three need a vote in both Houses.
- From 1 April 2027, leaseholders can request service charge information, including from earlier years, and landlords will in most cases need court or tribunal approval to pass on legal costs.
- From 1 November 2027, private landlords, including RMCs and RTM companies, must use standard demands, accounts and annual reports, and every landlord must give insurance disclosure and publish an administration charge schedule.
- From 1 November 2028, councils and housing associations move onto the standard demands, accounts and annual reports.
- The Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill is due before Christmas 2026. It would make commonhold the norm for most new flats, cap existing ground rents at £250 and replace forfeiture.
- Manage.Management is aligning its product roadmap to every one of these dates, so that resident-led boards and managing agents are ready before each rule starts.

## What is the latest on leasehold reform?

The latest step is the laying of five sets of regulations on 12 November 2026, which hold the detailed rules for the new service charge, information, building insurance and legal cost protections. The government announced them on 11 November, saying over three million leaseholders in England will benefit from 1 April 2027 ([GOV.UK](https://www.gov.uk/government/news/flat-owners-handed-massive-boost-to-fight-rip-off-service-charges)).

commonhold.property's analysis, [The timeline is set: five sets of service charge regulations laid, and every leasehold reform date to 2028](https://commonhold.property/articles/leasehold-reform-timeline-set.html), brings every date together in one table. Our own post on [what the five new service charge regulations do](https://manage.management/blog/service-charge-regulations-2026-what-the-five-new-rules-mean-for-your-block) goes through each instrument, including the new Building Insurance Disclosure Document.

## What are the key leasehold reform dates to 2028?

There are three fixed start dates, 1 April 2027, 1 November 2027 and 1 November 2028, set in law by the [Commencement No. 4 Regulations](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2026/1128/contents/made). The other milestones are government promises or commentators' projections, as the [commonhold.property tracker](https://commonhold.property/) marks clearly.

| Date | What happens | Status |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 25 October 2026 | Start dates for the 2024 Act's service charge reforms set in law | Made |
| 12 November 2026 | Five sets of service charge, insurance and legal cost regulations laid | Laid, subject to Parliament |
| Before end of 2026 | Sixth set of regulations on litigation costs | Government promise |
| Before Christmas 2026 | Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill introduced | Government promise |
| 1 April 2027 | Information requests; legal cost limits; fixed service charges regulated | Start date, subject to Parliament |
| 1 November 2027 | Standard demands, accounts and annual reports (private landlords); insurance disclosure and admin charge schedules (all landlords) | Start date, subject to Parliament |
| Mid-2027 | Royal Assent for the Bill | Commentators' projection |
| 1 November 2028 | Standard demands, accounts and reports for councils and housing associations | Start date, subject to Parliament |

Our earlier guide to the [confirmed timetable for the 2027 service charge reforms](https://manage.management/blog/leasehold-reform-timetable-confirmed-service-charge-insurance-and-legal-cost-changes-from-2027) explains what each 2027 change means for a resident-led company.

## What will the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill change?

The government says the Bill will make a revised commonhold model the default for most new flats, make it easier for existing leaseholders to move to commonhold, cap existing ground rents at £250 a year and replace forfeiture with a fairer enforcement regime. It is "due to be introduced in Parliament before Christmas 2026" ([GOV.UK](https://www.gov.uk/government/news/flat-owners-handed-massive-boost-to-fight-rip-off-service-charges)).

The [draft Bill published on 27 January 2026](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/draft-commonhold-and-leasehold-reform-bill) set the ground rent cap at £250 a year, changing to a peppercorn after 40 years. commonhold.property's explainers cover the detail:

- [What is commonhold, really?](https://commonhold.property/articles/what-is-commonhold.html) explains how commonhold ownership works.
- [Will my flat convert automatically?](https://commonhold.property/articles/will-my-flat-convert.html) explains that existing flats do not convert on their own, and that conversion would need the support of at least 50% of qualifying leaseholders.
- [The ground rent cap, explained](https://commonhold.property/articles/ground-rent-cap.html) covers the £250 cap and the transition to a peppercorn.

The government's 29 September 2026 plans for caps on permission and administration fees and a licensing regulator for property agents are expected to travel with the Bill. We covered them in our post on [leasehold fee caps and agent licensing](https://manage.management/blog/leasehold-fee-caps-and-agent-licensing-what-the-governments-announcement-means-for-your-building), and our guide to [commonhold reform for leaseholders, directors and managing agents](https://manage.management/blog/commonhold-reform-what-it-means-for-leaseholders-resident-directors-and-managing-agents) explains the wider shift.

## How is Manage.Management supporting the changes?

We support the reforms. Their aims, transparency for leaseholders, clarity for resident directors and modern, accountable management, are the reasons Manage.Management exists. We are aligning our product development to each legislative date so that the boards and managing agents who use our platform can comply on day one, not scramble afterwards.

Our commitments are:

1. Track every change in public. commonhold.property will keep a dated, sourced record of every Bill stage, regulation and consultation, marking clearly what is law, what is laid and what is only promised.
2. Build to the prescribed forms. When the final regulations are approved, we will build the standard service charge demands, annual reports, accounts support and administration charge schedules into the platform ahead of 1 November 2027.
3. Make information requests easy to answer. Before 1 April 2027, we aim to give boards a simple way to log requests, track response deadlines and find six years of invoices, contracts and insurance records.
4. Support insurance transparency. We will help boards collect what brokers must provide for the Building Insurance Disclosure Document, within the 14-day and 60-day deadlines in the regulations.
5. Go beyond the minimum. The law sets a floor. We will keep giving leaseholders clear, real-time sight of how their money is spent, and give directors the governance tools, such as digital voting and meeting records, that collective decisions like a future commonhold conversion will need.
6. Read the final text before we ship. Where details depend on regulations not yet approved, we will update our product and guidance once the final text is published, not before.

RMC and RTM directors can see how the platform supports resident-led boards on our [page for directors](https://manage.management/directors), and managing agents can read about our tools for [management companies](https://manage.management/management-companies).

## What should boards do now?

Start with records and suppliers, because the April 2027 information rights reach back into existing paperwork. commonhold.property's [timeline analysis](https://commonhold.property/articles/leasehold-reform-timeline-set.html) gives the same advice.

- Before 1 April 2027: set up a request log, check you can retrieve several years of invoices, contracts, insurance and safety records, and ask your managing agent, broker and any superior landlord how they will answer onward requests.
- Before 1 November 2027: read the final forms, engage an accountant who meets the new definition, review insurance commissions and publish your administration charge schedule in good time.
- Now: ask your software provider how and when it will support the prescribed forms.

## Frequently asked questions

### What is commonhold.property?

commonhold.property is a plain-English tracker of leasehold and commonhold reform in England, run as an editorial project by Manage.Management. It keeps a dated, sourced timeline of every Bill stage, regulation and consultation, and labels each item as law, laid, promised or projected. It also publishes explainers on commonhold, conversion, the ground rent cap and enfranchisement. It is general information, not legal advice.

### When will the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill be introduced?

The government says the Bill is due to be introduced in Parliament before Christmas 2026. Commentators have projected Royal Assent around mid-2027, but that is an estimate, not a government date. The Bill would cap existing ground rents at £250 a year, make commonhold the norm for most new flats, make conversion easier and replace forfeiture with a new enforcement scheme.

### Will my leasehold flat convert to commonhold automatically?

No. Under the draft Bill, existing leasehold flats do not convert on their own. Leaseholders would need to choose conversion together, and the Housing Minister has said at least 50% of qualifying leaseholders would need to support it. A building with an active RTM company or RMC may find it easier to organise. Details could still change as the Bill passes through Parliament.

### Do the 2027 service charge rules apply to RMCs and RTM companies?

Yes, in most cases. Section 30 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 says a landlord includes any person with a right to enforce payment of a service charge, which covers RMCs and RTM companies that demand service charges. They follow the private landlord timetable, so standard demands, accounts and annual reports apply to them from 1 November 2027.

### How will Manage.Management keep its platform compliant?

Manage.Management is aligning its product roadmap to each reform date. That includes building the prescribed demand, report and administration charge forms once the final regulations are approved, helping boards log and answer information requests from April 2027, and supporting insurance disclosure. Where rules are not yet final, we will update the platform and our guidance once the approved text is published.

## Leasehold reform timeline: the short answer

Leasehold reform now runs on fixed dates: information rights and legal cost limits from 1 April 2027, standard demands, accounts, reports and fee schedules from 1 November 2027, and social landlords from 1 November 2028, with the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill due before Christmas 2026. Follow every update on commonhold.property, and expect Manage.Management to be ready ahead of each date.

Last reviewed: 13 November 2026 by Franklin Baeza, Manage.Management. This article is general information for England and Wales, not legal advice. Check the current position with a qualified adviser before acting.

---

Source: [Leasehold Reform Timeline to 2028 and How We Are Preparing](https://manage.management/blog/leasehold-reform-timeline-to-2028-how-manage-management-is-preparing) on the Manage.Management blog.