Buying and selling a house is often a stressful event. The success of transferring property largely depends on whether the conveyancing process plays out as predicted. In reality, though, the process is prone to delays and errors, resulting in additional costs and constant worries.
Conveyancing a home is made easier by taking the process online. This is possible through Property Exchange Australia (PEXA), which digitises property exchange. Since its launch, PEXA has made 2.4 billion property transactions, totalling $343 billion.
The PEXA network consists of financial institutions, property and conveyancing lawyers throughout Australia, from Townsville to Perth. Its network continues to grow, as more people reap the benefits of buying and selling their properties online.
How PEXA Works
Manual residential conveyance goes through five steps: contract, preparation, settlement, lodging transfer documents to the relevant government agencies and the government response. After a title has been located, property lawyers and conveyancers prepare the contract. All parties then prepare relevant documentation before the money is transferred to the seller. Payments are made by cheque, which usually takes five days to clear. Once the money appears in the seller’s bank account, transfer documents are lodged with government bodies, and all parties are notified that the settlement has been completed.
E-conveyance goes through the same steps, but all transactions are done online. Home buyers and sellers can search PEXA’s network to find the right specialist to help them through their property settlement. The conveyancer then uses PEXA to liaise with his or her client’s bank, search titles, lodge documents and transfer funds. Payments are done digitally rather than by cheque. Online document checks ensure fewer errors, and documents are lodged instantly to make the process as quick as possible.
Benefits of E-Conveyance
E-conveyancing has significant benefits that you won’t enjoy with manual transactions:
Faster and secure transactions
Manual settlements have long waiting times, from the signing of the contract to the money appearing in your bank account. It’s also nerve-racking to wait for money to turn up in your bank account. But in e-conveyancing, there’s no need to wait for bank cheques to clear, as the money goes into your account on the day of the settlement.
Fewer errors
Manual conveyancing involves piles of paperwork and involves several parties, so mistakes and delays are more likely. E-conveyancing minimises these errors and delays because the system has built-in alerts. Any errors during the money transfer are notified immediately to the person in charge so that he or she can make a correction.
Real-time updates
It’s worrying to keep waiting for updates from your conveyancer, and it’s tiresome to keep asking for the status of your settlement. This stress is alleviated with e-conveyancing, as you can track your settlements through an app on your phone. You’ll receive automatic updates as the process moves through each stage, and you’ll also get alerts of important dates during the process.
More user-friendly process
E-conveyancing cuts down the time you have to sign pages of documents in person. Instead, you can sign documents by affixing a digital signature. That way, you don’t have to take time off work.
E-conveyancing is a huge leap forward in the process of buying and selling properties. You can rely on faster and more secure transactions online, and you can keep tabs on your settlement thanks to a handy app on your phone. Overall, moving to digital process brings you peace of mind and greater savings.