Paula Higgins, Author At HomeOwners Alliance

Paula Higgins

CEO & Founder

After spending 15 years reforming housing policy in government, Paula set up the HomeOwners Alliance to give homeowners a voice. Paula is the public face of the organisation with regular appearances on TV (BBC News, This Morning, Rip off Britain) and Radio (Radio 4 You & Yours, Moneybox and Radio 5 Live), attending government and industry groups and spearheading our campaigns. Paula is a property expert for The Sun, and has also written for and contributed to a number of publications including The Times, Daily Mail, iNews and House Beautiful.

Commonhold explained: What it is and what it means for leaseholders (2025 update)

KEY INFORMATION Commonhold at a glance What is commonhold? Commonhold is a form of ownership that allows flat owners to own and manage their buildings jointly and is an alternative to the leasehold system. Is Commonhold law yet? Commonhold was introduced into the UK under the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002. However, according to […]

UK home buying and selling reforms will ‘save buyers £100s and speed up process’

The average time to buy a house could be cut by 4 weeks, under a package of UK home buying and selling reforms proposed by the government. Under the plans, sellers and estate agents would be required to give buyers vital information about a property upfront, including the condition of the home, leasehold costs, and […]

Retirement Housing Reform: Beyond the Sales Brochure

Over the last decade here at the HomeOwners Alliance we’ve had a steady stream of unhappy homeowners and their grown children dealing with retirement property problems. This is why we are launching a campaign for Retirement Housing Reform. There is no question that we need more retirement housing options in the UK. According to Our […]

License to Build: Stop Cowboy Builders

Thousands of UK homeowners fall victim to rogue builders every year, with contractors delivering poor work, abandoning projects, or disappearing with deposits. Cowboy builders have cost British homeowners an estimated £14.3 billion over the past five years alone, research by the Federation of Master Builders found. Unlike electricians or gas engineers, builders don’t need to prove […]

Ground Rent Explained

What is ground rent? Ground rent is a fee paid by a leaseholder to the freeholder for the right to occupy the land their property is built on. Ground rent is most commonly paid by leasehold flat owners but if you own a leasehold house you may need to pay it too. Your lease will specify […]

Lease extension costs in 2025

KEY INFORMATION Lease extension costs: Summarised How much does it cost to extend a lease? The cost of extending a lease depends on numerous factors including the property value, the length of the lease, the ground rent payable and how often it increases. To get an idea of how much it may cost you to […]

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Paula Higgins

Latest Articles by Paula

Commonhold explained: What it is and what it means for leaseholders (2025 update)

UK home buying and selling reforms will ‘save buyers £100s and speed up process’

Retirement Housing Reform: Beyond the Sales Brochure

License to Build: Stop Cowboy Builders

Ground Rent Explained

Lease extension costs in 2025

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