Leasehold

Does the peppercorn ground-rent rule apply to a lease granted in 1998?

No. The Act and the government guidance are about leases granted on or after 30 June 2022, with the detail set out in that guidance. A 1998 lease keeps the rent it reserved, unless a later deed changed it. The survey of the flat does not change the rent either.

Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.

What is the fuller explanation?

Buyers see a modern kitchen and assume the lease is modern. The lease date is on the document and often on the Land Registry title. Ask the solicitor for both. A rising rent in an older lease can matter to a lender. Ask the lender once the solicitor has told you the figure and the review pattern. We will not guess a lender’s limit.

Condition still matters. A 1998 lease in a building with a concrete problem is two issues. Do not let the rent question erase the survey, and do not let a rating 2 on the windows erase a doubling rent. They do not offset like a household budget unless you decide, with advice, that one of them changes your price.

What should you ask your surveyor?

Please confirm the inspection says nothing about the 1998 rent.
Which physical defects would you still want priced regardless of the lease date?
What should I hand the solicitor from your report?

What are the typical next steps?

Get the lease date and the rent clause before you argue about the kitchen.
Ask the lender if that rent is acceptable. Do it with the clause, not with a summary.
Read the survey as if the rent were fine, so you do not miss a building defect.

Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.

Also asked about this

If the lease is extended after June 2022, does the new rent become a peppercorn?

A statutory or voluntary extension is a legal process with its own rules. Ask a leasehold solicitor. Do not assume the kitchen-table answer. The Act’s commencement for brand-new leases is not a DIY guide to extensions.

Can the seller verbally promise to vary the rent?

Only a deed the solicitor is happy with changes the lease. A promise in a text does not.