There have been several proposals by elected officials[2] and campaign groups[3] to abolish or mitigate the practice, and it has been questioned in Parliament and the devolved assemblies.
[4] A fleecehold property is usually taken to mean one that has deeds or a lease that allow a management company to impose a service charge on the householder.
The local authority does not need to adopt common land and amenities on the estate and does not bear the cost or responsibility for their upkeep.
The developer in turn does not need to build any of these amenities (such as roads, pathways, flowerbeds and drainage systems) to the standards that local authorities require for them to be adopted.
Leaseholders have some statutory rights defined in the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 which can prevent the worst practices of fleecehold.