Reform roadmap, 19 June 2026
Everything moves to the front
Sales packs before listing, digital logbooks, binding contracts. None of it is law yet.
Average time to complete
Transactions that fall through
Wasted by buyers and sellers a year
Backed the reform objectives
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, home buying and selling reform roadmap.
The three phases
- Now, 2026Voluntary
- Non-statutory guidance on listing quality
- Sales pack information identified with industry, voluntarily
- Non-statutory Code of Practice for property agents
- Industry work on binding contracts awareness
- Local authority property data made more accessible
- Call for evidence on a smart data scheme
- Next, 2027 to 2028Voluntary
- Advisory Charter for property professionals
- Consultation on mandatory qualifications for agents
- Digital ID, electronic signatures and logbooks encouraged
- Consultation on leasehold and freehold sales information
- Penalty fee structure defined for binding contracts
- Voluntary data standards accreditation scheme
- By the end of this ParliamentLegislation
- Mandatory sales packs before a property is listed
- Binding conditional contracts, once packs are embedded
- Digital logbooks and packs as standard
What a sales pack holds
Four things, once it is law.
Property searches
Not a ScanLocal authority, drainage and environmental. Ordered through a conveyancer, £250 to £450.
Property condition report
Not a ScanPrepared and signed by a surveyor who has been inside the building.
Leasehold and freehold information
In a Scan todayTenure, lease term, freeholder, charges and covenants on the register.
Standardised property data
In a Scan todayPlanning history, flood and building safety, EPC, tenure and the market read.
A Scan is not a sales pack. It reads the registers a buyer can check before offering, and leaves the searches and the condition report to the professionals who sign them.
Asked most
What is an upfront sales pack in the 2026 home buying reform?
A sales pack is a bundle of information a seller will have to provide before a property can be listed. The government's roadmap of 19 June 2026 says it should include property searches, a property condition report, digital logbook information, and leasehold or freehold information where it applies. It is not law yet: the roadmap commits to legislating when parliamentary time allows.
When do sales packs become mandatory in England and Wales?
There is no date. The roadmap places mandatory sales packs in the phase running to the end of this Parliament, subject to legislation. Through 2026 the work is voluntary: non-statutory guidance on listing quality, an agreed list of information sellers can provide upfront, and a non-statutory Code of Practice for agents.
Will home buyers be locked into binding contracts?
The government intends to legislate for binding conditional contracts, but has committed that buyers and sellers will not be required to enter into them until upfront sales packs have been fully tested and embedded. The penalty fee structure is due to be defined in the 2027 to 2028 phase.
How much do failed house purchases cost buyers in the UK?
Around one in three transactions falls through, costing buyers and sellers roughly £400 million a year in wasted fees, and around £1.5 billion a year to the wider economy. For an individual buyer the non-recoverable spend before exchange is typically £700 to £2,000: searches at £250 to £450, a survey at £400 to £1,500, and an abortive legal fee of £100 to £300.
What can a buyer check before instructing a solicitor?
Tenure and title class, the registered proprietor and any charges, planning history and applications nearby, flood and building safety status, EPC, and the sale history that sets the market read. These come from public registers and can be read before a penny is committed, which is what a PropM8 Scan does for £50.
Does a PropM8 Scan count as a sales pack?
No. A Scan covers the registry and data half of what a sales pack will contain. It does not include conveyancing searches or a surveyor's condition report, both of which have to be produced by a professional who signs them.