A well-known Essex estate agent is to spearhead a last-ditch attempt to persuade the Government to change its mind over its controversial plans to reform the housing market.

The reforms, designed to speed up the house-buying process in England and Wales, have attracted widespread support from consumer groups.

But in spite of being a long-standing champion of greater consumer protection in the house-buying process, John Pring, of leading Essex agents Fisks, is concerned that the proposals - if enacted in their current form - could actually end up seriously damaging the housing market, pushing up prices even further, and costing the public a great deal of money into the bargain!

Obligatory home information pack

“The core of the Government’s proposed reforms,” John explains, “is to make it obligatory for anyone wishing to sell a property to first compile a Home Information Pack, containing all the legal documentation needed for a sale – things like title deeds, replies to standard enquiries, and details of local searches. The idea is to ensure that all this information is already in place before a property is put on the market, instead of waiting for the buyer’s solicitor to start the ball rolling.”

So far, so good

So far, so good, he says. “Providing crucial information up-front in this way can only serve to speed up transactions - to everyone’s benefit. What’s more, although it means that the cost of making searches and so on is transferred from the buyer to the seller, the agreed sale price will reflect this expense.”

Difficulties with the home condition report

Much more of a problem, however, is the Government’s proposal that the new packs should also include a special type of survey, called a Home Condition Report, or HCR. This could cost sellers several hundred pounds – and, according to John, would be of little practical value. “Of course, it would be useful for prospective buyers to have some indication of a property’s condition at the outset, but would it really be worth the extra cost – particularly in view of the fact that there is no guarantee that lenders will accept HCRs for mortgage purposes?”

Who’s going to do the dreaded donkey-work?

There is also the little problem of capacity, John adds. “There are currently around 1.3 – 1.5 million house sales a year in the UK, and the plain fact is, we simply don’t have anywhere near enough qualified surveyors to carry out that many inspections. This will inevitably cause new delays, defeating the whole object of the exercise!”

Drive to change the government’s thinking

It is with these concerns in mind that John is launching a drive to try and change the Government’s thinking. “As is so often the case, it’s the middle way that is best,” he says. So, he wants the Government to keep the Home Information Pack, but drop the compulsory HCR.

“If the Government persists in going down the route it has mapped out, the added expense will almost certainly dissuade a lot of people from putting their homes on the market at all. This would have a serious impact on the supply side of the market, and inflate prices even further,” he warns.

But time, John acknowledges, is short. “The period of consultation set by the Government expires at the end of June, so we really need to act now if we’re going to make a difference.”

John is compiling an official submission to the Department of the Environment, Trade and the Regions, setting out his views. He also plans to actively lobby Essex MPs on the issue.

More importantly, he wants to encourage members of the public to get involved in the campaign as well. “We all need to lobby our MPs as hard as we can, in order to convince them that the current proposals are a real vote loser,” he says. “That’s the only way to get a little common sense back into this thing before it’s too late!”

Few people are better qualified to try and lead such a campaign. A prominent figure in the estate agency business, both locally and nationally, John has held a succession of senior positions on the ruling council of the industry’s professional body, the National Association of Estate Agents. Indeed, as Chairman of its Parliamentary and Home Affairs Committee, he played a central role in initial discussions with the Government over their plans.

“At the end of the day, this is not a question of what is good or bad for estate agents,” John insists. “It’s about getting the best deal for the house-buying public, and ensuring that the housing market functions as smoothly and efficiently as possible.”

John Pring is a senior partner in forward-looking Fisks estate agents, one of the leading independent firms of residential estate agents in South East Essex.