The average time taken to buy a home and have the keys in hand takes more than five months, according to the latest research from Smoove’s home movers report.
Within the last six months, data showed that the average time taken to complete the home purchasing process is 153 days.
This compared to 2019 and before the pandemic when it took 124 days, representing an increase of 19 days or 23%.
Smoove says the rise is most likely a result of the post-lockdown boom, as changing consumer lifestyles and demand outweigh supply, combined with greater capacity constraints for solicitors, and local authority searches taking longer to complete.
As a result, nine in 10 homeowners found the process stressful, the sheer length of time it took to complete the process (40%), with the lack of certainty (34%) and waiting for exchange and completion dates to be finalised (33%) among the main reasons.
The research shows that the length of time filling out forms, such as property title deeds, energy performance certificates (EPCs), local authority searches, and transaction and conveyancing forms is a particular aggravation for homeowners.
The documents that take the longest to wait for and complete include mortgage application/agreement in principle (22%), ID checks (18%) and local authority property searches (16%).
According to Conveyancing Data Services (CDS), the average length of time to receive personal searches from local councils across England and Wales was between nine to 11 days in August.
However, while the majority of councils are processing requests in a reasonable timeframe, some councils are taking longer on search times. For example, in Middlesbrough, it can take 35 to 40 working days while in Havering the timeframe is 65 to 70 working days.
Smoove chief commercial and growth officer Simon McCulloch says: “Too often we hear of the misery that comes with moving home. The sheer length of time it takes to complete the process is a major stress driver.”
“Local property searches being delayed only adds to the pressure and these significantly vary region by region with some search times taking up to 70 days,” he adds.
