This weekend, the government proposed reforms to property transactions, which would include upfront information about a property at the point of listing, the use of digital tools to improve transparency and binding contracts between buyers and sellers to avoid collapsed sales.
Readying systems and processes
Maria Harris, chair of the Open Property Data Association (OPDA), said the reforms were a “real step forward” and reflected work across government and industry to make transactions faster and digital.
She added: “The proposals around upfront information, digital logbooks and data sharing are exactly the kind of changes OPDA has been supporting through our work with the Digital Property Market Steering Group and The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG). It’s encouraging to see those conversations now taking shape in policy.”
Harris said the challenge was making sure the data infrastructure to support these changes was “truly open, standardised and governed in a way that benefits the entire market – not just the biggest platforms”.
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Beth Rudolf, director of delivery at The Conveyancing Association, welcomed the reforms, saying these had been “long campaigned for”.
She added: “By ensuring vital information is provided upfront, consumers and industry alike will benefit from greater certainty, reduced risk of fall-throughs and a faster, less stressful process. This is an important step towards the modern, transparent and efficient homebuying system that families and professionals have been calling for.
“These reforms have both the ability to enable conveyancing lawyers to be proactive, and to support estate agents to comply with the law. We would urge a further step to now be made via the regulation of property agents, so they know what, and how, to deliver in this area.”
Major issues still remain
Mark Harris, chief executive of SPF Private Clients, said he supported measures to speed up the process of buying a home, but the suggestions were “largely underwhelming” and did not address the main issues.
Harris added: “Lenders can produce mortgage offers within very short timeframes, but it’s the conveyancing which can really slow down the home buying and selling process, with local searches in some areas experiencing severe delays, for example.
“Building the 1.5 million new homes we need, speeding up the planning process, incentivising buyers and reforming stamp duty are the key measures the government needs to focus on to really make a difference.”
Ben Thompson, deputy CEO at Mortgage Advice Bureau, said he “cautiously” welcomed the proposals, as they had the potential to “significantly improve outcomes” for home movers.
He added: “Improving transparency when a property is first marketed and reducing the average transaction timeline will not only help buyers make more informed decisions, it will also ensure mortgage offers remain valid and aligned with the faster pace of the transaction.
“These changes should reduce the number of deals that fall through, saving borrowers and our industry both time and money.”
Thompson also supported the moves toward standardised data and digitalisation, and hoped the government would continue working with stakeholders to make changes a success.
He said: “We’re optimistic that the industry can find the means to ensure there is zero cost duplication in any proposed changes, especially as the headline to these changes implies cost savings. Unlike previous efforts, we’re hopeful that whatever is implemented is done so with full industry buy-in and support, and is implemented accordingly – especially as data and technology make this eminently more possible today compared to over a decade ago.”
Babek Ismayil, CEO of OneDome, said these proposals would reduce uncertainty and save time, but added: “This isn’t the first time we’ve been here.”
Ismayil said: “Home Information Packs (HIPs) were introduced with similar ambitions back in 2007, but ultimately failed because the wider process wasn’t reformed alongside them.
“If we want these new measures to succeed where HIPs didn’t, they must focus on genuine integration across all parties in a transaction – not just more paperwork at the start.”
Ismayil said this could also have the unintended consequences of delaying properties coming to market, if information needed to be gathered upfront.
He added: “In a market where boosting supply is critical, any added friction must be carefully managed to avoid slowing things down.”
Ismayil said the measures sounded promising but did not address the fundamental issue of the process being disjointed and sectors working in silos.
“Without proper digital integration between these stakeholders, the predicted four-week saving risks being more of an aspiration than a guarantee,” he added.
Ismayil continued: “True reform will come from connecting the dots end-to-end, not just adding new layers of information at the start. Technology already exists to create a seamless, joined-up experience for buyers and sellers, cutting delays and reducing the risk of fall-throughs. This is a promising start, but the real challenge lies in execution — tackling the structural inefficiencies that have held the market back for decades.”
Pressure on estate agents
Estate agents weighed in, saying this would improve the process but could put more pressure on firms and ignore other causes of delays.
Andrew Groocock, COO of estate agency at Knight Frank, said: “Putting all of the onus on estate agents is not the answer.
“While the proposals’ ambition is commendable, there needs to be a complete overhaul of the Land Registry so that the data on it is accurate to at least a month rather than three to four months delayed. The ability to provide searches needs to be significantly improved, there are boroughs in London where local authority searches consistently take over 40 working days – this needs to be digitised and instantly available, but that change sits with the government to invest in the correct solution to speed things up.”
He said the proposals risked putting all the accountability on costs onto sellers and estate agents, adding: “Under the current system the time delay sits between the offer acceptance and exchange period, the government’s proposals will simply shift this delay to the period before any property can be launched to market.
“We would encourage the government to consult with all those working at the sharp end of the industry in order to make meaningful, effective change which will benefit home buyers and sellers for the long term.”
Amy Reynolds, head of sales at Richmond estate agency Antony Roberts, said the proposals recognised how “outdated and stressful” the process had become.
She added: “Anything that brings greater transparency and certainty to buyers and sellers is a step in the right direction. Providing key information upfront will help everyone make more informed decisions, reduce fall-throughs, and restore confidence in the market.
“Estate agents are often caught in the middle when transactions stall because of missing information or unexpected issues – so giving buyers clarity earlier will save not only time and money, but also a lot of unnecessary frustration.”
Wider benefits for the housing market
Speaking of the knock-on effects of the proposals, Phil Cotter, CEO, SmartSearch, said this could clean up the dirty money passing through the housing market.
Cotter said: “The National Crime Agency estimates up to £10bn is laundered through UK property each year.
“By introducing greater upfront transparency, binding contracts and strong source-of-funds verification, the proposed changes won’t just speed up sales and cut costs, they will shine a light into those opaque structures that have allowed illicit wealth to distort our housing market. Estate agents who adopt trusted identity verifications will win credibility and customers, while helping ensure every buyer and seller can see the system is fair.”
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