The UK Property Market Is Leaking — But Not Beyond Repair

If you work in property right now, you don’t need another headline to tell you the system’s… well, draughty. Fraud is up, transactions are dragging, SDLT continues to trip people up, and supply confidence feels paper thin.

A recent piece from Property Searches Direct summed it up neatly: the whole market is basically a leaky bucket. And unless the industry plugs the gaps together, the water keeps pouring out—confidence included.

Here’s the quick tour of where things are going wrong, and the solutions that are already on the table.

Leak 1: Fraud is getting smarter

Email spoofing, fake conveyancer sites, and ID fraud are becoming an expensive headache. Traditional alerts warn you something’s wrong… but only after it’s gone wrong.

The fix already exists: tools using biometric verification and continuous monitoring to spot anomalies before money goes missing. (Property Searches Direct highlight Title Guardian as one rising star here.)

Leak 2: SDLT remains a minefield

Conveyancers didn’t sign up to be tax advisers, yet SDLT mistakes are still landing on their desks. And when it goes wrong? It goes very wrong.

The fix: outsourced SDLT expertise that shoulders the risk and restores confidence. (Compass gets a mention for exactly that.)

Leak 3: The notorious 20-week transaction

Whether you're an agent or a buyer, committing before key information is available is practically tradition at this point. The knock-on effect? Longer timelines, more fall-throughs, and far too many preventable delays.

The fix: seller-ready models: Searches prepared upfront, verified info from day one, and smarter enquiry tools that strip out the back-and-forth. PSD and Legalito are showcased in the original article for leading this shift.

Leak 4: Supply is wobbling

Landlords stepping back. Short-term lets soaking up stock. New builds not hitting targets. It’s all adding pressure to an already stretched system.

The fix: long-term policy stability and targeted incentives. Not flashy. Just effective.

The real issue?

Everyone is working hard—just not always in the same direction. Standards vary wildly between firms. Fraud prevention is often reactive. Compliance checks are patchy. And the wider policy environment hasn’t kept pace with how the market actually works.

But it doesn’t have to stay this way.

Other industries (banking, border control, financial services) have already modernised through biometrics, standardised identity checks, and secure digital flows. Property can do the same—with the tech already available.

A more optimistic 2030

Imagine a world where:

• Buyers get a verified information pack on day one.

• All parties work to a single digital ID/AML/KYC standard.

• Fraud is stopped before it starts.

• SDLT accuracy is guaranteed by specialists.

• Transactions take weeks—not half a year.

• Landlords and developers regain confidence through stability and transparency.

According to PSD’s article? This isn’t some sci-fi scenario. It’s all possible with the tools the industry already has. The missing ingredient is coordinated adoption.

Want the full deep dive?

The original article breaks down the leaks and the plugs in detail, including how Title Guardian, Compass, PSD, and Legalito fit into the picture.

👉 Read the full piece from Property Searches Direct here:
https://www.propertysearchesdirect.co.uk/