“One Search, Two Uses: Can IPSA Support Both Sides of the Deal?”

This week on IPSA Kind of Magic, we’re asking whether the same principles that underpin great search provision for buyers could also help sellers – not within the same transaction, but as part of a smarter, more joined-up approach to data.

Join Gareth Wax and me, Hamish McLay live at 1pm on Wednesday 28th May, alongside one or two IPSA members, as we look at how the right data, at the right time, can support both ends of the market.

Also joining the conversation, we have Jackie Dyson. With her extensive experience in local authority searches spanning 25+ years she is in a wonderful position to compare what data was needed in the early days to what is needed now.

There’s a growing push for sellers to provide more upfront information when listing – everything from leasehold details and consents to issues that might affect a buyer’s decision. That’s very different from the official search data buyers rely on – things like planning history, adopted roads, or drainage – which sits with councils, water companies and other third parties.

Yet both sets of information matter – and more often than not, they intersect. A missing planning consent, an overlooked tree preservation order, or a restriction buried in the local land charges register can trip up a transaction regardless of which side it comes from. That’s why IPSA members are increasingly being called on earlier in the process – not just to help buyers once a sale is agreed, but to help sellers get their side of the story straight before they even go to market.

The question is: can we make these two strands work together more effectively? If buyers need certainty and sellers need clarity, is there a way for search agents – with their local knowledge, regulatory training and access to official sources – to support both?

We’ll explore how IPSA members are already bridging that gap. And we’ll reflect on how the wider industry might benefit if early access to searches became the norm, not the exception.

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PS:
For content enquiries: hamish@ipsa-uk.org
For Podcast/Media info: gareth@mphats.com