The first theme of National Conveyancing Week 2024 focuses on the exciting and untapped opportunity of material and up-front information to reduce transaction delays and drive efficiency in conveyancing.

There is no doubt that change is needed. Depending on who you speak to, transactions are currently taking place in the region of 20-22 weeks on average, and this is only increasing. In this article, we will ask whether the current transaction times are a matter of embarrassment and what is holding us back from leveraging material and upfront information in conveyancing.

A matter of embarrassment?

Those within the UK’s property sector are acutely aware of the protracted transaction times in 2024. The truth is that conveyancers are working harder than ever to achieve completion as early as possible. One recent opinion from within the industry has ruffled a few feathers. Ruth Beeton, co-founder of Home Sale Pack, is quoted as having stated:

“The UK boasts one of the strongest and most desirable property markets on the global stage, but despite our obsession with bricks and mortar, our protracted property transaction timeline is quite frankly embarrassing”.

This is an understandable point of view, but should we really be embarrassed?

Robin Wells, Head of Sales Operations for OneSearch, takes the view that transaction times are frustrating rather than embarrassing:

“Yes, it is frustrating. In 2011, 12 weeks was kind of the expected time for a standard residential conveyance to go through from notification to completion. I think we’re now looking at 20, 22 weeks”.

Elizabeth Jarvis, Managing Director of OneSearch, believes that there are some valid reasons for the length of completion times which are often overlooked:

“I think that it’s the fact that it’s [transaction times] increasing, which is uncomfortable to be in an industry where despite everybody’s best efforts, we can’t seem to get it together to get that back down to where it was a number of years ago. I know that there are some very valid reasons for it that there’s a lot more diligence, and things have crept into the process”.

This raises an important point; the increase in property transaction times, in part, is due to the greater lengths that conveyancers now go to protecting homebuyers and sellers and, ultimately, the reputation of the sector as a whole (i.e. due diligence checks, AML and KYC).
 

What will enable the proper adoption of upfront information?

One of the frustrations with the state of transaction times is that the promise of technology has not yet led to a wholesale improvement in the experience of property buyers and sellers. Elizabeth Jarvis believes that where upfront information has not taken hold in the past, there are now strong indications that technology will be a key enabler:

“I think now, from what I can see, is chinks of light where there is some better communication, and I think there’s a lot more general interest from the conveyancing sector in technology and re-looking at that technology which obviously is going to work a lot better now than when it was first conceived. I think, broadly speaking, we would all agree that the whole concept of having data upfront is a good one. There were reasons why it didn’t quite work the way it was hoped. But I think that it’s seen a return to that is happening”.

Elizabeth also takes the view that the key to making upfront information work and to bringing down transaction times is the use of technology to connect all stakeholders in the process:

“It’s no good to have upfront data if everybody in the process isn’t making use of it and they’re not speaking to each other. It’s the interconnectedness, the connectivity of people in the process working together with it”.

Final words

The fact that upfront data is first on the agenda for the National Conveyancing Week 2024 is extremely positive news for the UK’s conveyancing sector. What is now needed is for all senior stakeholders to come together to create a unified strategy for improved conveyancing efficiency using the latest technology as a foundation to enable the full use of material and upfront information. As Elizabeth Jarvis says, the good news is that there are strong signals that this is already happening.

As the housing market and economic outlook continues to fluctuate the cash buyer market sector recently hit an eight-year high.

More and more non-mortgage clients are entering the market looking to secure their next short or long-term investment, and each one has the sought-after incentive of being chain-free, and good to go. 

This this blog, we take a deep dive into the current Cash Buyer Landscape, by pitching questions to OneSearch’s head of Sales, Robin Wells…

1. With current economic trends around higher interest rates and low availability of mortgages, have cash purchases increased? 

It goes without saying the property sector has taken, and is still taking an unprecedented number of hits, with the initial challenges stemming from the wake of the pandemic. But our resilient market has been further tested by the war in Ukraine and the subsequent cost of living crisis together consistent interest rate increases over the last 12 months.  

I think it’s important to understand that cash purchasers and purchases have always been prevalent in our marketplace, but naturally these transactions will inevitably increase when the sale of property (especially) distressed sales become more frequent and mortgaged buyers less plentiful. 

2. Without the need for a lender, and therefore searches not strictly being required, should cash buyers look to protect themselves? 

It’s critically important to understand that searches play a vital role in a property transaction and whatever the circumstances a full range of searches as advised by a conveyancer is always the best way to get all the property information required to make an informed decision. However, some cash purchases are negotiated by buyer and seller and the timescales of search delivery can fall out of these agreed parameters, so some form alternative safeguard maybe required to enable the purchase to proceed. 

3. How can conveyancers help prospective cash buyers reduce the risks involved with a cash purchase? 

As stated before, a full suite of searches is the first and foremost the best way of providing clients the property intelligence required to transact safely. However, when a lender is not present within the transaction, a suitable insurance policy can be obtained to protect the buyer from any loss of property value or claims that may arise from not taking usual route of ordering a full search pack and the missing data within the searches not being present. 

4. Is there a more robust way to increase the cash buyers due diligence as opposed to just insurance? 

Yes, our Cash Buyer Express is a combined solution that provides some really useful property search data, such as Planning information and planning permissions, nearby road schemes, road and railway schemes, and this is nicely wrapped up with a really robust insurance policy that adds a greater layer of cover for the buyer.  

With all these barriers bypassed, wouldn’t it be good to have an added layer of protection and security without jeopardising a speedy transaction? Our infographic highlights the routes available to your clients, and how OneSearch’s Cash Buyer Express gives your clients the best of both worlds.  

We have been made aware that the estimated turnaround time for regulated Local Searches in the Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council area is currently 40 working days.

This is due to a technical problem the council have with an internal system, which is causing significant delays. The estimated turnaround time for official Local Searches in this area is currently 85 working days.

If you do have an urgency with any particular case, or if unexpected delays have put the transaction at risk of collapse, we can support you with OneSearch Express, our indemnity policy which provides a data-rich alternative to standard No-Search Insurance, as it also includes a comprehensive report pertinent to a client’s property. Typically returned in just 24-48 hours, Express provides the majority of data (over 70%) that you would typically obtain from Local Authorities, meaning you and your client can complete quickly, and with more confidence.

Our clients have been using Express since 2015 for instances where search delays have put transactions at risk of collapse, and our claims record is exemplary: there are no claims resulting from our Express searches. This is due to the accuracy of our data, and triple quality check methodology. No other company exists with our dataset, comprised of real-time and historical CON29 data.

If you would like more information about OneSearch Express, please email intro@onesearchdirect.co.ukor call 01782 433270.

Our parent company Landmark have released their Residential Conveyancing and Home Movers’ experiences in 2022 guide, revealing the experiences from both sides of the conveyancing landscape.

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Within the guide, you can discover:  

• The four biggest causes of delays for residential conveyancers  
• Which changes would improve the buying experience most  
• Levels of buyer-concern around problems arising post-purchase  
• The extent to which recruitment is still a challenge in the industry 

The Q3 2022 edition of Landmark’s GB Residential Property Trends Report is now live, providing summaries of the last quarter’s residential property transaction pipeline from listings to SSTC/SSTM, and from searches to completions.

The past quarter has been something of a mixed bag for the property market: a steady trend towards pre-pandemic transaction volumes, capped by the short, sharp shock of September’s ‘mini budget’. As the after-effects play out in real time, the previous three months’ data offers some insight into how the market may fare.

 

Headlines from Q3 include:

• Supply overtakes demand in England and Wales, marking a reversal of the squeezed supply that has dominated in recent months.
• At the back end of the pipeline, England and Wales completions were down on the 2019 benchmark.
• Scottish completions, meanwhile, picked up in September on the back of strong SSTM volumes in the preceding months.

 

You can download the Cross Market Activity editions for both England & Wales and Scotland below to access the latest data and analysis on the UK property market during the third quarter of 2022. We hope you find them useful.

 

We’re delighted to now offer Landmark’s Plansearch Plus for only £5 when purchased with a RiskView Residential. This combined product provides full environmental due diligence for every transaction, protecting your clients investment and the reputation of your practice.

Each time a RiskView Residential environmental report is ordered alongside a Plansearch Plus report, the environmental and planning application data will be added automatically to an online, interactive map viewer, which helps to visually ‘bring to life’ the findings. This means homeowners can instantly see where any potential environmental risks may be present within a 250m proximity of the property, in addition to active/pending/approved residential and commercial planning applications up to a 750m radius via the mapped viewer.

Contact your account manager to add it to your bundles TODAY!