Whitaker Seager has welcomed the publication of new guidance which aims to improve material information given in property listings.

Under Consumer Protection Regulations, estate agents are already obliged to include important information in listings that can help consumers make a decision about a property. But until now, there has been no defined list of the material information required.

Following calls from property agents asking for clarity on what constitutes material information, new guidance has been put together by the National Trading Standards Estate and Letting Agency Team (NTSELAT) working alongside industry leaders and major property portals including Rightmove, Zoopla, OnTheMarket and Property Pal.

Part A of the guidance programme includes information about the property’s council tax band or rate, the property price or rent and tenure information for sales.

The new guidance includes parts B and C in a bid to clarify information requirements.

Part B covers information for all properties including:

• Property type
• Materials used in the property’s construction
• Number and type of rooms
• Utilities (including water and electricity supply, sewerage, heating, broadband and mobile signal)
• Parking

Part C covers information that may or may not need to be established if the property is affected by issues including:

• Building safety (e.g. asbestos, unsafe cladding, risk of collapse)
• Restrictions (e.g. conservation area, listed building status, tree preservation order)
• Rights and easements (e.g. public rights of way, shared drives)
• Flood risk
• Coastal erosion risk
• Planning permission (for the property itself and its immediate locality)
• Accessibility and adaptations (e.g. step free access, wet room, essential living accommodation on entrance level)
• Coalfield or mining area

Sellers will be advised to bring a conveyancer on board at the start of the sales or letting process to ensure validated information is available to the agent for marketing and to make sure issues like restrictive covenants or boundaries are addressed at an early stage.

Prospective buyers or renters will see new data fields on property portals and any left empty will be flagged and will have a link explaining what’s missing.

Evidence has consistently shown overwhelming support amongst agents for the mandatory disclosure of material information.

Whitaker Seager believes the new guidance will give property agents a clear picture of what information they should be providing, and will benefit clients by preventing important information coming to light late in the sales process which could result in a buyer pulling out.

Whitaker Seager director Amy Seager said: “Whilst more onerous for both us and our clients, we really do believe that these changes are a positive step forward. It is our hope that the requirement for greater transparency will reduce the risk of a buyer withdrawing, alleviating some stress for our clients, and reducing the current fall through rate within the industry. This can only be a good thing for our clients and us! Honesty and transparency are pivotal core values of our agency and we believe the changes to this policy very much echo our approach to selling homes.”

In addition to the guidance on its webpage, NTSELAT has published short guides for agents, sellers and landlords and buyers and tenants. For more information please click here.