SearchCore Quarterly Report

Property Search Speed Report

Q2 2026 — England & Wales

Published 9 May 2026 | Data from 124 postcode areas | 20 lenders mapped

Executive Summary

124
Areas Tracked
8.2
Avg Days (National)
18
GREEN Areas
42
RED/BLACK Areas
44
LLC Migrated

National Performance Distribution

18
64
37
GREEN: 18 (15%)
AMBER: 64 (52%)
RED: 37 (30%)
BLACK: 5 (4%)

Lender Landscape

20
Lenders Mapped
19
Accept Regulated
95%
Acceptance Rate

10 Fastest Areas

AreaCouncilDaysLLC
EC City of London / Islington 3d Instant
WC Camden / Westminster / City of London 3d Instant
WD Watford / Three Rivers / Hertsmere 3d Instant
AL St Albans City & District 3d Instant
CB Cambridge / South Cambridgeshire 3d Instant
SW Wandsworth / Lambeth / Kensington & Chelsea 4d Instant
W Westminster / Ealing / Hammersmith & Fulham 4d Instant
KT Kingston upon Thames / Elmbridge 4d Instant
SM Sutton / Merton 4d Instant
TW Hounslow / Richmond upon Thames 4d Instant

10 Slowest Areas

AreaCouncilDaysLLC
ZE Shetland Islands Council 30d Standard
HS Na h-Eileanan Siar (Western Isles) 30d Standard
IV Highland Council 28d Standard
KW Highland / Orkney Islands 25d Standard
AB Aberdeen City / Aberdeenshire 25d Standard
JE States of Jersey 15d Standard
IM Isle of Man Government 15d Standard
GY States of Guernsey 15d Standard
BT Belfast / NI Council Areas 15d Standard
PH Perth & Kinross / Highland 15d Standard

Full Council Performance Data

PostcodeCouncilRatingAvg DaysLLC InstantLLC Migrated
EC City of London / Islington GREEN 3 days Yes Yes
WC Camden / Westminster / City of London GREEN 3 days Yes Yes
WD Watford / Three Rivers / Hertsmere GREEN 3 days Yes Yes
AL St Albans City & District GREEN 3 days Yes Yes
CB Cambridge / South Cambridgeshire GREEN 3 days Yes Yes
SW Wandsworth / Lambeth / Kensington & Chelsea GREEN 4 days Yes Yes
W Westminster / Ealing / Hammersmith & Fulham GREEN 4 days Yes Yes
KT Kingston upon Thames / Elmbridge GREEN 4 days Yes Yes
SM Sutton / Merton GREEN 4 days Yes Yes
TW Hounslow / Richmond upon Thames GREEN 4 days Yes Yes
GU Guildford / Waverley / East Hampshire GREEN 4 days Yes Yes
OX Oxford / Cherwell / South Oxfordshire GREEN 4 days Yes Yes
RG Reading / West Berkshire / Wokingham GREEN 4 days Yes Yes
TN Tunbridge Wells / Ashford / Wealden GREEN 4 days Yes Yes
BA Bath & North East Somerset / Somerset GREEN 4 days Yes Yes
EX East Devon / Exeter / North Devon GREEN 4 days Yes Yes
CM Chelmsford / Braintree / Brentwood GREEN 4 days Yes Yes
MK Milton Keynes City Council GREEN 4 days Yes Yes
N Islington / Haringey / Enfield AMBER 5 days Yes Yes
SE Southwark / Lewisham / Greenwich AMBER 5 days Yes Yes
BR Bromley Council AMBER 5 days Yes Yes
DA Dartford / Bexley AMBER 5 days Yes Yes
EN Enfield / Broxbourne AMBER 5 days Yes Yes
UB Hillingdon / Ealing AMBER 5 days Yes Yes
BN Brighton & Hove / Lewes / Worthing AMBER 5 days Yes Yes
CT Canterbury City Council AMBER 5 days Yes Yes
HP Buckinghamshire / Dacorum AMBER 5 days Yes Yes
RH Mid Sussex / Horsham / Crawley AMBER 5 days Yes Yes
BH BCP Council (Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole) AMBER 5 days Yes No
BS Bristol City Council / South Gloucestershire AMBER 5 days Yes Yes
GL Gloucester / Cheltenham / Stroud / Cotswold AMBER 5 days Yes No
SN Swindon / Wiltshire AMBER 5 days Yes No
CO Colchester / Tendring AMBER 5 days Yes No
LU Luton / Central Bedfordshire AMBER 5 days Yes No
PE Peterborough / Huntingdonshire / Fenland AMBER 5 days Yes Yes
SG North Hertfordshire / Stevenage AMBER 5 days Yes Yes
CV Coventry / Warwick / Rugby AMBER 5 days Yes Yes
DE Derby City Council / Amber Valley AMBER 5 days Yes No
YO York / North Yorkshire / East Riding AMBER 5 days Yes Yes
CW Cheshire East Council AMBER 5 days Yes Yes
E Tower Hamlets / Newham / Hackney AMBER 6 days Yes Yes
NW Camden / Brent / Westminster AMBER 6 days Yes Yes
CR Croydon Council AMBER 6 days Yes Yes
HA Harrow / Brent AMBER 6 days Yes Yes
IG Redbridge / Barking & Dagenham AMBER 6 days Yes Yes
RM Havering / Thurrock / Barking & Dagenham AMBER 6 days Yes Yes
ME Medway Council AMBER 6 days Yes No
SL Windsor & Maidenhead / Slough / Buckinghamshire AMBER 6 days Yes Yes
SO Southampton / Eastleigh / New Forest AMBER 6 days Yes No
PL Plymouth / Cornwall / South Hams AMBER 6 days Yes No
SP Wiltshire / Test Valley AMBER 6 days Yes No
TA Somerset Council AMBER 6 days Yes No
IP East Suffolk / Ipswich / Mid Suffolk AMBER 6 days Yes No
NR Norwich / Broadland / South Norfolk AMBER 6 days Yes No
SS Southend-on-Sea / Basildon / Castle Point AMBER 6 days Yes No
B Birmingham City Council AMBER 6 days Yes Yes
DY Dudley / Wyre Forest / Sandwell AMBER 6 days Yes No
TF Telford & Wrekin Council AMBER 6 days Yes No
WR Wychavon / Worcester / Malvern Hills AMBER 6 days Yes No
WS Walsall / Lichfield / Cannock Chase AMBER 6 days Yes No
NG Nottingham / Newark & Sherwood / Gedling AMBER 6 days Yes No
NN West Northamptonshire / North Northamptonshire AMBER 6 days Yes No
CH Cheshire West & Chester / Wirral AMBER 6 days Yes No
WA Warrington Borough Council AMBER 6 days Yes No
TS Stockton-on-Tees / Middlesbrough / Redcar AMBER 6 days No No
CF Cardiff Council / Rhondda Cynon Taf / Vale of Glamorgan AMBER 6 days Yes No
PO Portsmouth / Havant / Isle of Wight AMBER 7 days Yes No
DT Dorset Council AMBER 7 days Yes No
TQ Torbay / Teignbridge AMBER 7 days No No
HR Herefordshire Council AMBER 7 days No No
WV Wolverhampton / South Staffordshire AMBER 7 days No No
LE Leicester City Council / Charnwood AMBER 7 days Yes No
LN Lincoln / West Lindsey / East Lindsey AMBER 7 days Yes No
HG North Yorkshire Council AMBER 7 days Yes No
LS Leeds City Council AMBER 7 days Yes Yes
S Sheffield City Council / Barnsley / Rotherham AMBER 7 days Yes Yes
WF Wakefield Council AMBER 7 days Yes No
NP Newport City Council / Monmouthshire / Torfaen AMBER 7 days No No
SA Swansea / Carmarthenshire / Pembrokeshire AMBER 7 days No No
PR Preston / South Ribble / Chorley RED 8 days No No
EH City of Edinburgh / East Lothian / Midlothian AMBER 8 days No No
FK Falkirk / Stirling / Clackmannanshire AMBER 8 days No No
KY Fife Council AMBER 8 days No No
TR Cornwall Council RED 9 days No No
ST Stoke-on-Trent City Council RED 9 days No No
HX Calderdale Council RED 9 days No No
FY Blackpool / Fylde / Wyre RED 9 days No No
L Liverpool City Council RED 9 days No No
WN Wigan Council RED 9 days No No
HD Kirklees Council RED 10 days No No
BB Blackburn with Darwen / Pendle / Burnley RED 10 days No No
M Manchester City Council RED 10 days No No
SK Stockport / Cheshire East / High Peak RED 10 days No No
DL Darlington / County Durham / North Yorkshire RED 10 days No No
LL Gwynedd / Conwy / Denbighshire / Wrexham RED 10 days No No
SY Shropshire Council / Powys / Ceredigion RED 10 days No No
G Glasgow City Council RED 10 days No No
KA North Ayrshire / East Ayrshire / South Ayrshire RED 10 days No No
ML North Lanarkshire / South Lanarkshire RED 10 days No No
TD Scottish Borders Council RED 10 days No No
DN Doncaster Council / North Lincolnshire RED 11 days No No
LA Westmorland & Furness / Lancaster RED 11 days No No
HU Kingston upon Hull / East Riding RED 12 days No No
CA Cumberland Council (formerly Carlisle/Allerdale/Eden) RED 12 days No No
DH County Durham Council RED 12 days No No
SR Sunderland City Council RED 12 days No No
LD Powys County Council RED 12 days No No
DG Dumfries & Galloway Council RED 12 days No No
PA Renfrewshire / Argyll & Bute / Inverclyde RED 12 days No No
BD Bradford Council RED 14 days No No
BL Bolton Council RED 15 days No No
OL Oldham Council / Rochdale / Tameside RED 15 days No No
NE Newcastle / Northumberland / North Tyneside RED 15 days No No
DD Dundee City / Angus RED 15 days No No
PH Perth & Kinross / Highland RED 15 days No No
BT Belfast / NI Council Areas RED 15 days No No
GY States of Guernsey RED 15 days No No
IM Isle of Man Government RED 15 days No No
JE States of Jersey RED 15 days No No
AB Aberdeen City / Aberdeenshire BLACK 25 days No No
KW Highland / Orkney Islands BLACK 25 days No No
IV Highland Council BLACK 28 days No No
HS Na h-Eileanan Siar (Western Isles) BLACK 30 days No No
ZE Shetland Islands Council BLACK 30 days No No

Methodology & Sources

Council turnaround times are compiled from published local authority data, regulated search provider dashboards, and public turnaround trackers. Times represent average working days for CON29R enquiry results.

LLC migration status is sourced from the official HM Land Registry Local Land Charges Programme page on GOV.UK. Councils marked as "LLC Instant" have migrated their Local Land Charges register to HMLR's central digital service.

Lender rules are sourced from the UK Finance Lenders' Handbook, specifically Part-2 (lender-specific) entries regarding acceptance of personal/regulated searches (Q5.4.5) and search insurance (Q5.4.6).

Performance ratings: GREEN (1-5 working days), AMBER (5-10), RED (10-20), BLACK (20+).

Disclaimer: This report is for informational purposes. Turnaround times are estimates and may vary. Always verify lender requirements for your specific case. SearchCore makes no guarantees about search delivery times.

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