Collapsed house moves cost the UK £2bn
4 weeks ago
Government unveils far-reaching home buying and selling reforms
12:38 AM, 19th June 2026, 12 hours ago
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Home buyers could save four weeks and first-time buyers an average of £650 under government plans to overhaul England’s property sales system.
The reforms would introduce compulsory sales packs containing information about the condition of a property, leasehold charges and its position in a chain.
Sellers and estate agents would be required to provide the details when a property is listed, allowing buyers to assess potential costs and complications before making an offer.
Earlier binding agreements are also planned to reduce the number of buyers or sellers withdrawing several months into a transaction without a legitimate reason.
Modernising the process
The Prime Minister Keir Starmer said: “Getting the keys to a home you can call your own is one of the biggest events in anyone’s life.
“But right now, the system that should provide support instead turns it into a battle, leaving people in limbo and putting that opportunity out of reach.”
He added: “Our reforms will bring this outdated process into the modern age, saving people time and money, and giving them the certainty they deserve.
“This is about building a stronger, fairer Britain, one that works for the next generation and makes the dream of home ownership a reality for many more hard-working people.”
Reduced collapsed sales
The government said the measures could halve the number of collapsed sales, although it has not set out when the changes will take effect.
The average home purchase currently takes about 120 days, while one in three transactions falls through, according to figures released alongside the announcement.
Failed sales cost sellers about £400 million a year and the wider economy as much as £1.5 billion annually, ministers said.
A new Code of Practice for estate agents will form part of the package which include mandatory professional qualifications for people working in the sector.
Increasing digitalisation
Digital tools allowing buyers and sellers to follow the progress of a transaction are expected to feature in the reforms.
The government pointed to the Netherlands, where a live tracking system is used and the average transaction completes in 20 days.
Norway has also moved to streamline and digitalise property transactions, with estimated savings of up to £1.4 billion over 10 years.
Ministers said the reforms would reduce paperwork, expose costs earlier and give property professionals more time to resolve problems before they derail a sale.
Tags:
binding property agreements, collapsed property sales, estate agent qualifications, First-time buyer costs, home sales packs, homebuying reforms, property sales reform England, property transaction delays
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Member Since February 2020 - Comments: 371
10:03 AM, 19th June 2026, About 3 hours ago
The government shouldn’t be putting fines on people pulling out. Just shorten the process to 20 days like other countries.
What is a “legitimate reason.” for pulling out.
Can 2 half “legitimate reasons.” count.
What if there is a legitimate reason that isn’t classed as a legitimate reason? Who decides?
Love the idea of sellers packs being introduced. But have seen in practice in other countries, where the sale is binding the buyers still pay for them, wonder if that is because they are not trusted. They need to sort out the trust issue if they want that to work.
Member Since July 2013 - Comments: 14
10:15 AM, 19th June 2026, About 3 hours ago
we had HIPs home info packs from 2007 til 2010 then they were wiithdrawn. Why do they think the new version will fare any better?
Member Since March 2024 - Comments: 283
12:45 PM, 19th June 2026, About 57 seconds ago
This has no more chance of this working this time around than when Yvette Cooper wheeled it out as HIPs nearly twenty years ago.
The only way it could really work for buyers if the seller is choosing the surveyor and commissioning the report (effectively removing Caveat Emptor) is a proper survey looking at everything in depth with a financial obligation on the surveying company to compensate the buyer for any defects missed or not correctly described at the time of survey. But that will be £1,000 plus and a burden on potential sellers who may not achieve a required selling price to be able to move. And the only way to find that out is to market it – if it receives no offers then nobody’s time has been wasted.
Intermediate level reports are not much use on older properties as there are so many areas not covered in depth, carpets not lifted, difficult to access roof spaces not inspected. And no two surveyors reports will be exactly the same as anyone will know who has seen two different surveys on the same property.
Having sold thirteen of my properties over the past decade it is the glacial pace of communication that strikes me as a problem plus buyer’s conveyancers asking questions that have already been answered on the initial information forms completed by the seller. I also wonder whether the conveyancing industry has pushed the expectation to three months minimum rather than the two it used to take to justify their role and charges. There are generally no dusty documents to plough through as the Land Registry went digital twenty years ago -but don’t they love raising queries about obscure and trivial points that don’t have any supporting paperwork as a result and always seem to need the seller to pay for an indemnity policy!