# Plans to cap ground rents ‘could bring estimated £8.7bn windfall for landlords’

By David Fell — 2026-03-11

David Fell, lead analyst at Hamptons, said: “Up until 2016 there was big buy into new city centre flat developments from landlords.

“Investors typically made up the bulk of purchasers.

“Housebuilders were often able to sell a whole development off-plan to landlords before they had even started to build them.

“But since then, higher stamp duty rates and an oppressive tax regime have meant in more recent years purchases of new homes are more likely to be owner occupiers and first-time buyers in particular.

“This has typically meant that sales are secured more slowly and often post-completion. This has served to depress housebuilding rates.

“More first-time buyers means that most purchasers of new leasehold homes today require a mortgage.

“So ground rents charged on new leasehold flats have in recent years increasingly been capped by mortgage lenders’ underwriting rules.

“Banks have often declined to lend where they deem ground rents to be excessive or contain onerous future increases.

“This can make flats hard to sell and depress values, so has served to keep ground rents in check.”

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