At Survey Shack, we know the homebuying process in Britain is slower and more fragile than it needs to be. Santander UK’s Fixing the Broken Chain report highlights the scale: around 530,000 failed transactions each year, costing consumers and the economy more than £1.5 billion.
Nearly one in four (23%) adults have tried to buy a property only for the process to fall through. A leading reason is buyers withdrawing after a home survey before buying reveals problems. Too often, the property survey takes place only after the offer is accepted, when everyone is already financially and emotionally committed.
Whether simple or serious, once these issues appear in a home buyers report, buyers often imagine the worst – triggering delays, renegotiations, or worse: fall-throughs.
A professional property condition survey by a RICS accredited surveyor still matters, but it should be used as a final check – crossing the t’s and dotting the i’s – not be the first time a home’s condition is revealed. A level 2 RICS survey cost is quite substantial, and for that reason it should act as final assurance for a buyer, highlighting any deeper issues, rather than pointing out obvious defects that were visible from day one.
This is exactly the gap Survey Shack fills by bringing condition reporting forward. By capturing structured facts at the point of listing, we prevent late-stage surprises, reduce wasted fees and keep chains intact.
Early clarity helps everyone move faster and with more confidence.
Timing Matters
The timing of a property condition survey is the problem and the solution is to move condition reporting to the start of the home buying process. Capture clear condition insights early and give sellers time to make sensible updates to a property or be transparent with buyers. Give lenders and conveyancers structured facts early enough to guide underwriting and enquiries. Late surprises become early facts, decision cycles shorten, renegotiations become rarer and chains hold.
This is exactly where Survey Shack operates. Founded in 2023, Survey Shack provides an affordable, practical way for buyers, sellers and estate agents (directly or via an energy assessor) to capture a property’s condition early in the process rather than at the eleventh hour. Where needed, our Genie service gives rapid, structured guidance from a qualified surveyor.
The aim is not to replace a professional property condition survey, but to change the order of information so that all parties can act sooner and with clarity. Early visibility reduces avoidable fall-throughs, helping the market deliver quicker, more certain completions.
→ Buyers, see how Survey Shack is transforming viewings into informed decisions: Read more
→ Sellers, discover how an upfront survey can reduce stress and save you money: Read more
→ Property Professionals, turn your existing workflow into added value opportunities: Read more
The Industry Shift Towards Upfront Information
The direction of travel across the sector supports this shift. The Open Property Data Association has championed earlier information for years and Project 28, launched earlier this month, sets eight Charter commitments to achieve faster and more certain transactions. Commitment Two focuses on the “Provision of relevant upfront information and condition reports” to reduce delays and surprises. The aspiration is a condition report up front and that is the operational gap Survey Shack fills. The app makes condition capture at listing simple, quick, repeatable, and useful, and can feed a clean, structured record into lender and conveyancer workflows without adding friction.
Santander’s calls on Government and regulators include the collation of better upfront information from all parties and improved data sharing. Those are practical levers the industry can pull now – lenders can pilot the incorporation of upfront condition data, estate agents can collect it as part of normal listing practice, and conveyancers can request it on instruction. None of this requires a grand reset; it just needs the right information in the right order.
Survey Shack is ready to support that approach, offering a fast, affordable route to capture condition at listing and to get proportionate guidance when something is unclear for agents. For lenders, the app can provide a structured output that is easy to ingest and align with risk models; for conveyancers, Survey Shack can identify the basics early so legal work progresses on facts rather than late-stage discovery.
Put condition first, and the rest of the system works better for everyone. As we say: the earlier the insight, the better the journey.
