Property portal Zoopla, part of home moving technology business Houseful, has announced additions to its property listings pages enabling home movers to view information regarding crime rates, flood risk, and planning applications in the locale of the property.
The portal says the feature is available through ‘connections with third-party data providers and local council authorities’ with users able to sign in and access the data; claiming to be the only portal that allows consumers to access this type of information outside of a subscription model
Zoopla say their own research shows 50% of home movers research properties between five and ten miles from their current home; one in three search ten miles or more – indicating a ‘clear requirement for information that helps home movers to understand the community they are considering moving to.’ Upon signing in, consumers will be able to discover how many planning applications have been submitted, approved or refused near a property, how many reported crimes there have been in the area, and if it is considered a high-risk area for crime and if the home is at risk of flooding from rivers and seas.
Rich Hayes, Chief Operating Officer at Zoopla said:
“At Zoopla, we’re committed to giving homemovers the insights they need to make confident decisions, from crime rates to flood risks and planning applications. By continuing to invest in our search functionality, we’re not only empowering consumers to win at moving but also attracting more motivated movers ready to take action, ultimately driving better outcomes for our customers.”
The property portals have been working on updating the information held on listings in line with the requirements of guidance published by the National Trading Standards Estate and Letting Agency Team (NTSELAT) on up-front and material information; information which would impact an average consumer’s buying decision.
Zoopla say this is the first in a series of investments being made by Zoopla in 2025 to provide the most data-informed search experience when finding a home. Additional improvements to its search functionality were made towards the end of 2024 with the addition of six new ‘smart tags’, an extra layer of property attributes extracted from property descriptions using AI. At the Society of Licensed Conveyancers Conference last year Rightmove General Counsel David Cox told delegates the portal had completed much of the work required to comply with the guidance from the point of view of having all the information fields available; and they were now working with CRM providers to collect this information from the various customer relationship management systems used by estate agents to populate the listings.
But in the last week Rightmove, Zoopla, and OnTheMarket have all come under fire for failure to provide material information compliant with NTSELAT guidelines on listings. Property advice website HomeOwners Alliance reviewed 150 leasehold property listings and found one in twenty listings still fails to identify the tenure of the property, despite this being a mandatory element of the NTSELAT guidance; only one third of listings outline service charges, and less than half (49%) include details of ground rent.