Every conveyancer knows the feeling. The file is progressing well, deadlines are manageable, and then something surfaces in the search data that doesn’t quite fit.

A conflicting record. A missing detail. A query that arrives too late to resolve cleanly. These moments rarely come from nowhere. More often they’re the predictable consequence of a gap in the data, something that was available but not caught, or available but not ordered.

Here are four of the risks that appear most consistently, and what good search data looks like in each case.

Planning history that doesn’t travel with the property

Planning records are among the most commonly misread elements in a local authority search – not because the data is wrong, but because it requires interpretation. A restriction that applied to a previous use, a consent that was granted but never implemented, a condition attached to an older permission that the current owner has quietly ignored – none of these are hidden. They’re in the data. But they require someone to look at the full picture rather than the headline.

The risk is greatest on properties with complex histories: former commercial uses, extensions built under permitted development, conversions from one use class to another. In conservation areas, the detail required is even more precise – not just whether works were approved, but whether they were approved under the correct consent route.

The search data should surface this. If it doesn’t, the problem isn’t the planning history – it’s the search.

Rights of way that aren’t visible on site

Public rights of way are a good example of a risk that feels theoretical until it isn’t. A right of way that crosses a garden or driveway doesn’t affect every transaction – but when it does affect one, and the buyer wasn’t told, the consequences are significant and the firm’s position is uncomfortable.

The challenge is that rights of way aren’t always visible on the ground. A path that hasn’t been walked in years is still legally protected. A route that’s been physically blocked by a previous owner remains on the definitive map. The seller may be entirely unaware.

A local authority search will include rights of way data, but the quality of that data varies considerably depending on the source and how recently it was verified. Knowing where your provider’s data comes from, and how current it is, matters more for this particular risk than almost any other.

Chancel repair liability on older rural stock

Chancel repair liability is one of those risks that experienced conveyancers are well aware of and occasionally encounter in practice. The liability, which can require a property owner to contribute to the cost of repairing the chancel of a local parish church, dates from medieval land law and is tied to the land rather than the owner’s beliefs or connection to the church.

Since 2013, unregistered chancel repair liability is no longer an overriding interest, meaning it must be registered to bind a purchaser. But for properties that changed hands before that date, registered liability can still exist and still bite.

The appropriate response is straightforward, a chancel search where the risk exists, and indemnity insurance where it’s warranted. The less straightforward part is identifying which properties warrant the extra step. Rural properties, older stock, and land near historic parish churches are the obvious candidates. The search data should prompt the question.

Flood risk that isn’t reflected in the asking price

Flooding is increasingly well understood as a property risk, but the gap between what a standard environmental search flags and what a property is genuinely exposed to has widened as climate patterns have shifted. A property that last flooded in 1987 may carry a lower risk rating than one that flooded in 2020 – but both carry risk, and neither is necessarily reflected in what the seller has disclosed.

The specific risk that catches firms out most often isn’t river or coastal flooding, which tends to be well mapped. It’s surface water flooding, the kind that results from drainage systems being overwhelmed during heavy rainfall, which is harder to model, less consistently reported, and increasingly common in areas that haven’t historically been considered at risk.

An environmental search that draws on current flood mapping, drainage records, and historical incident data gives a materially different picture from one that relies on older datasets. The difference matters when you’re advising a client on whether to proceed and on what terms.

What connects all four

None of these risks are obscure. Every conveyancer reading this will have encountered at least one of them in practice. What connects them is that they’re all data problems before they’re legal problems – and in each case, the quality and currency of the search data determines whether the issue surfaces at the right moment or the wrong one.

The search isn’t just a regulatory requirement. It’s the foundation on which advice is built. It’s worth knowing exactly what yours is built on.

For a closer look at how search data quality affects conveyancing outcomes – and what to look for when assessing your current provider – download our guide.

Fill in the form below to download your complimentary ‘Solving the
data puzzle’ guide:

If you’re advising a buyer, the new TA6 is less about what’s asked, and more about what isn’t.

The newly released 6th edition reduces seller disclosure, but it doesn’t reduce buyer risk. Knowing which gaps now need to be filled elsewhere is key.

For our latest Five Minutes On… article, we tackle the much discussed TA6 form. Lets get into it.

What the new TA6 no longer asks… and why that matters

The 6th edition strips out nine sections that appeared in the 5th edition. Several of them are directly relevant to search-based due diligence.

  • Coalfield or mining area – sellers are no longer asked to disclose whether a property sits in a former coalfield or mining area. That risk doesn’t go away. A CON29M or specialist mining search remains the appropriate way to surface it.
  • Coastal erosion – removed from the TA6 entirely. For properties in at-risk coastal zones, an environmental or specialist coastal erosion search is the only reliable source of this information.
  • Building safety – questions around cladding, remediation and the Building Safety Act have been taken out of the standard form. For leasehold properties in scope, the TA7 5th edition (updated alongside the TA6) picks up some of this – but the position on leaseholder deed of certificate, service charges and remediation funding still needs careful handling.
  • Restrictive covenants – sellers are no longer prompted to disclose these. Title investigation and, where appropriate, indemnity insurance remain the tools to address gaps here.

What hasn’t changed

The seller’s legal obligations haven’t moved. Misrepresentation and caveat emptor still apply. The form being shorter doesn’t reduce the buyer’s exposure to undisclosed risks – it just means fewer of those risks are being asked about upfront.

The Law Society has confirmed that solicitors’ professional liability position is unchanged. A shorter form doesn’t reduce the duty of care.

A well-constructed search pack was always the right approach. The TA6 6th edition makes the case for it even more clearly, with less being captured at the seller disclosure stage, searches are increasingly where the picture gets completed.

With less being asked of sellers upfront, it falls to structured due diligence to carry the weight of those missing disclosures. The TA6 has been streamlined, not the risks that sit behind it, and that distinction matters when you’re building a search pack that genuinely protects your buyer.

The OneSearch team can help you identify which searches fill the gaps for any transaction. Explore the full Five Minutes On… library here.

Change is coming to the way firms handle SDLT submissions, and while the full impact will vary from team to team, it’s something every conveyancer should have on their radar before May.

For most practices, SDLT has long been a familiar, end‑of‑transaction step: reliable, predictable, and rarely the part that causes delays. But with new expectations on the horizon, firms may soon find that this once‑simple stage needs a closer look.

We’re not here to overwhelm you with detail. Instead, we’ve created a short downloadable guide, which highlights what’s shifting, why it matters for day‑to‑day workflows, and how conveyancers can stay ahead without adding pressure to an already busy post‑completion process.

If your day to day tasks include SDLT in any way, now’s a good moment to take stock. Grab our guide for all the details.

A blocked drain is an inconvenience. A public sewer running beneath your garden is a legal constraint that could prevent you building an extension, a garage, or even a garden room, potentially for the life of your ownership. Drainage searches exist to surface exactly these kinds of issues before exchange, not after.

Yet they remain one of the least understood searches in the conveyancing process.

Lets dive in with our latest Five Minutes On theme.

What is a drainage search?

A drainage and water search, formally the CON29DW, is a regulated search product that provides information about a property’s connection to the public water and sewerage network. It is produced using data held by the relevant water and sewerage company for the area, and is a standard part of the residential conveyancing search bundle.

It answers 23 standard questions, covering:

  • whether the property is connected to the public water supply and public sewer
  • whether any public sewers or water mains are within the boundary of the property
  • whether the property is at risk of internal sewer flooding
  • the location of the nearest public sewer
  • whether there are any current or planned drainage improvement schemes affecting the area
  • the identity of the sewerage and water undertaker responsible for the area

Why does it matter, the sewer within the boundary issue

The single most consequential result a drainage search can return is confirmation that a public sewer runs within, or close to, the property boundary. This matters for one critical reason: building over or near a public sewer without consent from the water company is not permitted.

Under the Water Industry Act 1991 and subsequent legislation, water companies have a statutory right to access public sewers for inspection and maintenance. A building constructed over a public sewer without a formal build-over agreement creates significant risk:

  • The water company may require the building to be demolished or modified
  • Mortgage lenders may decline to lend against properties with unresolved build-over issues
  • Future planning applications for extensions or outbuildings may be refused or conditioned
  • Indemnity insurance may be required to proceed, and is not always straightforward to obtain

It is worth noting that since 2011, when the adoption of private sewers transferred many previously private drains into public ownership, the number of properties affected by this issue increased significantly overnight. Many homeowners, and even some conveyancers, remain unaware that the drain they thought was private is now a public asset.

Sewer flooding risk, an increasingly relevant question

The CON29DW includes a question on whether the property has been, or is at risk of being, subject to internal flooding from public sewers. With ageing Victorian infrastructure, increased rainfall intensity linked to climate change, and growing pressure on combined sewer systems, this is a question that is becoming more material, not less.

A positive response to this question, indicating a history of or risk of sewer flooding, should prompt further enquiry. It may also affect buildings insurance, and buyers should be made aware of the implications before exchange.

What a drainage search does not cover

Understanding the boundaries of the CON29DW is just as important as understanding what it reveals. It does not cover:

  • Private drainage systems, septic tanks, cesspools, and private treatment plants are not covered. For rural properties or those not connected to mains drainage, a separate enquiry, and often a physical survey, is essential
  • Surface water flooding, the risk of flooding from surface water runoff is covered in an environmental search, not the drainage search
  • Drainage condition, the CON29DW confirms the existence and location of infrastructure, not its physical condition. A CCTV drain survey is required if condition is a concern
  • Ordinary watercourses, ditches, streams, and ordinary watercourses fall outside the scope of the CON29DW and may require separate enquiry of the Lead Local Flood Authority

How to read a drainage search result

Drainage search results have historically varied in format and clarity between providers, sometimes making it harder than it should be to identify the most important findings quickly. The most critical questions to check are:

  • Is the property connected to a public sewer? (If not, how is foul drainage managed?)
  • Are any public sewers within the boundary of the property?
  • Is there any history of, or risk of, internal sewer flooding?
  • Are there any current water or sewerage improvement schemes affecting the property?

Where the answer to any of these is unexpected or concerning, further enquiry of the water company, or a formal build-over agreement where relevant, should follow before exchange.

A clearer report for a critical search

OneSearch has recently refreshed its drainage and water search report, the OneSearch DW, with a focus on clarity and usability. The revamped report is designed to surface the most important results prominently, making it easier for conveyancers to identify issues quickly and communicate them clearly to clients.

In a search that can have significant implications for development potential, mortgage lending, and long-term ownership, a report that is easy to read and act on isn’t a nice-to-have, it’s an essential part of good conveyancing practice.

A drainage search is one of the most consistently valuable searches in the residential conveyancing bundle; not because it always reveals a problem, but because when it does, the implications can be serious, expensive, and not always easy to resolve.

Understanding what it covers, what it doesn’t, and how to read the results is one of the simplest ways a conveyancer can add real value to a client at the point when it matters most… before they commit.

Around 4.98 million homes in England are leasehold. For decades, the system governing those properties has been widely criticised as unfair, opaque, and costly for leaseholders.

The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act received Royal Assent in May 2024 – but here’s the thing most people miss: becoming law and coming into force are two very different things.

For conveyancers advising clients on leasehold transactions right now, knowing exactly what has changed, what hasn’t yet, and what’s still coming is essential, so here is the topic in 5 minutes:

What does the Act set out to do?

The Act’s aim is to make it easier, cheaper and fairer for leaseholders to extend their lease or buy their freehold. Its headline changes include:

  • 990-year lease extensions – up from 90 years for flats and just 50 years for houses
  • Removal of marriage value – eliminating the premium leaseholders currently pay on leases under 80 years, potentially saving thousands
  • No freeholder cost recovery – leaseholders will no longer have to pay their landlord’s legal and valuation costs when making an enfranchisement or extension claim
  • Ban on new leasehold houses – all newly built houses must be sold freehold (with very limited exceptions)
  • Service charge transparency – standardised service charge formats, insurance commission bans, and easier Tribunal challenges
  • Right to Manage expanded – the non-residential floorspace threshold raised from 25% to 50%, allowing more buildings to qualify

What is actually in force right now?

This is where it gets important. Most of the Act’s provisions require secondary legislation before they take effect. As of early 2026, only three tranches of the Act are live:

  • From 24 July 2024: rentcharge enforcement rules and certain Building Safety Act amendments
  • From 31 January 2025: removal of the two-year ownership requirement – leaseholders can now pursue a lease extension or enfranchisement claim immediately on purchase, without waiting two years
  • From 3 March 2025: Right to Manage threshold increased from 25% to 50% non-residential floorspace; RTM companies no longer automatically liable for landlord’s costs on a claim notice

All other provisions, including the 990-year extensions, removal of marriage value, and the ban on new leasehold houses, remain to be commenced by statutory instrument. The government has not confirmed a timetable for the remaining provisions, and a judicial review challenging aspects of the valuation methodology is ongoing, which may affect implementation further.

What’s still coming – and what to watch for

Beyond the Act itself, the government has signalled further leasehold reform ahead:

  • Commonhold revival – plans to ban the creation of new leasehold flats and reinvigorate commonhold as the default tenure for flats
  • Ground rent regulation – proposals to cap or regulate ground rents for existing leases (ground rent abolition for new leases is already in force under the Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act 2022)
  • Forfeiture reform – ending the ability for freeholders to forfeit a lease over debts as low as £350, a provision widely regarded as disproportionate
  • Valuation rates – deferment and capitalisation rates (the key figures for calculating lease extension premiums) still need to be prescribed; until they are, significant valuation uncertainty remains

What does this mean for conveyancers today?

The practical implications of what is already in force are significant:

  • Short leases on purchase: buyers can now instruct a lease extension claim immediately on completion, removing the previous two-year wait. For leases approaching 80 years, this changes the advice conversation considerably
  • Leases under 80 years: marriage value still applies under current law. Buyers need to understand this clearly – the savings anticipated when marriage value is eventually removed are not yet available
  • Valuation uncertainty: with prescribed rates not yet set, premium quotes from different surveyors may vary significantly. Managing client expectations around cost is important
  • Timing decisions: some leaseholders may be weighing whether to extend now or wait for the more favourable terms to arrive. There is no single right answer – it depends on lease length, ground rent, and individual circumstances

The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act is a landmark piece of legislation – but it is being implemented in stages, and most of its headline changes are not yet in force. The gap between the Act becoming law and its provisions taking effect is one of the most common sources of confusion for clients and practitioners alike.

For conveyancers, staying current with each commencement order as it arrives is essential – because the advice you give today may look quite different from the advice that will be appropriate in twelve months’ time.

Nutrient neutrality has quietly become one of the most significant blockers in residential conveyancing, stalling new build transactions across 74 local planning authority areas in England.

It isn’t a planning policy. It isn’t a local authority designation. It’s an environmental legal obligation rooted in European case law, and it has delayed the delivery of an estimated 160,000+ new homes.

The Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 has set out a new route through the problem, but for now, nutrient neutrality remains live, real, and directly relevant to new build transactions in affected catchments.

Lets squeeze all the knowledge on this new topic into a five minute read.

What is nutrient neutrality?

Nutrient neutrality is the requirement that new housing development must not add additional nitrogen or phosphorus pollution to protected river catchments that are already in poor environmental condition.

It stems from the ‘Dutch Nitrogen Case,’ a 2018 Court of Justice of the EU ruling which established that environmental mitigation measures must be certain and in place before planning permission can be granted, not promised for the future. Natural England applied this ruling to English river catchments, and the consequence has been that planning permission in affected areas can only be granted where a developer can demonstrably offset any additional nutrient load their development would create.

The irony is stark: new homes contribute less than 1% of the nitrogen and phosphorus entering affected rivers. Agriculture and wastewater treatment are overwhelmingly the dominant sources. But it is housing development, not farming, that bears the burden of proof.

Where does it apply?

Nutrient neutrality applies to 27 river catchments spanning 74 local planning authority areas across England. The most affected include:

  • The Solent catchment (Hampshire and surrounding areas)
  • The River Wye (Herefordshire and into Wales)
  • The Norfolk Broads and River Wensum
  • The Somerset Levels and Moors
  • Poole Harbour and the River Stour
  • The River Tees and Cleveland Coast
  • The River Eden, River Derwent, and Bassenthwaite Lake (Cumbria)

The affected area has been growing, not shrinking. New catchments have been added over time, and the issue is expected to expand further as more protected sites are assessed.

What does it mean for a new build transaction?

For conveyancers acting on new build purchases in affected catchments, nutrient neutrality can affect transactions at multiple stages:

  • Planning permission: developers must demonstrate nutrient neutrality before permission is granted. Where credits aren’t available or mitigation isn’t in place, permission is refused or delayed.
  • Discharge of conditions: some sites have planning permission but are caught at the discharge of planning conditions stage, where nutrient evidence must be approved before construction can begin.
  • Completion delays: even where construction has started, legal completion may depend on mitigation being formally signed off.
  • Credit costs: developers typically pay £2,500 to £10,000 per home for nutrient credits, depending on the catchment , costs which can affect viability and pricing.

What is changing with Nutrient Neutrality

The Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 introduces Environmental Delivery Plans (EDPs) and a Nature Restoration Fund (NRF) as the long-term solution to nutrient neutrality and similar environmental blockers.

Rather than each developer arranging their own bespoke mitigation, the new system works like this:

  • Natural England prepares an EDP for a specific catchment, identifying strategic nature recovery measures.
  • Developers pay a levy into the NRF rather than sourcing individual credits.
  • Natural England delivers the environmental improvements at catchment scale.
  • Once an EDP is in place, development in that catchment can proceed without site-by-site mitigation.

The first EDPs are expected to cover nutrient neutrality catchments, with public consultation anticipated in spring/summer 2026. Until EDPs are formally adopted for a catchment, the existing nutrient neutrality regime continues to apply in full.

How does this appear in property searches?

Nutrient neutrality is not directly flagged in a standard CON29 or LLC search. However, an environmental search for a new build property in an affected catchment may indicate the relevant protected habitat designations, Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) or Special Protection Areas (SPAs), that underpin the nutrient neutrality requirement.

For conveyancers acting on new build transactions, the most important checks are:

  • confirming whether the site falls within a nutrient neutrality catchment.
  • checking that the developer has obtained and evidenced appropriate nutrient credits or mitigation.
  • reviewing planning conditions and their discharge status carefully
  • monitoring EDP developments for the relevant catchment as the NRF comes into effect.

Nutrient neutrality is one of those issues that sounds technical and obscure until it stops a transaction in its tracks. For conveyancers working in affected catchments, it is a live and material consideration on every new build instruction.

The Nature Restoration Fund offers a credible route through the problem, but it will take time to land. In the meantime, knowing which catchments are affected, what mitigation looks like, and where the transaction sits in the process is essential knowledge for any conveyancer advising on new build property.