Research and analysis

Reservation agreements: Informing the design of an effective offer

This study examined whether reservation agreements could reduce failed transactions during the home buying and selling process.

• From: Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
• Published: 8 September 2026

Applies to England

Documents

Reservation agreements: Informing the design of an effective offer

PDF, 879 KB, 51 pages

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Details

This research study was commissioned by a previous administration and is being published for transparency purposes.

This report explores the potential of reservation agreements to help make the home buying and selling process quicker, cheaper and less stressful for consumers.

The high level approach was to explore some options for designing a reservation agreement with industry stakeholders and test these ideas with home buyers and sellers.

Published 8 September 2026