The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) is calling on Prime Minister Andy Burnham to tackle the collapse of housing transactions during his premiership.
Burnham was officially appointed Prime Minister yesterday, July 20, and is still drawing up reform plans.
Commenting on the appointment, RICS chief executive Justin Young said: “We look forward to working constructively with his government, bringing our standards, data and professional expertise to support practical reforms in housing, infrastructure and the built and natural environment.
“A clear opportunity to make a practical difference to people’s lives is to improve the way homes are bought and sold. Buying a home should be easy, but transactions take too long and far too many fail, with an average transaction period of 120 days and one in three failed transactions in June. Buyers and sellers are often faced with unnecessary costs, uncertainty and stress.”
RICS said it is ready to help the Burnham government with its home buying and selling reforms as quickly as possible.
The trade body warned that Burnham’s focus on social housing construction was welcome, but local authorities may need more skills, resources and professional support to deliver the homes needed.