<b><b>Peta Dollar, partner at law firm Denton Wilde Sapte, gives housebuilders a guide to the new commonhold rules which could soon be introduced in the UK</b></b><br><b> Everybody has heard of freehold and leasehold title, but what is commonhold? There is a bill currently before Parliament, the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Bill, which, if enacted, will create a completely new form of title to land equivalent to the condominium law in the United States and Australia. The bill is progressing through its Parliamentary stages and the government is keen for it to come into effect before the election. </b><br><b>The bill sets out the proposals in skeleton form, and these will be fleshed out by regulations yet to be issued. But they are set to impact on new private developments, and not only of flats and apartments but also traditional private sector developments of terraced, semis and detached homes. </b><br><b><b>Sustainable agenda </b></b><br> While the idea of commonhold is fairly straightforward for apartment blocks - the commonholders accepting control and responsibility for the common areas of their building and dispensing with the headache of management companies and landlords - it may seem less relevant for more traditional sites. <p></p><p>But where such developments have …