Posted by Kate Roberts, head of marketing at Legal Futures Associate Perfect Portal
Roberts: Proposals are a significant opportunity to reshape process
The government’s consultation on home-buying and selling reform has been widely welcomed across the property sector, and for good reason.
It openly acknowledges what buyers, sellers and property professionals have known for years: the current process is too slow, too fragmented and too uncertain.
From upfront property information and digital property logbooks to streamlining conveyancing, improving professional standards and modernising leasehold transactions, the proposals tackle many of the frustrations that have become accepted as part of moving home.
While each recommendation has the potential to improve an individual stage of the transaction, their real significance lies in the opportunity to rethink the experience as a whole.
For many years, conversations about improving the home-moving process have centred on technology, but digital transformation should be viewed as the enabler rather than the objective. Buyers and sellers don’t judge their experience by the number of digital platforms they use or the technology operating behind the scenes.
They judge it by whether they understand what’s happening, whether communication is clear, whether professionals work together effectively and, ultimately, whether they feel confident throughout one of the biggest financial decisions they will ever make.
Several of the consultation’s proposals move the industry closer to that goal. Requiring more comprehensive property information before a home is marketed has the potential to reduce uncertainty at a much earlier stage, while efforts to raise professional standards, improve transparency and reduce duplicated anti-money laundering checks address some of the most common frustrations experienced by both consumers and property professionals.
None of these proposals are revolutionary in isolation, but together they signal a shift towards a process that is better connected, more collaborative and easier for consumers to navigate.
That emphasis on connectivity is perhaps the strongest theme running throughout the consultation.
Whether through digital property logbooks, common data standards or greater collaboration between conveyancers, estate agents, lenders and technology providers, the proposals recognise that information should move more effectively between trusted parties instead of being repeatedly requested at different stages of the transaction.
Improving the flow of information is not simply about saving time; it has the potential to create greater confidence, reduce unnecessary administration and allow professionals to focus more of their time on advising clients rather than repeating routine processes.
The same principle applies to the consultation’s recognition of AI. The technology undoubtedly has the potential to reduce repetitive administrative work but its greatest value will come from supporting legal professionals rather than replacing them.
Conveyancers add value through expertise, judgement and advice, and technology should allow them to spend more time doing exactly that instead of carrying out tasks that could be automated safely and efficiently.
Similarly, the proposed reforms to leasehold transactions represent more than an attempt to reduce delays. Introducing greater transparency around information requests, response times and fees is a positive step, but the longer-term ambition should be to create a system where trusted leasehold information is readily available and easily shared.
Reducing waiting times is important, but eliminating unnecessary waiting altogether would represent a far greater improvement to the customer experience.
Taken together, the consultation represents one of the most significant opportunities in recent years to reshape how homes are bought and sold in England and Wales.
While faster transactions are undoubtedly important, success should ultimately be measured by something much broader: whether buyers and sellers feel more informed, more confident and better supported throughout the process.
If the industry can remain focused on improving the experience rather than simply introducing more technology, these reforms have the potential to deliver lasting change for consumers and property professionals alike.
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