Prospective buyers are being left in the dark about crucial details when browsing property websites for leasehold homes, The i Paper can reveal.
An overwhelming majority of listings on two of the UK’s biggest property portals fail to provide buyers with all the key information they need to know, such as ground rent levels, lease length, service charges and the home’s energy performance certificate (EPC) rating.
These details can have huge implications on the ongoing cost of owning a property, as well as its market value.
Property campaigners said the findings were “hugely disappointing” and warned prospective buyers that they should not book viewings without having this information to hand.
An analysis of 100 two-bedroom leasehold flat listings on Rightmove and Zoopla across London, Manchester, Birmingham and Southampton found just 12 contained all four of the remaining lease length, annual ground rent, annual service charge and an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC).
Eight listings contained none of those details.
When there is missing information, the property portals instead direct searchers to “ask the agent” for the details, with this usually being because the agent has not supplied the information to the portal.
But industry experts said displaying these key details upfront would make purchases run “more smoothly” as it would help buyers make informed decisions at an earlier stage, rather than having to waste time on follow-up calls to ascertain the information they need.
Professional property buyer Jonathan Rolande warned: “An agent who does not provide as much information as possible increases the risk of a fall-through down the line, with all the inconvenience and expense that can be incurred.”
Service charges can cost £2,400 a year on average, according to estate agency Hamptons, while average ground rent can cost £50 to £300, though its soon to be capped at £250.
On RIghtmove, searchers are told to contact the agent for the informationA short lease can require an expensive extension – sometimes costing tens of thousands of pounds – to make a property saleable, while an EPC will have a bearing on mortgage costs – some lenders offering cheaper deals for better ratings – and yearly energy bills.
Buyers told to ask for information before viewing
Rolande said someone offering on a property without knowing this information would be “blind bidding”.
“They are being asked to make a huge financial commitment without knowing the true ongoing costs.
“Missing ground rent or service charge information can lead to nasty surprises like doubling clauses or huge maintenance hikes, which can make a flat unmortgageable, worth significantly less or even virtually unsaleable within the normal market.
“An agent who does not provide as much information as possible increases the risk of a fall-through down the line, with all the inconvenience and expense that can be incurred. My advice for buyers faced with incomplete information, is to request it before potentially wasting time on a viewing.”
Paula Higgins, chief executive of HomeOwners Alliance, said the findings suggested a long-running problem had yet to be resolved.
She explained: “These findings are deeply disappointing. Lease length, ground rent and service charges are not minor details: they can affect whether a property is affordable, mortgageable and easy to sell on.
“Buyers should not have to book a viewing, make an offer and start spending money on surveys and legal fees before discovering a short lease or unaffordable ongoing charges.”
She said that the Government’s new home-buying reform roadmap recognises the problem.
The UK government has announced plans to overhaul the property sector with key reforms including mandating upfront “sales packs” with information about homes included in them.
Ian Harris, president of Propertymark, a professional body for property agents said: “Providing key information upfront helps housing transactions run more smoothly and enables buyers to make informed decisions at an earlier stage.”
He said planned reforms “will help reduce delays, improve buyer confidence, and support smoother sales, with agents continuing to play a vital role in preparing and sharing this information”.
Mark Evans, president of the Law Society of England and Wales, said: “It is in the interests of everyone that the home buying and selling process is improved.
“It is important that those buying leaseholds have proper information about what they are buying and what the running costs will be once they have bought a flat.”
Buyers have more information than previously
Zoopla defended the progress made across the industry in recent years.
A spokesperson for the portal said: “Buyers have access to significantly more information today than five years ago.”
They added: “Every leasehold listing on Zoopla includes dedicated fields for tenure type, remaining lease length and annual ground rent and service charge amount.
“Where data is absent, listings display ‘ask the agent’ rather than leaving the field blank, and each field carries an information prompt explaining why the data matters and what buyers should ask.
“These prompts are there to drive the conversation at the point it matters most – before a viewing, not after an offer.”
Rightmove was also contacted for comment.
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