The government should prioritise restoring confidence in the housing market by accelerating homebuying reforms rather than focusing on further property tax changes, according to Nova Conveyancing.
David Jabbari (main picture, inset), Chief Executive Officer of Nova Conveyancing, warns that housing risks being overlooked in the Autumn Budget on 28 October despite evidence that homeowners are moving less frequently.
Research by Connells Group, based on Land Registry data, found that just 5% of sellers in England and Wales during 2026 had owned their properties for less than three years, compared with 15% in 2006. The average seller had owned their home for 12.3 years, up from 9.2 years a decade earlier.
Meanwhile, the latest HMRC figures show seasonally adjusted residential property transactions fell to 95,220 in August, down 1% on July and 2% year-on-year.
HOMEOWNERS STAYING PUT
Jabbari believes uncertainty surrounding the Budget is adding to an already subdued housing market, with buyers and sellers reluctant to commit.
He says: “Housing risks being treated as an afterthought in this Budget, overshadowed by the capital gains tax and inheritance tax debate. That’s a mistake.
“The number that should worry the Treasury isn’t a tax rate, it’s this: just 5% of homes sold this year had been owned for under three years, the lowest share on record, down from 15% in 2006. People have simply stopped moving.”
He argues that confidence, rather than further changes to property taxation, is central to encouraging greater activity.
“Stamp duty and council tax reform are both off the table, so tinkering with tax isn’t the fix anyway.
“What actually moves this market is confidence, and right now enough buyers are waiting to see what happens that the waiting itself has become part of the problem.”
REFORMS ALREADY PROMISED
The government published its homebuying and selling reform roadmap in June, setting out plans to introduce mandatory upfront property information, digital sales packs and binding conditional contracts.
The proposals are intended to tackle lengthy transactions and reduce the number of sales collapsing before completion.
According to the government’s own estimates, transactions currently take around 120 days from offer acceptance to completion, while approximately one in three fall through.
However, although preparatory measures are scheduled for 2026 and 2027, legislation requiring upfront sales packs and binding conditional contracts is planned for later in this Parliament, subject to parliamentary time.
Jabbari believes implementing those reforms should now become a priority.
He says: “The only way to instil confidence in this market is by showing buyers and sellers that the reform most of us welcomed is actually being finished, not just announced.
“The consultation on this had strong support, most people backed mandatory upfront property information and the move to binding contracts, so the government already has the mandate to act. It just needs to do so now.”
