‘Fix the move’ agents are being told, as home movers warn the property buying process is still as slow as ever.

In what is described as the property industry’s ‘biggest consumer pulse’, consumers say they are desperate for faster updates and “clearer expectation setting”.

Conveyancers blamed

With transactions still taking an average of 195 days, conveyancers are being blamed most often, according to The Voice of the Agent report from consultancy We are Unchained.

Simon Leadbetter, Founder of We Are Unchained and author of the report, told The Negotiator: “Agents have shown grit through a tough market, but the real battleground now is the consumer experience.

People still want to move, but they’re fed up with delay and silence.”

“Our research is blunt: people still want to move, but they’re fed up with delay and silence. Agents that own the relationship and demand better from conveyancers will win.”

Among the other headline findings:

Market confidence has turned a corner: movers are markedly more bullish on prices than the wider public.

AI is the next disruptor: from zero in 2022 to measurable use today, 3.3% of active buyers now use AI tools to find homes, hinting at a rapid channel shift ahead.

Momentum

These findings arrive against the backdrop of growing political momentum for reform, Leadbetter says.

“Labour is proposing a wholesale modernisation of the home-moving process, from upfront information to binding offers, while the Conservatives are advocating for changes to Stamp Duty.

“This signals a rare moment of cross-party recognition that the current system is no longer fit for purpose.”

Download the full report here

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