2 minutes reading time
(454 words)
Red Tape and Roadblocks: What's Holding Up Home Sales?
The dream of a smooth house move feels more out of reach than ever. Buyers and sellers are still turning up – but transactions are stalling, not because anyone’s walking away, but because the system itself is grinding to a halt under pressure.
Delays are coming from all directions. New fire safety requirements, especially in flats with cladding concerns, have created months-long bottlenecks. Planning permissions are being held up by stretched local authorities. Building regulations keep shifting, forcing developers and conveyancers alike to pause, reassess, and redo. Even when everyone’s on board – buyer, seller, lender and solicitor – the paperwork isn’t keeping pace.
Search times are creeping up in many areas. Councils are overwhelmed. Key documents that should take days are now taking weeks. Mortgage-ready buyers are sitting on approvals that risk expiring before they ever reach completion. Developers are caught between outdated policies and new requirements that haven’t been properly explained. And for conveyancers? It’s a perfect storm of increased admin, more uncertainty, and a growing burden of responsibility to keep clients in the loop as the rules keep shifting.
All of this comes at a time when the government is pushing hard to deliver on its promise of building 1.5 million new homes before the end of this Parliament. But targets mean little if completed homes can’t actually be sold – or if buyers can’t move in. The reality is that we’re not just dealing with a housing shortage. We’re dealing with a delivery logjam.
So what’s really going on behind the scenes? What’s causing these hold-ups – and is there any end in sight?
In this episode of Property Quorum, we take a closer look at the red tape, roadblocks, and realities facing the UK housing market in 2025. We speak to professionals on the front line of property transactions – from conveyancers and developers to surveyors and estate agents – to understand where the system is faltering and how they’re finding ways to keep deals alive.
If you’re involved in property, whether you’re buying, selling, advising clients, or building homes, this episode unpacks the growing administrative maze and explores why it’s taking longer than ever to get across the finish line – even when everyone’s ready to move.
Juliet Baboolal returns to explore the legal and logistical snags causing the most friction – in discussion with Hamish McLay, hosted by Gareth Wax.
Join us at 10am on Thursday 8th May.
Watch us live on LinkedIn or YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@SpillingTheProper-Tea or catch the replay.
PS:
For content enquiries:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
For podcast/media info:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Delays are coming from all directions. New fire safety requirements, especially in flats with cladding concerns, have created months-long bottlenecks. Planning permissions are being held up by stretched local authorities. Building regulations keep shifting, forcing developers and conveyancers alike to pause, reassess, and redo. Even when everyone’s on board – buyer, seller, lender and solicitor – the paperwork isn’t keeping pace.
Search times are creeping up in many areas. Councils are overwhelmed. Key documents that should take days are now taking weeks. Mortgage-ready buyers are sitting on approvals that risk expiring before they ever reach completion. Developers are caught between outdated policies and new requirements that haven’t been properly explained. And for conveyancers? It’s a perfect storm of increased admin, more uncertainty, and a growing burden of responsibility to keep clients in the loop as the rules keep shifting.
All of this comes at a time when the government is pushing hard to deliver on its promise of building 1.5 million new homes before the end of this Parliament. But targets mean little if completed homes can’t actually be sold – or if buyers can’t move in. The reality is that we’re not just dealing with a housing shortage. We’re dealing with a delivery logjam.
So what’s really going on behind the scenes? What’s causing these hold-ups – and is there any end in sight?
In this episode of Property Quorum, we take a closer look at the red tape, roadblocks, and realities facing the UK housing market in 2025. We speak to professionals on the front line of property transactions – from conveyancers and developers to surveyors and estate agents – to understand where the system is faltering and how they’re finding ways to keep deals alive.
If you’re involved in property, whether you’re buying, selling, advising clients, or building homes, this episode unpacks the growing administrative maze and explores why it’s taking longer than ever to get across the finish line – even when everyone’s ready to move.
Juliet Baboolal returns to explore the legal and logistical snags causing the most friction – in discussion with Hamish McLay, hosted by Gareth Wax.
Join us at 10am on Thursday 8th May.
Watch us live on LinkedIn or YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@SpillingTheProper-Tea or catch the replay.
PS:
For content enquiries:
For podcast/media info:
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