Buyers to receive more upfront property information

Whether a property has flooded, has a slow broadband connection or features unsafe cladding will soon be made visible to prospective buyers when the property comes to market. The move is part of the National Trading Standards Estate & Letting Agency team’s (NTSELA) Material Information initiative, designed to speed up property transactions and reduce fall through rates.

Part A is already in force

The legislation has been divided into three sections. Material Information Part A was made a mandatory requirement in May 2022. It stipulates that an online listing, loaded to Rightmove, Zoopla, other portal or agent’s website, must state the property’s council tax band or rate, the sales price, the tenure (such as freehold, leasehold, commonhold etc) and any unavoidable costs, such as service charges, ground rents and estate rent charges. The requirement was also extended to printed particulars that an agent may send out in the post.

When Part A was introduced, NTSELA also outlined what Part B and Part C would look like. At the end of November 2023, more detail was added. In addition to the Part A details, agents are being asked to provide the following:

Part B – information that should be established for all properties

• Physical characteristics of the property: property type – e.g. house, flat, room to let, park home etc and property construction – key materials used in the main structure and other areas
• Number and types of room: including room measurements
• Utilities: including how they are supplied, spanning gas, electricity, water, sewerage (if there’s a septic tank or cesspit, and whose responsibility this is if in a tenanted property), oil, heating (in rented properties, whether a tenant can control the settings), broadband (including type and an indication of speed) and mobile signal/coverage (including any known issues or restrictions).
• Parking: whether there are off street spaces or a disabled bay, whether a permit is required etc

Part C – information that may or may not need to be established depending on whether the property is affected by the issue:

• Building safety: e.g, unsafe cladding, asbestos, risk of collapse
• Restrictions: e.g. conservation area, listed building status, tree preservation order
• Rights and easements: e.g. public rights of way, shared drives
• Flood risk: whether the property has flooded in the past five years and if so, how frequently
• Coastal erosion risk: any known risks or previous incidents
• Planning permission: for the property itself and its immediate locality
• Accessibility/adaptations: e.g. step free access, wet room, essential living accommodation on entrance level
• Coalfield or mining area

There are moves to make upfront information mandatory

Agents have been told that new fields will begin to appear when they uploaded a property to a portals, with NTSELA monitoring the uptake of Parts B and C over the next 12 months. After which, it hopes the portals will prohibit the listings when the fields pertaining to Parts A, B and C are not populated.

Sellers to involve a solicitor before they come to market

While some of the information required can be provided by the seller, much of Part C will need gathering – and verifying – by a legal expert. As such, NTSELA is advising vendors to appoint a conveyancing solicitor before they appoint an estate agent.

The wider Material Information scheme does have implications for property sellers. For the first time, vendors will need to disclose flaws and issues that may put off potential buyers, such as the presence of Japanese Knotweed or the knowledge that a new motorway is being built within close proximity.

The same information, just earlier in the process

It is worth remembering, however, that all the information that forms Parts A, B and C of Material Information would be found out during the conveyancing stage anyway. It is often late discoveries that cause chains to break down. Although it may sound frightening to share detailed property information when a home hits the market, greater transparency at the start of the sales process will encourage only the most genuine buyers to book viewings and make offers.

Nevertheless, Move Places does expect there to be an adjustment of asking prices, with figures reflecting the condition of a property and any restrictions pertaining to its location from day one.

If you would like to know more about Material Information and discuss the potential sale of a property you own, contact the Move Places team or use our online valuation tool to start a sale.