It is a change which is quietly creeping in during the second half of the year, and it is one that could have wide-ranging consequences for the industry.
The government is repealing the 1993 Property Misdescriptions Act, replacing it with the existing (but previously only applied to the retail sector) 2008 Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations.
This will mean verbal conversations with prospective vendors will be taken into account, as well as written documentation. It places more onus on agents to disclose information that might previously have been omitted, such as the proximity of an A-road, fast food shops, or school playgrounds.
On the one hand, almost everything is shared with buyers, but on the other, agents can be hauled before a court if something is accidentally left off or not disclosed by a seller.
One agent has gone as far as warning ominously that the new legislation “will potentially open the floodgate for buyers who decide not to proceed with their purchase and see the legislation as a loophole to renege on the transactions”.
While it is all still speculation, agents need be very aware of the legislation to make sure they don’tget caught out, as a day in court can cost more than money – it can also ruin reputations.
