UK Residential Conveyancing Market Report 2023

A Shrinking Sector Showing Little Signs of Growth until 2025

The eight annual edition of the report that provides a review of the market, looking at the market structure, key issues and new developments, market size and trends, the key players, future market developments, 4-year forecasts. 

The UK residential conveyancing market has faced a major downturn in the last two years.

In the year 2022, UK residential transactions decreased by 14.8% and there has been no respite in the first nine months of 2023 with UK residential transactions falling by 22% compared to the same period in 2022.    

Various measures of law firms and solicitors working in conveyancing show a sector that has been shrinking.

• Figures from the law societies in the UK (England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland) estimate that there are over 6,300 law firms (October 2023) that generate income from residential conveyancing in the UK but this is a 4% decline from September 2022. Between September 2021 and October 2023, over 450 law firms have gone from the sector.
• In September 2023, there were 3,838 registered active account holders at HM Land Registry covering England and Wales decreasing from 4,079 in September 2022.
• According to the law societies, there were 11,226 solicitors working in residential conveyancing in October 2023. This represents a decrease of 12.6%, or over 1,600 solicitors from September 2021.

Consolidation is increasing albeit at a slow rate

• In 2022, the top five conveyancing brands claimed 5.8% of all HM Land Registry transactions with the top 10 brands taking an 8.7% share. In the first three-quarters of 2023, the top five brand share had increased to 6.0% while the top 10 brands took a 9.1% share. 

Little optimism for the next 12 months

• Over the year 2023, there will be another significant decrease in housing transactions with volumes declining again compared to the previous year and market value declining by over 4%. The first signs of a recovery are not expected to emerge until later in 2024 with volumes and market value beginning to grow again in 2025 and 2026.