ETSOS Respond to Government’s anticipated “Call for Evidence” on improving the conveyancing process

06 July 2016 6243 Views

As a service provider to both Estate Agents and Conveyancing Solicitors from one platform, ETSOS sits in a fairly unique position in the sector; involved from the point of listing through to the point of sale, linking both parties together.

We believe that there are improvements to be made in the homebuying and conveyancing process even before a property comes to market. As many of our team were involved with HIPs we saw first-hand the potential HIPs had and despite their well-documented flaws felt that with modern technology and a few changes an upgraded HIP-like process could help speed up transactions.

The repeal of the Property Misdescriptions Act 1991 in October 2013, replaced with the wider reaching Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, in our opinion presents such an opportunity.

In a move away from caveat emptor failure to provide material information that would affect a transactional decision now has the potential to result in fines against the agent, and compensation claims against vendors. Investigations into the reasons for fall throughs, which sit just under 30% for 2015-16, reveal that greater transparency both at the point of listing, and critically on an ongoing basis, would alleviate a number of the fall through triggers. Greater disclosure, better quality viewings, and more informed purchasers has the potential to significantly improve the home buying experience.

The legislative requirement to collect more information up front also presents the opportunity to create closer links with vendor and conveyancing practitioners at the point of listing with whom information can be shared to enable the collation of the seller’s pack at an earlier stage. In turn this can be presented to the purchaser’s solicitor at the point of an offer being accepted avoiding delays in the transaction.

The introduction of technology has had a very positive impact on conveyancing and the continued implementation of tools such as online documentation completion, electronic verification and shared workflows has the potential to create further opportunities to bridge the gap between estate agents and conveyancing practitioners bringing together innovation from both sectors.

 

We cannot relieve you of your responsibility to comply, we simply make it easy to do so. No set up costs, no contracts, no tie ins. Register today to try Compliance in a Box FREE on your first 3 properties; contact Samantha Peacock today on 01524 220013 or email speacock@etsos.co.uk.