At, and after, every Budget and every new Government or FCA consultation, the same feeling often runs through the industry - here we go again/what will it mean for us?
Another set of promises, another round of ‘transformational’ proposals, another call for views. Advisers could be forgiven for thinking, what’s the point? You send your feedback, trade bodies respond, and months later the final version often looks a lot like the proposals outlined in the consultation, and includes little detail on what was suggested. It’s easy to become cynical.
But here’s the truth: silence guarantees irrelevance. The only way to ensure your views don’t shape policy is by not giving them. And right now, two consultations - on home buying and selling reform and on material information - are live that could significantly reshape the property transaction process.
Both close at the end of December, and both need voices from the front line of advice to steer them in the right direction.
If advisers don’t speak up, others will fill that space - large lenders, institutional players, and organisations whose perspective doesn’t reflect the day-to-day experience of working with clients. It’s no secret the biggest lenders often have more direct lines into policy discussions. That’s not a criticism, it’s a fact.
But if advisers stay quiet, they risk being governed by processes designed by those who don’t fully understand what actually slows down cases or frustrates them and their customers.
And that matters, because these reforms could genuinely make a difference. The home buying and selling consultation, for example, focuses on issues our sector has been shouting about for years - digital identity, upfront property information, shared data, and more transparent communication between all parties.
It’s finally targeting the root causes of inefficiency, not just tinkering around the edges. The industry should welcome that. But we must also make sure the changes work for the people who actually deliver them - advisers, conveyancers, and clients.
This is where advisers can have more influence than they sometimes realise. Advisers sit at the centre of the process, guiding clients through every major decision and often being the only party who sees the full picture. You wouldn’t dream of leaving a client’s protection or insurance needs untouched. So why step back when it comes to something as integral as conveyancing?
Advisers can influence the experience their clients have by ensuring they’re working with quality, efficient, and communicative conveyancers. That’s not about upselling; it’s about service. Choosing the right legal partner is as important as choosing the right mortgage. A poor conveyancing experience reflects on everyone involved. A good one builds trust and repeat business. Advisers have the opportunity to shape that outcome every single time they refer a case.
The same principle applies to national reform. Advisers are not just intermediaries; they are part of the market’s infrastructure. Their insight into where transactions get stuck, where clients lose confidence, and where processes could be streamlined is invaluable. If that experience isn’t fed into consultations now, it’s easy to end up with well-meaning policies that look tidy on paper but fail in practice.
Trade bodies like AMI are already doing great work in channelling adviser views into formal submissions. But they can only represent what they hear. The more advisers feed in their day-to-day frustrations and ideas, the stronger those representations become. Whether it’s through AMI, your clubs or networks, or direct consultation responses, the important thing is that advisers make their voices heard.
We’ve seen what happens when the industry doesn’t engage early enough. Decisions get made that seem sensible in theory but create unintended problems. Once those decisions are baked in, it’s much harder to unwind them. That’s why engagement isn’t optional; it’s essential.
The truth is these consultations could shape the home buying and selling process for the next decade and then some. They’re an opportunity to modernise the system, remove duplication, and create a more transparent and efficient experience for clients. Advisers, working closely with conveyancers and other partners, can help ensure that happens. But that will only be the case if they’re willing to stand up and share what they know.
So yes, it might feel at times as though Government or the regulator doesn’t listen. Sometimes they obviously don’t. But the bigger mistake would be to stop talking. The voice of the adviser community is vital, not just for your own businesses but for the clients you represent and the integrity of the market as a whole. Influence doesn’t come from waiting to be asked, it comes from speaking up.
The consultations close this month. Use this window to feed in your experience, your frustrations, and your solutions. Make sure that when reform happens - and it will - it reflects the way you and your clients actually work. Advisers are central to this process, and their perspective is too valuable to be left out of the conversation.
