The two documents every seller needs before listing in 2026
Two documents are non negotiable before your home goes on the market in 2026: a valid EPC and the sixth edition TA6. Here is what each one is and how to prepare.
If you are planning to sell your home in 2026, there are two documents that need to be sorted before the sign goes up. Both of them are the law, both of them are easy to get wrong, and one of them is brand new.
The Energy Performance Certificate
The first is your Energy Performance Certificate, better known as an EPC. Every home that goes on the market for sale or rent in England and Wales must have a valid EPC in place before it can be marketed. Not once a buyer is found. Before. The certificate rates your home from A to G on its energy efficiency, and it lasts ten years from the date it was issued. If yours is out of date, you will need a new one from an accredited assessor, which usually costs somewhere between eighty and a hundred and fifty pounds and can be done in a single visit.
Most sellers assume their EPC is fine and it often is not. Extensions, new boilers, insulation and window upgrades can all change the rating, and buyers absolutely look at the number. A poor rating will not stop a sale, but it does affect the questions buyers ask, especially with running costs where they are today. If you can commission any small energy improvement before the assessor visits, do it. A jump from a D to a C is often achievable and it reads well in the listing.
The TA6, sixth edition
The second document is where 2026 gets interesting. On 30 March 2026 the Law Society's TA6 Property Information Form moved to its sixth edition, and completing it became compulsory. The TA6 is the form your solicitor sends you full of questions about your property, from boundaries and disputes to alterations, guarantees, utilities and known defects. Under the new sixth edition rules you can, and should, complete it before you find a buyer, not after.
That change is one of the most useful things to happen to the selling process in years. Historically the TA6 was filled in only once a buyer was in place, and any surprises inside it caused delays, renegotiations or a collapsed sale. By completing it upfront and having it ready to send to a buyer's solicitor the moment an offer is accepted, you shorten the transaction, reduce the chances of a fall through and show serious buyers that you are properly prepared.
The paperwork it forces you to find
The other advantage is more practical. Filling out the TA6 forces you to gather every piece of paperwork about your home. Building regulations sign offs, FENSA certificates for windows, gas safety records, guarantees, planning permissions. Nine sellers in ten do not know where all of this is until the moment they need it. Better to hunt for it now than under offer.
Do these two things before you speak to an agent
So before you speak to an agent about a valuation, do these two things. Check the date on your EPC and, if it is older than nine years, book a new one. Then ask your solicitor for the sixth edition of the TA6 and start working through it while you have time.
Two documents. A few hundred pounds. A far smoother sale.
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