Taking the politics out of property reform – why it matters for conveyancers, housing and the wider economy

For once, the stars seem to be aligning. The Government’s new consultation on reforming home buying and selling reads like a checklist of what conveyancers have been calling for over many years – upfront information, better regulation of property agents, aligned AML checks, digital ID, and genuine interoperability between systems.

It’s practical, it’s evidence-based, and it suggests those in power are finally listening to the people who live this process day in, day out.

As conveyancers, we know exactly where the pain points lie – duplicated ID checks, chasing clients for evidence of source of wealth and source of funds, poor-quality data, missing documentation, delays caused by third parties who aren’t held to account. Many of us have spent our careers trying to fix inefficiencies that were never of our making. So, when a Government document – on the whole – echoes what the CA and its members have been advocating for years, we welcome it.

The proposals to make comprehensive upfront information mandatory, for example, are long overdue. Without verified and reviewed information at the point of marketing, transactions will always be reactive and fragile. Add in the suggestion to streamline AML, educate and regulate agents, and embrace digital property logbooks, and we start to see a pathway towards a process that is quicker, fairer, and less frustrating for all involved.

The consultation even acknowledges the need for interoperability and data standards – something the CA has championed for years through the digital Property Data Trust Framework. If the Government can back this up with clear policy and funding, the benefits for conveyancers should be clear: fewer repetitive admin tasks, fewer fall-throughs, and more time for the advisory work clients actually value.

So far, so encouraging. But here’s the issue: we’ve been here before.

Every couple of years – sometimes every  year – a new Housing Minister arrives with the need to bed in, to get up to speed, plus their own view point on what reform should look like, which all too often has led us to a shifting priority list and a stumbling approach to getting things done. And then they move on and the whole process starts again.

Since 2000, we’ve had 25 Housing Ministers and 12 Secretaries of State for Housing. As a result, we have lost plenty of momentum but also no holistic view on housing and delivering safe, green and affordable homes for everyone. The housing market remains stuck with outdated processes, and conveyancers are left trying to reconcile yesterday’s systems with a growing array of responsibilities thrust upon them. It is perhaps unsurprising that we have a falling number of conveyancing firms active in our sector.

That’s why, alongside our support for the consultation and a raft of potential solutions, the Conveyancing Association is calling for something bigger and more permanent – the creation of a National Housing & Home Moving Commission.

This would be an independent, cross-party arms-length body, designed to take the politics out of housing and home moving/selling reform. Much like the Bank of England was given responsibility for setting interest rates to remove short-term political interference back in 1997, the Commission would oversee long-term housing and property policy, providing continuity across various iterations of Government.

For conveyancers, this matters enormously.

Think about the investment that’s gone into digitisation, ID checks, and data sharing over the last few years – much of it driven by the private sector, often without guaranteed long-term policy support. A change in Government shouldn’t mean a change in direction. A Commission would ensure that once reform is agreed, it is protected, nurtured, and built upon.

The proposal is simple but powerful. The Commission would be made up of cross-party MPs and peers, conveyancers, estate agents, lenders, PropTech innovators, planners, and consumer representatives, with regulators such as the CLC, SRA, BSR, FCA and ICO at the table.

It would have a clear statutory duty: to publish recommendations to which Government must respond within six months, and to present an annual report to Parliament for debate. In short, it would provide the strategic leadership and accountability that has been missing for decades.

The benefits for conveyancers are obvious. A stable, evidence-led approach to reform means we can plan, invest, and innovate with confidence. It would give us a clear long-term roadmap for digital adoption, qualifications, and data integration, instead of the constant uncertainty that drains both time and resource.

And crucially, it would bring the right people into the room. Too often, large numbers of stakeholders are on the receiving end of reform rather than being part of shaping it. A permanent cross-sector Commission would make sure that doesn’t happen again.

Of course, the current Government deserves credit for the progress it’s making. The consultation is thoughtful and detailed.

But the issues we face go well beyond the lifetime of a single Parliament.

That’s why this is the moment to think bigger. If we really want to modernise housing and home moving, we need an enduring structure to oversee it. One that remains in place regardless of who is in Downing Street.

For CA members, this proposal isn’t abstract policy talk. It’s about protecting the reforms that will make our working life better. It’s about creating a system where their role is supported by consistent standards, digital tools, and properly-regulated partners across the chain.

We now have a Government that seems ready to do the right thing. The challenge is to lock in that progress so it can’t be undone. By backing the creation of a National Housing & Home Moving Commission, we can help ensure that the home moving process continues to evolve – not just for this Parliament, but for decades to come.

Beth Rudolf is Director of Delivery at the Conveyancing Association (CA)