The Home Buying and Selling Group (HBSG) has launched a discussion paper to help improve the home buying and selling process and is seeking feedback from across the home moving industry, government and consumers.

The HBSG is an informal mix of people from across the property, legal and finance sectors, all of whom believe that if the industry, government, and media work together, the home buying and selling process can be improved for consumers.

However, to secure changes, HSBG argues that the whole home moving industry needs to come together to agree on what solutions would work ‘on the ground’, test and pilot upfront initiatives, for example, Property Logbooks, Property Packs or other solutions and Digital Identity and agree on changes the industry can make itself and where we need government and media help.

The paper sets out a different way of moving home which the industry can deliver now, including:

  1. Instructing a legal company day one of marketing, or before
  2. Buyers being financially qualified prior to viewings
  3. Aiming to move everyone by 1pm on the day of completion

The HBSG also set out the help required by government to revolutionise the sector for the future including implementing the already agreed changes to the leasehold sector, mandating up-front information which meets recognised standards, delivering single Digital Identity verification for sellers and buyers and turning a very paper led system into one that is digitised, where quality data can be trusted by all.

Collaboration has been key in delivering for the HBSG, including working on home moving industry guidance during covid and extending the SDLT. As such, the HBSG has published this paper with the aim of creating discussions within the industry, government, and the media on whether – and how – the solutions proposed would improve the process, not just for consumers, but for the industry too.

The discussion paper can be accessed below and please add any comments to this post - thank you in advance