Sam Cam’s half-brother in lease row

The halfbrother of David Cameron’s wife, Samantha, is at the centre of a row over the sale of thousands of new leasehold homes. 

 

It has emerged that William Waldorf Astor IV has links to firms that rake in cash by owning and managing property freeholds that were controversially sold off by developers to investors. 

 

The 38-year-old runs fund manager Long Harbour, which has the freeholds of 160,000 homes on behalf of institutional investors. He is also a director of HomeGround Management, which looks after 70,000 freehold contracts for Long Harbour, collecting cash from leaseholders. 

 

Buyers have complained of soaring ground rents – with some doubling every decade – and extortionate fees to buy the freehold on their homes.

 

Nurse Katie Kendrick, 37, bought her new home from Bellway in Ellesmere Port three years ago. She said: “It was supposed to be our forever home, but it’s the biggest mistake I’ve ever made.”