In a market where house prices are experiencing their first June decline in a decade, UK homeowners are increasingly turning to innovative technology to cut the costs associated with selling their properties. A new app called Survey Shack is gaining traction, offering a low-cost DIY alternative to traditional property surveys that could help sellers avoid costly surprises and streamline the sales process.
According to data from Rightmove, average asking prices fell by 0.3% this June, marking the first drop for the month since 2015. This follows a 0.4% month-on-month decline in May, as reported by Halifax. Against this backdrop of cooling market conditions, the financial burden of selling a home remains significant.
The HomeOwners Alliance estimates the average cost at £4,910 for a property valued at £290,000, encompassing £4,150 in estate agency fees, £700 for conveyancing, and £60 for an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC).
These figures assume a smooth transaction, but unexpected issues uncovered during buyer-commissioned surveys often lead to renegotiations, added legal fees, or even collapsed deals.
Traditional surveys, which can cost between £300 and £1,500 according to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), are frequently skipped by sellers to save money, leaving potential problems to surface later in the process.
Enter Survey Shack, a mobile app launched in October 2024 by a team of qualified surveyors. The app has already been downloaded over 1,000 times, empowering sellers with a do-it-yourself inspection tool.
Users are guided through a free, step-by-step property check using their smartphones, after which they can purchase a detailed report for just £29.99. This report provides tailored insights into the property’s condition, helping sellers address issues early and make more informed decisions.
The rise of such tech solutions aligns with broader efforts to modernise the UK’s property market. In February 2025, the government outlined plans to digitise the buying and selling process, aiming to reduce the one-in-three failure rate of transactions.
These collapses are estimated to cost Britons around £400 million annually, plus an additional £1 billion in lost productivity for conveyancers and estate agents—equivalent to four million working days.
Brett Ray, Founding Partner and CEO of Survey Shack, emphasised the app’s role in this shift: “Modernisation and digitisation in the property sale process are long, long overdue. The financial and emotional strain of selling your home, only to see the transaction collapse at the last moment, is something we have the technology to address. So that’s what we’re doing with Survey Shack – we’re putting the power to reduce the likelihood of sales and chains collapsing into sellers’ hands at a low cost.”
For London sellers, where property values often exceed the national average and transaction costs can escalate quickly, tools like Survey Shack could prove particularly valuable. As the capital’s housing market navigates ongoing economic pressures, including interest rate fluctuations and supply constraints, affordable tech innovations may help more homeowners move forward with confidence.
Survey Shack is available for download on major app stores, with the company planning further updates to enhance its features based on user feedback. Industry experts suggest that while DIY surveys aren’t a full replacement for professional assessments in complex cases, they represent a welcome step toward democratising property insights in a challenging market.