The government plan to eradicate rogue estate agents through new measures designed to professionalise the industry.

New reforms will require estate agents to hold a professional qualification and it will be a requirement for companies to be transparent about whether they receive fees for referring clients to mortgage brokers, surveyors or solicitors.

The new reforms have been put into place to solve the problem of gazumping. This is where a seller would pull out of a transaction to take a higher offer from another buyer. The government are encouraging voluntary reservation agreements where neither side can pull out of the deal without suitable justification to stop sales falling through.

Housing Secretary Sajid Javid said: "Buying a home is one of the biggest and most important purchases someone will make in their life. But for far too long buyers and sellers have been trapped in a stressful system full of delays and uncertainty. So, we're going to put the consumers back in the driving seat."

At this moment in time the government are blurred on what qualification they will mandate. However, we know that another consultation will be held to work out how estate agents will meet the required professional standards like a solicitor or surveyor.