CRITICS were still calling for the controversial Home Reports system to be scrapped just 48 hours before its introduction.
Home Reports, which come into force on Monday, are supposed to simplify the business of buying and selling a house.
But some experts have warned introducing it at a time of crisis in the Scottish housing market could cause already-slow sales to gr
ind to a halt.
From next week, anyone selling a house will have to pay for a survey that includes a valuation, an energy report and a property questionnaire which answers questions about council tax, parking and maintenance costs.
Supporters say it will simplify the system and make it more transparent to both buyers and sellers. But those who oppose the new plan say it will be an extra burden on both buyers and sellers – and one which could devastate the market.
David McLetchie, the Conservative spokesman and chief whip, believes the introduction of the system should be cancelled in light of the current economic climate.
"Thirty per cent of the properties for sale in Scotland are put on the market on a speculative basis," he said. "Introduction of Home Reports will kill that kind of speculative sale stone dead.
"The Scottish Conservatives have opposed Home Reports from day one. They are costly and unnecessary and especially in the depths of recession they are an £800 barrier to every house sale. They could cripple the already fragile housing market in Scotland."
With just hours to go until the system is introduced it is still unclear whether Britain's biggest mortgage lenders would participate – or would insist on their own independent surveys.
The Woolwich, which is Barclays' mortgage arm, has said Home Reports were not a reliable indicator of value in a fluctuating market. "We will not accept the valuation from a Home Report for the time being," said a spokesman. "This is because it could be out of date, which is more likely given how much and how quickly house prices are moving."
Other mortgage lenders were initially expected to follow suit, but yesterday they were playing their cards close to their chests. There were also varying reports about how much the new Home Reports would cost sellers – with some companies privately saying those selling cheaper homes could potentially buy one for £370, while those selling £1 million properties would be faced with bills up to £1,800.
It is also unclear whether a whole new report is required every 12 weeks or if it can simply be updated for a small fee.
The Scottish Law Agents Society, which represents 1,800 members, said it had noticed a rush of homes going on the market as sellers tried to avoid the new charges.
Ian Ferguson, a spokesman for the society, which has campaigned against the reports, said: "We have been trying to make our clients aware of the costs involved in commissioning a Home Report and advising them to put their house on the market.
Clients have voted with their feet. We think it might kill what remains of the property market and cause serious damage to the economy."
He said the government's initial claims that the new service would prevent buyers having to pay for a survey were now looking extremely dubious.
"I suspect that what will eventually happen is that in a market like this the seller will pay and in a market like it usually is, the purchaser will pay."
He said it was still unclear which of the major mortgage lenders were backing the scheme. "They should have had all the major lenders signed up by now and they haven't."
Mr Ferguson said there was a high degree of secrecy about how much banks intended to co-operate with the new system.
Others said they believed the new system could work. David Rolleston, a broker, of Mortgage Advice Brokerage in Glasgow, said: "It gives a far greater clarity to any prospective buyer about the true value of a property."
He said Law Society guidelines suggested that valuations of unsold houses should be updated every 12 weeks – which could be done at a relatively small cost to the seller.
John Postlethwaite,a financial consultant, said: "I think it remains to be seen how it will work. In the long run it could be quite a good thing."
The full article contains 733 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
