Spring statement - HouzeCheck

26 March 2025

Richard Sexton, commercial director of proptech HouzeCheck, a surveying portal, said:

“I was disappointed, frankly.

“First, I don’t buy this idea that the spring statement exists purely to offer an update on the economic and fiscal position. Think back to 2019 – Philip Hammond’s spring statement was full of announcements. I felt this iteration, on the other hand, lacked ambition. Reeves was certainly very unwise to neglect the property market – there was nothing new in there about meeting the 1.5m homes target, however positive that would be for UK housing.

“Second, I wanted to see more investment in digital training. If AI skills were more readily available, the surveying profession could leverage tech more to improve efficiency and decision-making in residential valuation. At HouzeCheck, we’re already starting to use tech to prompt valuers as they are surveying a property and to ensure they report accurately and consistently. With more access to AI, we could accelerate the profession’s adoption of tech, surpassing the use of AI to provide humans with tech guard rails. We’re not unique in requiring more people with digital skills – if Reeves were serious about chasing growth, she would have invested money in boosting the country’s AI training.

“So, I felt this spring statement missed the mark.”