A lease with 79 years left sounds safe. It is not. Once a lease drops below 80 years, marriage value kicks in, premiums jump, and the clock on mortgageability starts ticking louder. Now add a live government consultation closing on 21 October 2026 and a Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill promised "this session", and thousands of leaseholders across London and the South East are facing a genuinely confusing decision: extend now, or wait for reform that might make it cheaper?
The leasehold reform consultation October 2026 deadline matters because it covers the actual rates used to calculate lease extension and freehold purchase premiums under the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024. Get the timing wrong, and a leaseholder could overpay by thousands, or miss a window to lock in a known, calculable price before the rules shift again.
This article explains what is actually confirmed, what is still just a proposal, and what a sensible flat owner or buyer should do right now.
Key Takeaways
- The leasehold reform consultation October 2026 closes on 21 October 2026 and covers the valuation rates (capitalisation and deferment rates) used to calculate lease extension and enfranchisement premiums.
- The Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill was promised in the May 2026 King's Speech, published in draft in January 2026, and the Government confirmed in September 2026 it will be brought forward this parliamentary session, but it has not yet been introduced to Parliament.
- Some reforms are already law: the two-year ownership rule was scrapped in February 2025, and Right to Manage was widened (50% non-residential threshold, no freeholder legal costs) from March 2025.
- Marriage value abolition and the proposed £250 ground rent cap are not yet in force. Nobody should assume today's premium calculation already reflects these changes.
- Leaseholders with sub-80-year leases should get a current RICS valuation now, rather than gamble on reform timing that remains genuinely uncertain.
What the Leasehold Reform Consultation October 2026 Actually Covers
The consultation is narrower than many headlines suggest. It is not reopening whether marriage value should be abolished, that principle is already legislated for in the 2024 Act, though it is still awaiting commencement, while the proposed £250 ground rent cap sits in the separate draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill. Instead, it is consulting on the technical valuation inputs: the capitalisation rate and deferment rate that surveyors plug into the premium formula.
These two figures sound obscure, but they drive the final price more than almost anything else. A small change in the deferment rate can shift a premium by thousands of pounds on an otherwise identical flat. According to the HomeOwners Alliance's leasehold reform tracker, this consultation closes on 21 October 2026, after which the Government will need to analyse responses and set the rates in secondary legislation before marriage value abolition and the new premium formula can actually take effect.
That sequencing point is critical: the consultation closing is not the same as the reform starting. There is still a gap, likely months, between 21 October 2026 and any new premium formula becoming law.
The Commonhold Bill: Promised, Not Yet Delivered
Separately, the Government has been building toward commonhold as the long-term replacement for leasehold flats. The timeline so far:
| Date | Milestone |
|---|---|
| January 2026 | Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill published in draft |
| May 2026 | King's Speech confirms the Bill will be brought forward |
| 27 May 2026 | Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee publishes pre-legislative scrutiny report with 56 recommendations |
| September 2026 | Government commits to bringing the Bill forward this session |
| Now (late 2026) | Bill still not formally introduced to Parliament |
The Committee's report is worth noting because it shows where pressure is building for changes beyond the current draft. Its 56 recommendations include a statutory regulator for managing agents, bringing the ground rent cap into force just two months after Royal Assent rather than a long transition period, making conversion to commonhold the default when leaseholders collectively enfranchise, and requiring freeholders to disclose prescribed building-safety information upfront.
None of this is law yet. It is a committee's recommendation to Government, not a guaranteed outcome. Anyone budgeting a lease extension around these proposals is budgeting around speculation, not statute.
What Is Already in Force Right Now
It helps to separate fact from forecast. Two significant changes from the 2024 Act are live today:
- The two-year ownership rule is gone. Since February 2025, leaseholders can apply for a lease extension or freehold purchase from the day they complete their purchase, no waiting period.
- Right to Manage is easier. From 3 March 2025, the non-residential floorspace threshold blocking RTM applications rose to 50%, and leaseholders no longer have to pay the freeholder's legal costs of the application.
These are real, usable rights today. Everything else discussed above, marriage value abolition, the £250 ground rent cap, the Commonhold Bill itself, remains awaiting activation.
Extend Now or Wait? The Real Calculation
This is the question every sub-80-year leaseholder is asking, and there is no universal answer. But three factors should guide the decision.
First, marriage value only bites below 80 years. If a lease has 81 or 82 years left, there is more breathing room to watch the consultation outcome. Below 80 years, every month of delay technically adds cost under the current formula, though that formula itself may change.
Second, waiting carries its own risk. The consultation closes 21 October 2026, but new rates will not be set instantly. If the eventual rates turn out less favourable than expected, which is possible since no figures are confirmed, a leaseholder who waited may find they delayed for nothing, while their lease term kept shrinking and any sale process grew harder.
Third, a Section 42 notice locks in the valuation date. This is the strategic lever a specialist RICS valuer can use: serving a Section 42 notice fixes the valuation date for the premium at the date of the notice, which removes the uncertainty of waiting. This gives certainty rather than betting on legislative timing nobody can control.
"A lease extension premium is only ever as good as the valuation date it is fixed to. Waiting for a better formula that has not been legislated yet is not a strategy, it is a guess."
What a Specialist RICS Valuer Actually Does
A proper premium calculation is not a spreadsheet exercise. It requires:
- Comparable evidence of similar lease extensions and sales in the local area.
- Correct application of current capitalisation and deferment rates, not assumed future ones.
- A defensible Section 42 notice strategy, timed to protect the leaseholder's position.
- Negotiation support against the freeholder's own surveyor, who will often start high.
This is where an independent chartered surveyor earns their fee, by making sure the premium reflects today's law, not tomorrow's headlines.
Questions to Ask Before Buying a Leasehold Flat This Autumn
Anyone buying a flat with a short lease this autumn should ask:
- How many years are left on the lease, exactly? Anything near or below 80 years needs a premium estimate before exchange.
- What is the current ground rent, and is there a review clause? The £250 cap is not yet law.
- Has the seller already served, or could they serve, a Section 42 notice before completion? This affects who benefits from the two-year rule change.
- Is there any building-safety information outstanding? The Committee's recommendation on disclosure is not yet mandatory, so buyers must ask directly.
- What does an independent RICS valuation say the premium would be today? Not an estimate from the agent, an actual calculation.
FAQ
When does the leasehold reform consultation close?
The consultation on lease extension and freehold purchase valuation rates closes on 21 October 2026.
Has marriage value been abolished yet?
No. Marriage value abolition was legislated for in principle under the 2024 Act but has not yet come into force.
Is the £250 ground rent cap active?
No. It is a proposal in the draft Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill, which has not yet been introduced to Parliament.
Should I extend my lease now or wait for reform?
If the lease is below 80 years, most specialist valuers recommend getting a current valuation and considering a Section 42 notice now, rather than waiting on uncertain legislative timing.
What happened to the two-year ownership rule?
It was abolished in February 2025. Leaseholders can now apply for a lease extension immediately after buying.
Is the Commonhold Bill law yet?
No. It was promised for this parliamentary session in September 2026 but has not been introduced to Parliament.
Conclusion
The leasehold reform consultation October 2026 deadline is a genuine turning point, but it is the start of a process, not the end of one. Marriage value abolition, the ground rent cap, and the Commonhold Bill itself remain unconfirmed in timing and detail. What is certain is the law as it stands today, including the scrapped two-year rule and the widened Right to Manage rights.
For anyone holding a lease under 80 years, the practical next step is simple: get an independent RICS premium calculation now, understand the Section 42 timeline, and make a decision based on current law rather than predicted reform. For buyers, ask the hard questions about lease length, ground rent, and building safety before exchange. Waiting for perfect legislative clarity is not a plan, it is a gamble with a shrinking lease term attached.