I agree that the conveyancing process needs a complete overhaul in England and Wales. I'm a conveyancing solicitor - I like to think I'm one of the good ones, but there are plenty that aren't. The system itself is extremely frustrating for us too.
The difficulty with Home Information Packs is that the searches go out of date - most lenders want searches that are no more than 6 months old at completion. Unless you sell your house within days of it going on the market then by the time you have gone through the whole process, the searches are likely to be out of date. The issue with them the first time round was that they didn't really consult solicitors on what would have been most helpful.
Similarly with copies of the title and property forms - the expectation is that they are all dated within 6 months - if they aren't and something significant has changed then it can take forever to establish this. Surveys can only be relied on by the person who instructs the surveyor. So if you see a survey prepared for the seller, and you rely on it but it's missing something major, you won't have any comeback on the surveyor. So it makes sense as a buyer to have your own carried out.
Until mortgage lenders change their requirements, unfortunately solicitors (who generally act for the lender as well as the buyer) have to make sure that all of the lenders requirements are satisfied which slows things down. There is a huge difference in how lenders respond to things - some respond by email the same day, or within a day or two. Some take weeks and will only fax or post correspondence. Most at the moment are still blaming Covid for everything, it can take hours to get through on the phone.
Then you get the solicitors who aren't willing to engage, collaborate or try to progress the matter. It's frustrating when they don't answer emails or you can only ever get through to their voicemail.
As a very rough guide, freehold transactions take around 8-10 weeks from receipt of contract papers to exchange, leasehold I'd say 10-12 weeks. Most are taking longer at the moment due to the sheer volume of work because of the SDLT holiday.
I would also say that at the moment most conveyancers are burnt out. The volume of work over the last 18 months has been insane and most that I know have been working 12-14 hour days, weekends etc. to try to meet expectations. We are all desperate for it to be 1st October. We are exhausted, fed up of clients and agents having unrealistic expectations, and just doing our best.
The other thing worth bearing in mind is cost. If you are only paying £500 for conveyancing fees, you won't be getting someone qualified dealing with your matter. Think how many files they will need to have to make any money. The more files they have, the less time they have for each client and the slower the process will be. I wouldn't expect conveyancing fees for a freehold purchase to be less than around £1,100 plus VAT and disbursements.
I find that the clients who want to know everything about everything are the ones whose transactions take the longest because I have to duplicate work and explain every minor detail to them. I don't have time to respond to every email immediately. If I've had an email, I'll get to it but don't need a phonecall chasing it up within an hour. If I'm reviewing a new build property or a leasehold one, it would take me 2-3 hours uninterrupted, depending on complexity. If I'm interrupted every 5 minutes, it can take days. I've been reviewing a leasehold transaction for 3 days, because the phone doesn't stop ringing and then I have to stop and deal with exchanges, completions, random enquiries, colleague enquiries, estate agents, mortgage brokers, clients, opposing solicitors, clients again, estate agents from elsewhere in the chain who can't get a response from the solicitors they are meant to be dealing with. Plus clients who drop into reception with documents but want 5 minutes to discuss their matter with me. Of course I don't mind taking the time to speak to them (or anyone who calls, as there is nothing more frustrating than not being able to speak to someone!) but it slows the process down enormously.