Can technology revolutionise the conveyancing process? Can buying and selling a house become easier and quicker? The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (‘the Department’) has set out to achieve these objectives.
Plans for the Future
On the 9th February 2025, the Department set out a 12-week project to consider proposals for digitising the conveyancing process. They aim to:
- Ease the sharing of information between conveyancers, lenders and third parties;
- Make property information more readily available;
- Replace in-person ID with digital identification services.
If reform is successful, digitisation could speed up transactions and help our clients buy and sell more swiftly. Due to the current lack of transparency, parties are surprised at the enquiries stage with unknown easements/covenants, possible planning developments, or potential flooding issues. Lenders are made aware at an even later stage. The Department is striving to use more digital services, particularly with regards to ID, in order to increase transparency and link some broken chains in the transactions.
This is in line with the Land Registry’s proposals. The Land Registry has already digitalised its services, with readily available title documents, digital registrations, and application services. However, the Land Registry has experienced delays and long backlogs, slowing down the process. Part of the Land Registry’s 2022-2025 proposals was to:
- automate 70% of its transfer in ownership applications; and
- speed up its applications.
If successful, our clients will be able to purchase their new homes in less time, and the properties will become registered with more efficiency.
According to the Department, fall-throughs currently affect one in three cases. However, digitisation can change this. The Department intends to use technology to revolutionise the information sharing process, reduce fall-throughs and help achieve the goal of speeding up the conveyancing process. FSP is already using digital services to smooth our clients’ conveyancing process, as discussed below.
FSP and Digital Conveyancing
Field Seymour Parkes is part of the revolution, by integrating technology into conveyancing in the following ways:
- ID Verification: Our ID process is simple, electronic, and takes around 10 minutes to complete. There is no longer the need for clients to travel and bring in physical identification documentation to our offices.
- Electronic Onboarding: Engagement letters, client questionnaires, property information forms, and fittings and contents forms can all be completed, signed and returned to us electronically. This replaces the traditional format of printing, signing, and posting the documentation, and saves time for our clients.
- Electronic Signatures: We give the option for our clients to sign contracts and transfers electronically. As the Land Registry has started to permit more electronic signatures, FSP has followed in the digital age.
- Lenders: For several mortgage lenders, we can download mortgage offers, submit certificate of titles for drawdown of funds, request redemption statements and upload title registers digitally. This reduces the time taken to communicate with lenders and receive documentation.
- Registration: We utilise the Land Registry’s digital features, and complete registrations electronically. Not only are there lower fees for our clients, but it is also quicker than posting the documentation to the Land Registry. This process will be even smoother once the Land Registry’s new proposals on digital applications are implemented as above.
Our Residential Conveyancing team endeavours to help our clients’ transactions go through as quickly as possible, using technology to help us achieve this aim.
