94% of agents take on properties without proper planning consents
Claim is made by insurance giant Direct Line, which canvassed hundreds of agents and found just how much such compromised properties cause major headaches.
Most estate agents are happy to market properties despite the homes involved lacking planning consent for key features, research from insurance giant Direct Line has highlighted.
The research among some 250 estate agencies found that 94% of them had been agreed to sell properties despite nightmare alterations that had not been signed off by planners.
These included the removal of load-bearing walls, windows that overlooked neighbours, unapproved loft conversions, missing chimney breasts and illegal extensions and even houses converted into flats without planning permission.
While agents are prepared to take on compromised properties, they often cause all parties major headaches with approximately a quarter of agents saying longer lead times led to buyers pulling out, chains collapsing or mortgage offers expiring.
These include getting retrospective planning permission for existing features, which can take months, buyers taking out indemnity insurance and, somewhat surprisingly, some buyers going ahead regardless with the purchase.
Direct Line says that on average, estate agents encountered six a year without the necessary permissions, with 39 per cent being asked to sell between six and 10 homes without consents.
Tempting
“There is a lot of conflicting advice on what building alterations require planning permissions,” says Dan Simson, Head of Direct Line Home Insurance.
“While it can be tempting to start a job without checking, it’s important to do your research to know what is required.
“While permissions can be granted in retrospect, for some unlucky owners, the work may need to be reversed leaving householders heavily out of pocket.
This is surely what Material Information is trying to sort out. In itself it is not a huge crime, the question is when does the potential buyer get told or are the sellers and agents trying to “sweep it under the carpet” and hope the buyer and their solicitor do not notice. The latter is the problem. Many still rely on Caveat Emptor.