Housing market will be hit by strike action at Registers of Scotland

Scotland’s housing market will slow down at a time when it is already facing delays after the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union announced strike action.

That’s the view of DJ Alexander Ltd, the largest lettings and estate agency in Scotland.

The union says its members will strike on 1 February, and this includes those working at the Registers of Scotland (ROS) which is an integral part in the processing of property sales and purchases in the country.

‘Vote for strike action at Registers of Scotland’

David Alexander, the chief executive of DJ Alexander Scotland, said: “The vote for strike action at Registers of Scotland has the potential to delay transactions in the housing market.

“While it is understandable that members of the PCS union feel the need to take action to secure higher wages, it is inevitable that this will impact on the speed at which property transactions can be carried out.

“While this is just a one day strike it is inevitable there will be more if their pay demands are not met.”

‘Potential delays in the buying and selling process’

He added: “Homebuyers and sellers must be made aware by their selling agent of any potential delays in the buying and selling process.

“This may frustrate many who are keen to buy and sell at the moment although a positive side is that the industrial action is taking place at a traditionally quiet time for the market.”

Mr Alexander continued: “Unfortunately, this is happening at a time when the property market is already facing many challenges with many homeowners trying to accelerate the buying and selling process due to uncertainty over mortgage offers.

“While it obviously depends on the level of industrial action and the number of strike days undertaken, this will undoubtedly cause delays in the buying and selling process.

“I would hope that the impact will not be too great and that it can be resolved quickly to allow a return to normal service as soon as possible.”

The strike vote turnout passed the 50% threshold

The PCS will stage a one-day strike on 1 February of all members in those employers where the strike vote turnout passed the 50% threshold required by law for action.

The union says this will be the largest civil service strike for years and signals a significant escalation of industrial action after a month of strikes over pay, pensions, redundancy terms and job security.

The PCS says: “Industrial action is a last resort. But so far, the government has refused to discuss our demands. 100,000 PCS members on strike on 1 February will increase the pressure on the government.”

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