Reforms aim to cut delays, reduce failed transactions, and streamline property data sharing
The UK government has introduced a major initiative to modernise the homebuying and selling process, aiming to reduce delays and cut costs for buyers and sellers.
The reforms, announced over the weekend, focus on digitalising property transactions, improving data sharing between industry professionals, and expanding digital identity services.
The government plans to address long-standing inefficiencies in property transactions, which currently take nearly five months to complete. A key issue is the lack of digital integration within the sector. By making critical property information more accessible and ensuring it can be shared seamlessly between trusted parties, the government hopes to streamline transactions and reduce the number of failed sales.
Each year, around one-third of property transactions in the UK fall through before completion, costing buyers and sellers an estimated £400 million. The delays also result in four million lost working days for estate agents and conveyancers, equivalent to £1 billion in wasted resources.
We're announcing major new plans to modernise and speed up home buying and selling.
— Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Gov (@mhclg) February 9, 2025
This will:
✅save time, energy and money,
✅help fewer house sales fall through,
✅and help people buy their new home sooner.https://t.co/nJX3k0OIPl pic.twitter.com/Xd8l12Igop
Drawing inspiration from countries like Norway, where home purchases complete in about a month, the government aims to bring the UK process into the digital age. The reforms are expected to reduce the need for buyers to repeatedly provide identification, minimise last-minute surprises that derail transactions, and make homeownership more accessible.
In addition to homebuying reforms, the government is introducing new protections for leaseholders through the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024. Secondary legislation for the Right to Manage measures will be introduced earlier than planned, taking effect on March 3.
These changes will give leaseholders greater control over their buildings and service charges while removing the requirement to cover freeholders’ legal costs when making a Right to Manage claim. The government estimates this could save leaseholders up to £3,000 on complex cases and reduce barriers to taking control of their properties.
“We are streamlining the cumbersome homebuying process so that it is fit for the twenty-first century, helping homebuyers save money, gain time and reduce stress while also cutting the number of house sales that fall through,” said housing and planning minister Matthew Pennycook (pictured).
He added that the reforms align with the government’s broader housing agenda, which includes efforts to improve living standards, protect leaseholders, and phase out the leasehold system.
Currently, property-related information — such as building control records and highways data — is often stored in non-digital formats, creating delays. Even when data is available electronically, there are no standardised methods for sharing and verifying it.
The government is working with HM Land Registry (HMLR) to address these challenges. A 12-week initiative will establish protocols for data sharing among conveyancers, lenders, and other stakeholders. Additionally, HMLR will lead a 10-month pilot with several local councils to explore ways to improve digital property records.
The reforms are backed by the Digital Property Market Steering Group, a coalition of industry and government experts committed to digitising the home buying process.
The Conveyancing Association (CA), meanwhile, welcomed the government’s commitment to digitalisation.
“This announcement has the potential to be incredibly positive for those going through the home buying and selling process, helping speed it up and working to ensure we bring down the third of transactions which fall through before completion, costing money, causing stress and wasting effort and resources,” said Beth Rudolf, director of delivery at the Conveyancing Association.
“We believe this is not just about its use for homebuying and selling, but it will provide far greater benefits across the lifecycle of property, enabling parties to have the right view of the property data whenever they transact or need to act, whether that is a remortgage, altering or finding a planning application, for letting purposes, or retrofitting to meet net zero targets.
The CA pledged to collaborate with the government and industry stakeholders to implement the reforms as soon as possible.
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