One in five house sellers don’t realize they could be causing delays to their sale, a swaying survey reveals.
The investigation found that these sellers did not know what material information was and the details they needed to provide in listing their properties.
When asked whether agents were provided with all the required details to satisfy Part A, 23% said they were unsure, had none provided, or had only provided some of them.
Part A refers to details considered vital to all properties, such as municipal tax bands, asking price and tenure information.
For Part B, which refers to the information that must be established for all properties, such as physical features, number of rooms and how utilities are provided, 20% are unsure, provide nothing, or only provide some of it.
Meanwhile, for Part C, 37% of sellers were unsure, offered nothing, or only offered some of it.
Part C refers to information that may or may not be required to establish, such as listed building status, unsafe cladding issues and planning permission.
When asked whether their real estate agent had given or guided them on the material information needed to list their property, 37% responded negatively.
Moverly’s data found that many properties remain on the market without the legally required substance information.
In addition to delays, agents face significant fines for not providing required information in property listings.
From April, the Competition and Markets Authority will become the main overseer of substance information compliant with new powers to keep 10% of global flows out of compliance.
Gemma Young, chief executive of Porters, said: “While material information requirements are becoming increasingly important for property listings, there are still clear knowledge gaps in the market, particularly for those who haven’t heard or don’t understand its purpose consumers.”
