The latest edition of the TA6 property information form is only 20 pages long, less legalistic, contains more practical examples, is accompanied by clearer explanatory notes, and has been tested by sellers and conveyancers, the Law Society’s flagship property conference heard this week.

Sole practitioner Sarah Dwight and Pennington Manches Cooper partner Mark Sellers, co-chairs of the Society’s conveyancing and land law committee, revealed the scale of the operation to get the latest version of TA6 right during the final plenary session.

The conference heard that the working group included Dwight, Sellers, contributors to the Conveyancing Handbook, members of different-sized practices and Law Society president Mark Evans, who was a high street conveyancer for three decades.

The group met weekly over the last 12 months. All 1,200 responses submitted to a TA6 consultation were divided according to themes or questions on the form, which were then divided up. Dwight, for instance, dealt with the issue of boundaries and parking. Sellers looked at transaction information.

The conference heard that the TA6 was redrafted every week. Sellers said the word ‘please’ appeared 60 times in previous forms, which has now been cut to 24, noting the need for ‘balance between sounding courteous and being efficient and precise’.

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Dwight said clients often get the question on vacant possession wrong: ‘As practitioners, we know we can get a phone call on Monday where the client says “I have been in the garage and all the rubbish is in there.’ The form now makes clear that sellers have to take everything with them.

The form has been adapted to clarify the role of the seller - for instance, if they are the owner or a trustee. The form contain more questions beginning 'are you aware of'. For example, the seller is asked if they are 'aware of' any disputes or complaints, instead of being asked if there have been any disputes or complaints.

The sixth edition does not deal with material information. Plans to publish a separate form were paused after National Trading Standards' estate and letting aency team unexpectedly withdrew guidance that the fifth edition of TA6 was designed to support.

The government is consulting on home buying reforms that could see sellers providing upfront information that goes beyond the ‘material information’ that must be included in property listings. 'If [material information] reappears, the Law Society will develop a TA6 material information form,' Sellers said. 

 

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