Independent surveyors should play key role in home buying reforms, says Houzecheck
The surveying sector should be central to the government’s plans to reform the home buying process to give buyers access to reliable information about the condition of a property, Houzecheck has suggested.
The proposed plans to overhaul the home buying process include legislation requiring sellers to prepare property sales packs before a home is listed. This would include property searches and a property condition report, aiming to make the process faster and more transparent.
Houzecheck said although a condition report will be implemented, the scope and requirements are yet to be confirmed.
The proptech surveying firm said qualified, independent surveyors were best placed to provide this information to ensure these assessments are supported by professional expertise.
Richard Sexton, commercial director at Houzecheck, said: “Giving buyers better information earlier in the process is absolutely the right direction of travel, but the quality of that information will be critical.
“If we’re asking buyers to make one of the biggest financial decisions of their lives based on a property’s condition, that assessment needs to come from a professional with the expertise to identify the issues that really matter.”
What mortgage and protection advisers should take from the FCA’s AI stance
Sponsored by Sesame Bankhall Group
Avoiding bottlenecks in the transaction chain
Further, Houzecheck said if plans to reform the home buying service led to an increase in demand for surveying services, the industry must have the capacity to respond without creating bottlenecks in the transaction. The firm said independent surveying firms could resolve this.
Sexton added: “The last thing we should do is create a bottleneck in the homebuying process that only slows sales down. If condition assessments become a standard part of every sale, the surveying industry needs the capacity to deliver them quickly and consistently without compromising professional judgement or quality.
“That means making full use of the independent surveying sector, including firms that already have national coverage, established surveyor networks and technology-enabled processes. There is capacity in the market, but the reforms need to make sure that capacity can be deployed effectively.”
Further details on the requirements for property condition reports are expected as plans for reform progress.
