With the National Trading Standards Estate and Letting Agency Team (NTSLEAT) currently working on what material information should be provided by estate and letting agents upfront on property listings and portals, as well as the government recently advocating the use of UPRNs, upfront information remains one of the industry’s hottest topics.
The property sector across the board largely agrees that more upfront information is better for the home buying and selling process, and that it supports the necessary consumer protection requirements, but what next? What information should be included to help educate the buyer and how can the process be streamlined?
From the outset of selling a property in the UK, there is not a standardised and simplified process – although the TA6 forms cover key information including boundaries, property alterations and environmental matters, surprisingly, they are not actually a legal requirement and contain wording that is not necessarily consumer friendly. That said, they do form part of the wider Law Society Protocol and it would be hard for someone to sell without completing a TA6 form or equivalent. Then there are the property information questionnaires which differ from agent to agent, giving both property professionals and consumers a disjointed approach. I’d argue that as a sector, more needs to be done when it comes to supporting the consumer – both buyer and seller – in what is currently deemed to be a complex process by many.
The whole procedure needs to be standardised to support a smoother transaction. In the first instance, further thought needs to go into what the buyer might want to know about the property beyond the legal requirements – everything from the broadband provider, to local schools information, planning history and everything in between. Once the detail is agreed, there needs to be further thought on how the forms can be presented and shared with all parties from the outset. It’s all well and good having upfront information but not if it isn’t being shared – agent, buyer, seller, buyer’s solicitor, seller’s solicitor, even the mortgage broker – should all see and agree what is being sold and what is being bought – upfront. Those involved in a transaction should be informed at every possible touchpoint, so they are fully armed with all necessary information to enable informed decision making.
So how can TA6 / property information questionnaires be simplified and streamlined?
Digitisation
Digitisation is another buzzword, but is that the best we can do? Essentially uploading the same form onto a computer? Can these forms be pre-populated with detail based on data and information already held? And can they be made more consumer friendly? Surely the UPRN can be brought in here – if the UPRN for each property was expanded to incorporate all of its activities and characteristics, these can easily be transported into a necessary legal or “sellers” document. Whilst, of course, there will be anomalies due to the very nature of property which doesn’t always fit into a mould, a standardised and pre-populated document including all relevant property information would make the initial process less arduous for the seller, more consumer friendly and ultimately reduce delays.
As an industry, the fact that we are even having the conversation is hugely encouraging. However, I would urge that more of the solutions are developed “consumer first”, which does not seem to be the case currently. Today’s home-moving activity offers a very poor user experience (UX) for the consumer. Many are left with bad memories, and they are unlikely to wish to repeat the activity anytime soon.
Ultimately, if we improve the experience for the home buyer at this unique time when more are developing long-term working from home lifestyles, or certainly less time back in the office, people would potentially move more often which can only be a good thing for the economy, and estate agents.
Matt Gilpin is CEO of Sprift.
Quite clear from this piece that Matt has seamlessly transferred the skilsets required for Astrophysics (his degree course) into the property world .Antony Senny has certainly made an astute investment in Sprift .
Knowledge of physics.
Analytical thinking skills.
Science skills.
Excellent verbal communication skills.
The ability to use your initiative.
The ability to think clearly using logic and reasoning.
Concentration skills.
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Material information has been a thing since 2008- when James Munro won the tender to look after trading standards in the property sector he committed to policing CPR and BPR [Eye story Sept 2015– 6 years ago!]; the legislation that includes the requirement to disclose material information.
18 months ago the National Leasehold campaign highlighted that agents were not disclosing information prospective purchasers and buyers had a right to. That campaign exposed how few agents were complying with legislation that changed 13 years ago.
If you ask NTSELAT what information is material information, what has to be disclosed…… they don’t know, they haven’t decided yet. As Matt says “they’re working on it”
The reality is the legislation defines material information and the stuff that will influence an applicant’s decision to view (or not) or a purchaser’s decision to buy (or not). With such a broad brush ‘material information’ is bespoke to each applicant. If it is important to the applicant it is material information.
The reason NTSELAT can’t define what is and isn’t material information is that the legislation that replaced the easily defined PMA isn’t easily defined.
In order to safely comply with legislation and avoid vexatious complaint agents have to adopt a belt and braces approach to MI- those who’ve understood the requirements and got themselves ahead of the game- the innovators, are finding that rather than being a burden, complying with the MI means having properties that are contract ready. Getting information ready up front might be tiresome, but we can see the affects- once sales are agreed they tend to go through, sale to completion rates are higher.
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how close are sprift to being an instant push button local search operator ? They are innovating snd evolving so fast . A great business winning tool already but very close to becoming a business facilitation tool as well . At the very least if a conveyancer had sprift the enquiries raised would significantly reduce.
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The reality here is that there needs to be a sea-change that will benefit the whole industry. It will filter down from the best agents to others but eventually No Sale No Fee agencies will realise the £benefit and the reputation benefit of sales that go through quicker and more smoothly.
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