Buying a home in Britain can drag on and it takes over five months on average. A London estate agent, Amy Reynolds from Antony Roberts in Richmond has a plan. She’s calling for a ‘Property MOT’ system.
It’s a simple checklist for sellers to fill out before listing. Reynolds wants it sorted by solicitors upfront.
“The current system is fraught with unnecessary delays,” she told us.
She’s fed up with the back-and-forth.
“For example – we get a buyer, and the seller’s solicitor sends whatever they’ve got and waits for the buyer’s side to ask questions,” Reynolds said.
“The buyer’s solicitor comes back and says ‘we’re missing a Fensa certificate for two windows from 2023. Do you have one?’ And then it goes back and forth on every point.”
Gas certificates, roofs, insurance—it all slows things down.
“If the seller’s solicitor found the gaps at the beginning, before they got a buyer, sales would be significantly sped up,” she added.
She’s even testing it herself.
“In preparation for my own sale, I got my house files out over Christmas,” Reynolds shared.
“I realised I was missing a building certificate for my extension, so emailed the council straight away.”
She’s ticking all the boxes.
“I’ve had my fireplace serviced – I know that’s going to get asked. I’ve got my Fensa certificates, copied my building insurance, my council tax, I’m getting my gas service done, getting the chimney swept,” she said.
“I know I have an indemnity policy from when I bought it.”
It’s all ready to go.
“I’ve got all of this together, so that when I find a buyer, I can exchange quickly,” Reynolds explained.
Remember Home Information Packs? They flopped. Critics said they added costs—up to £400—and red tape.
Reynolds has a lighter touch.
“The problem with Hips is that they deterred casual sellers from speculatively putting their house on the market to see if it got any interest; the packs took a long time to assemble and cost up to £400,” she noted.
“My suggested ‘MOT’ system would not be mandatory; sellers could download the form online for free if they wanted to plan ahead.”
No pressure—just an option.
“Speculators could still test their house on the market without an MOT, and just wait a little longer if they got a buyer,” she added.
“If even half the market used an MOT and got their documents together up front, it would break the present logjam.”