What Surveyors Are Getting Wrong About the Home Buying & Selling Reform Consultation

Over the past few weeks, I’ve had so many conversations with surveyors - on Zoom calls, Roundtables, in LinkedIn threads, the Surveyor Hub community, through voice notes, and in those honest moments where someone quietly admits, “Marion, I’m worried. What does this actually mean for us?”

And I understand why. Our profession has a long memory.

We remember HIPs.
We remember the days when panel firms reshaped how work flowed.
We remember PII pressure, uncertain guidance, and moments where it felt as though decisions about surveying were being made by people who didn’t understand our world.

So when a new consultation appears - and the noise starts - “seller’s surveys”, “mandatory condition assessments”, “Scottish-style reports”, “standardisation”, “death of the SME” - it’s no surprise that old fears resurface.

But when you strip everything back, the Government’s consultation is not asking for the things that surveyors are currently panicking about.

And if we don’t slow down and understand that, we risk responding to a made-up version of the reform proposals rather than what’s actually on the table.

What the Government Is Actually Consulting On

There are two separate pieces of work happening:

• Material Information - what should be disclosed when a property is listed
  
  
• Home Buying & Selling Reform - how to reduce fall-throughs and improve transparency

These touch on:

• upfront information
• digital identity
• standardised data
• logbooks
• search ordering
• binding agreements
• consumer understanding
  
  

But let me say this clearly:

The consultation does not propose a new type of survey.
It does not require a seller-commissioned report.
It does not define any format.
It does not introduce new liability.
It does not remove Level 2 or Level 3 reporting.

The fear around these things is coming from the profession, not from the consultation.

And Then There’s the RICS HSS…

Another layer to the confusion is that the RICS Home Survey Standard consultation has been happening at the same time. For some surveyors - especially those running small businesses - the two consultations have tangled together.

I hear comments like, “This could be the death of the SME,” and I understand where that fear comes from. I’ve even said it myself at times, especially when conversations touch on valuation.

But the more I’ve read, listened, and spoken to people involved with both processes, the more I’ve realised that these fears aren’t grounded in what’s being proposed. They’re grounded in the uncertainty of how this could all pan out - and uncertainty is uncomfortable, particularly for independent surveyors who rely on reputation, relationships, community trust, and doing things well.

And so I think it’s worth saying this out loud:

SMEs have unique strengths that no consultation can erase.

Clients value:

• the personal service
• the ability to explain, calmly and clearly
• local experience
• continuity
• accountability
• the reassurance of dealing with one person, not a call centre
  

These are not things large firms can easily replicate. And they are not the things policy reform is trying to remove.

Where the Confusion Is Coming From

A few underlying issues are driving the panic:

1. The Government consultation and RICS HSS are being blended together

They are separate. Completely separate.
But because they landed around the same time, many people are reading them as one huge reform package.

2. Commentary is moving faster than facts

People are reacting to:

• LinkedIn interpretations
• AI summaries
• second-hand webinar quotes
• quick-take blog posts
• others’ anxieties

rather than reacting and responding to the consultation itself.

3. Old industry trauma is resurfacing

HIPs.
PI insurance.
Uncertain standards.
Corporate dominance.
Scottish transcriptions.

Our fears aren’t irrational - they’re remembered, and I think we should really reflect on how many people who trained, invested and changed their businesses in preparation for HIPs were treated.

But this is not what’s being proposed now.

The Misunderstandings I See Everywhere

I’ll explore these properly in a separate article, but for now, here’s a sense of what’s circulating:

• “The Government is bringing in seller’s surveys.”
• “Condition assessments mean surveys.”
• “This is just Scotland again.”
• “We’ll have to verify everything sellers provide.”
• “Surveyors will be liable to everyone in the chain.”
• “Digital logbooks replace the need for surveys.”
• “The outcome is already decided.”
• “Corporates will corner the market and put independent SMEs our of business - just like Scotland”

None of these are supported by the consultation itself.

These are assumptions, shaped by experience - not evidence. 

So What Is the Consultation Actually Trying to Achieve?

The real purpose is surprisingly simple:

To reduce fall-throughs by helping buyers understand more, earlier, before they make commitments.

Not by removing surveys.
Not by increasing liability.
Not by shifting the work to sellers.
Not by creating a single survey model.

But by fixing the structural issue that surveyors have been calling out for years:

Buyers get meaningful information too late. This reform is trying to solve that. 

And in that sense, the consultation is not “anti-surveyor” - it’s trying to fix a problem that surveyors see every day.

Why It Matters That We Get This Right

Any consultation is a chance for the surveying profession to influence the future.
But we can only influence it if we respond to the actual proposals - not the imagined ones.

If the profession feeds back in fear:

• we weaken our credibility
• we risk pushing policymakers towards the wrong solutions
• we reinforce the myth that surveyors resist change
• we miss the opportunity to shape practical, consumer-focused improvements

Clarity is not just helpful - it is essential.

A Personal Note

These thoughts come from my experience of over 20 years in surveying and supporting both consumers and surveyors. They’re simply my perspective - shared to open up discussion and encourage more voices to feed into the consultation.  The Government consultations on Home Buying and Selling Reform and Material Information are open until December 29th 2025.

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