George Solley, director of property sales at Thorntons, said: "It would be unfair to lay the blame for poor sales performance in the market at the moment with the introduction of home reports - as they came into force at a time when the market conditions were already weak.
"A lack of suitable mortgage funding to meet the demands of a key section of the market, namely first-time buyers, continues to cause the biggest problem. This doesn't allow the full value of the home report to kick in.
"Potential buyers can gain a lot of useful information on the properties they are considering in a home report without having to go to the expense of instructing surveys and valuations of their own up front.
"Although we are seeing evidence that those properties with home reports are still in the minority, they are attracting good interest. The cost of the report may be an issue for some sellers, but there are funding schemes in place which can defer payment until the property sells or for a designate period, whichever comes first.
"If mortgage availability was to improve, home reports could be far better placed to do the job they are intended to.
"For existing home owners, however, the added cost of the home report may be something they could do without on top of the larger deposits they are having to find, but it's not the main problem.
"The volume of sales is improving but we are still well below the levels of 2007 - the main issue is mortgage availability. However, there are a number of buyer schemes, including Shared Equity, designed to assist those with limited funds available and potential buyers."
Issued by Beattie Communications on behalf of Thorntons Solicitors.
Contact: Kimberley Hamilton, Tel 01698 787878