OPDA's Maria Harris comments on the King's Speech

17 July 2024

"Chronically poor and sclerotic homebuying process"

Following the King's speech today here is the comment from OPDA chair, Maria Harris, which I hope will be of interest.

Maria Harris, chair of the Open Property Data Association, commented:

“While the Government’s commitment to ambitious housebuilding targets is the key message, we're delighted to see that the Digital Information and Smart Data bill has been included in today's announcements. Solving the housing crisis is not just a housing numbers game.

Our chronically poor and sclerotic homebuying process contributes significantly to the crisis by blocking home moves and engendering low consumer confidence.

We look forward to seeing the Government's plans to take ownership of an urgent overhaul of the process, ensuring property data is digitised at source and that transactions are underpinned by a digital ecosystem. Shareable digital data, true interoperability, and stronger cyber standards will hugely improve the productivity and efficiency of the homebuying market for everyone.”