Committee backs key Propertymark calls to fix home buying and selling

Findings from the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee inquiry into the affordability of home ownership have revealed that the home-buying and selling process is a painful experience that reduces motivation to move and slows down the housing market. These findings closely reflect our evidence and support our consistent calls for improvements for consumers and agents. In a letter to Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook MP, the Committee Chair Florence Eshalomi MP shared recommendations ahead of a full report.

Leading the sector and representing members

Clear action is required from MHCLG to improve the buying and selling process in England and Wales, and estate agents are central to the success of any reform. The Committee’s recommendations recognise many of the problems Propertymark members have raised for years.

We are pleased to have been invited to a roundtable discussion on the next steps for reform on 12 May 2026 by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage, the Minister responsible for homeownership and the home-buying and selling process. The UK Government must now work with Propertymark and the wider sector to turn our recommendations into practical changes that reduce delays, cut fall-throughs and improve confidence.

Delays and fall-throughs are damaging affordability

The current process in England and Wales makes home buying longer and more difficult, with delays and collapsed transactions caused by issues such as gazumping and broken chains adding to the affordability crisis.

Failed transactions create high costs for consumers and the wider economy. The Ministry for Housing, Communities, and Local Government (MHCLG) has previously said one in three transactions fail, costing consumers around £400 million a year, whilst more recent evidence suggests the cost could be as much as £560 million.

For estate agents, this will be familiar. Propertymark members regularly see chains delayed or lost because key information is missing, duplicated, or requested too late in the process. In our position paper, The Future of Home Buying and Selling, we identified six issues that slow down transactions and increase fall-throughs: lack of regulation, poor guidance, inconsistent processes, missing and duplicated information, the number of industries involved, and limited modernisation.

Upfront information must become the norm

In evidence cited by the Committee, Timothy Douglas, Propertymark’s Head of Policy and Campaigns, highlighted that 73% of Propertymark members said providing information upfront increases speed, and 63% said it reduces failed sales.

The Committee strongly reflected our position, recommending that MHCLG should make it mandatory to provide information about the property, produced by authoritative providers where needed, when a property first goes on the market, rather than later in the process.

Agents should complete property checks and fill in a Property Information Questionnaire before a home is marketed, to help identify and resolve issues earlier, reduce avoidable delays, and give buyers, sellers, conveyancers and lenders clearer information from the start.

Earlier commitment could reduce gazumping and broken chains

Our call for greater commitment after an offer is accepted was echoed in the report, which recommends making transactions more binding at an earlier stage through conditional contracts. Buyers and sellers would become legally bound once certain conditions are met, with financial penalties if a party fails to proceed after that point. Neither party should be able to withdraw without legal reasons or serious issues with the property, although some fall-throughs will remain unavoidable where circumstances change.

For agents in England and Wales, this reform would need careful design. It must protect consumers against legitimate issues, but it should also stop the avoidable loss of time and money caused by gazumping, unexplained withdrawals and chain collapse.

Regulation is essential to confidence and consistency

The Committee has also backed stronger regulation of estate agents through a Code of Practice and mandatory qualification for each type of property agent, including estate agents – something Propertymark has consistently campaigned for. We believe that staff delivering reserved activities in the buying and selling process should hold a Level 3 qualification, with the activity overseen by a new independent regulator.

This matters because the current system does not provide consumers or other professionals enough consistency. There is no legal requirement for estate agents to be qualified, licensed or belong to a professional body, despite the complex legal and regulatory responsibilities involved in selling property.

Reform must sit within wider action on affordability

Home ownership affordability cannot be solved by process reform alone. Deposit requirements, rising house prices relative to earnings, and falling home ownership among younger people are also major barriers for first-time buyers.

Increasing supply will only improve affordability if homes are delivered faster than demand, at lower cost, if incomes rise, or if there is significant government intervention to support first-time buyers.

That is why Propertymark advocates for a wider package of support, including regular updates to stamp duty bands linked to property values, lower or flatter stamp duty rates, and a First-Time Buyer Decision Tool on GOV.UK and clearer practical guidance on the costs of buying a home.

Kindly written by propertymarkImage courtesy of Adobe