Key data required under guidance published by the National Trading Standard Estate and Lettings Team (NTSELAT) in line with Consumer Protection Regulations is still being omitted from estate agent listings and not being shown on major consumer portals.
Analysis of 118 Rightmove listings from 1st July 2024 to 9th August 2024 show that while a significant amount of key information is being provided agents are still falling down when it comes to providing data on the size of the property, accessibility issues, and utilities rights and restrictions.
NTSELAT have introduced guidance over the last 18 months to improve the availability, and veracity, of information available to would-be purchasers through the home buying and selling process. The guidance outlines what might be considered material information in line with the definition in the wide-reaching Consumer Protection From Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (CPRs). CPRs superseded the Properties Misdescriptions Act and require vendors and estate agents to provide information that could impact any decision to make and offer or buy a property.
Trading Standards have also worked with property portals Rightmove, Zoopla, OnTheMarket and others to update listings to reflect the inclusion of this information, with the portals now showing several annotated ‘ribbons’ and menus highlighting key material information prominently in one location.
The analysis has been undertaken by Helen Price, a Chartered Building Surveyor and PhD candidate at the Bartlett School of Planning, University College London, as part of research into the Home Buying and Selling Process in England and Wales. The survey work was undertaken in two locations, Telford & Wrekin and Kirklees, with a mix of local and national agents selected for review.
While Part A of the Material Information Guidance, which includes questions on Asking Price, Council Tax Banding and Tenure, shows near 100% compliance, data related to Parts B & C shows is less complete. Part B is information about the property, construction type, suppliers (electricity, water and sewerage). Part C includes things that affect the enjoyment of the property; building safety issues, restriction and covenants. Listings were compliant around Property Type, number of bedrooms and bathroom, and garden, but when it came to size, accessibility and Utilities Rights & Restrictions the percentage of information fell sharply to 26%, 16% and 15% respectively.
The most notable information not provided was “accessibility” with 84% of listings blank. 59% of agents did not input a single entry into the Utilities, Rights and Restrictions section; and 74% of listings lacked data on the size of the property. While many properties do have floor plans with the floor area, some did not and those with 3D plans did not identify the total floor area. Concerningly, despite the requirement to do so, 17% of the listings did not have EPCs.
“Now that the portals provide boxes for the key items of material information to be displayed, it is important that the information is entered. This is not only for compliance with the guidance on material information, but there is research to suggest that ‘missing’ information in the eyes of a sceptical buyer, signals lower quality and / or ‘issues.'”
says Helen.
In a podcast with Today’s Conveyancer recorded around the time of the full guidance being published Head of NTSELAT James Munro said there was an opportunity for a change in the way conveyancers offer their services as a result of the introduction of the Material Information Guidance. Collating information around things that affect the enjoyment of the property; building safety issues, restriction and covenants etc, is where Munro sees the biggest opportunity for collaboration.
“It is not the agent’s job to interpret information, they simply need to establish material information. This is where a conveyancer might offer a limited service for home movers and estate agents who need support with complying with the guidance to go through these issues, interpret the issues properly, and come up with a pragmatic and informative way to disclose information that may be a little bit complex or details that the agent would not be in a professional position to display in that form.
Sometimes covenants (for example) can be quite straight forward, and others complicated. The message for conveyancers is where those flags in part C exist, estate agents should be advising vendors to instruct legal expertise.”
said Munro in the podcast, acknowledging any earlier involvement needs to take into account the capacity of the profession and current charging methods but a ‘limited up front package’ might include a caveat that should the transaction move forward, the firm would act on the matter and thus secure the work, and potentially any ongoing purchase, at an earlier stage in the transaction.
