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Conveyancing is the process of transferring ownership of the legal title of a property (such as a house or land) between parties. It’s a complex and sometimes lengthy process that covers every part of the property transaction, including preparation, lodging, and verification of documents.
E Conveyancing makes this entire process digital, simplifying it and saving time. If you’re used to filling out conveyancing paperwork, E Conveyancing can be a big change. But when done right, it can make everything so much easier for everyone involved.
In fact, since 2018, electronic lodgment is now mandatory for almost all conveyancing transactions in Victoria, New South Wales, South Australia and Western Australia, and widely used in all other states. Now is the best time to learn how it all works, especially if you’re thinking about buying or selling property in the near future!
How is E Conveyancing done?
At Settle Easy our conveyancers use a specialised system to manage the E Conveyancing process. This system, known as an ELNO (Electronic Lodgment Network Operator), allows conveyancers to complete settlement digitally and ensure everything is handled securely and according to proper legal frameworks. It provides a complete system for lodging documents with the Land Registry and complete financial settlements electronically.
While Settle Easy uses PEXA for all property transactions, we want to provide an overview of the industry so you know what’s happening with your property transaction.
PEXA (Property Exchange Australia)
PEXA is an electronic conveyancing platform, formed in 2010 with the goal of providing the Australian property industry with an all-in-one electronic conveyancing system. PEXA is currently in operation in NSW, VIC, QLD, ACT, SA and WA. It’s the most commonly used system by conveyancers and allows for the lodgment of nearly all transaction types with the Land Registry.
PEXA allows lawyers, conveyancers, and bank representatives to access and collaborate in an electronic workspace. Everything required to complete the property transaction is available, making the Conveyancing process a lot faster and less resource-intensive than traditional paper-based methods.
With a PEXA settlement, all documents can be prepared, signed and lodged for registration online, speeding up the entire Conveyancing process.
Sympli
A new entry into the market, Sympli offers an end-to-end solution for E Conveyancing. As a joint venture between ASX and legal tech group InfoTrack, it’s designed to provide an alternative to PEXA.
Sympli allows for the lodgment of a small subset of transaction types with the Land Registry.
The main focus for Sympli, however, is to streamline the Conveyancing process between lawyers and conveyancers.
This is achieved by giving all relevant parties access to a shared workspace. All documents, correspondence, and messages are stored in one place so everyone is always up-to-date on the status of the transaction.
How does an E Conveyancing transaction work?
As a customer, you will not be able to access PEXA directly, nor will you have to. Instead, you will need to provide authorisation for your property lawyer or conveyancer and they will access it on your behalf.
In order to complete financial settlements, PEXA electronically contacts the financial institutions involved with the transaction. You’ll be able to give authorisation for all of this to happen for a specific transaction, or for involved parties to have authorisation until a specific date.
Once authorised, your conveyancer or conveyancing lawyer will be able to sign documents for you, present documents for registration and authorise or complete any financial aspects of the transaction.
There are some exceptions of course, but your expert conveyancer can talk you through these options.
What are the benefits of E Conveyancing?
- Real-time tracking of property settlements Information is updated across all systems, ensuring all parties involved have the most up-to-date information at all times.
- More affordable conveyancing services Because of the efficiencies gained through E Conveyancing, many conveyancers are able to pass on their savings to customers in the form of lower fees.
- Increased security and fraud prevention E Conveyancing transactions are conducted entirely online, and at Settle Easy we have a number of security features in place to reduce opportunities for fraud and identity theft. Online transactions like this also helps keep documents all in one place so it’s less likely your conveyancing documents will be misplaced.
- More responsive services With everything accessible instantly online, any errors or oversights can be corrected and documents can be added or removed from an electronic workspace with speed.
- Automatically complete settlements E Conveyancing systems allow you to lodge documents online, with all funds dispersed automatically and immediately once the electronic settlement is complete.
- Complete multiple settlements simultaneously When all “linked” financial settlements are ready to complete, they can be completed instantly and automatically. When dealing with multiple property transactions, the process is much faster with E Conveyancing.
Is there anything to be concerned about?
Having your personal information online and managed by others can be daunting at first. It’s not surprising that many people have had concerns about whether electronic settlement is as safe as paper-based settlements.
But systems like PEXA are designed with your security in mind. They closely monitor things like password changes, user inputs, and account number changes to reduce the chance of security breaches.
While there is always a chance that someone can access a system unlawfully, risks like these were present even within the traditional paper-based system of conveyancing. For peace of mind, PEXA also offers a residential seller guarantee, which protects sellers of property from fraud.
E Conveyancing with Settle Easy
E Conveyancing has revolutionised the way conveyancing is done in Australia, with no sign of slowing down. And with the use of E Conveyancing systems becoming mandatory throughout the country, you can be sure that if you’re buying or selling property in the future, your conveyancer will complete your conveyancing transaction completely online.
Settle Easy are your online conveyancing experts. We’ve embraced E conveyancing completely, offering a secure conveyancing platform for all our customers that’s supported by a team of the best property lawyers and conveyancers in NSW, Victoria, Queensland and across Australia. Whether you’re buying or selling, our conveyancing experts will streamline your transaction and your conveyancing transaction will be completed in a 100% secure online environment.
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