Conveyancing giant PEXA is celebrating its 10 millionth transaction, a massive achievement for a firm that has been in operation for less than a decade.
The milestone was passed last week and serves as an indicator of how far the industry has come since 2013, with digitisation now top of mind at every stage of the property buying process.
The first transaction was between Land Use Victoria and CBA in 2013, with the one millionth coming as recently as 2018, showing how quickly the industry has evolved in recent years.
The broker channel has been at the forefront of embracing digital transformation, and PEXA executive Marielle Yeoh pointed out just how vital the channel has been to adopting and implementing changes.
“Having been so close to the sector for the last ten years, we know the importance of getting people into their homes on time,” she said. “It’s a really high priority for the industry, not just the banks and lawyers but also for the brokers.”
“We know how stressful moving can be for everyone involved: all the meticulous planning and the balancing that goes along with the settlement. We think that it’s our collective responsibility to think more long term and outside of the box about delivering better customer outcomes.”
“What that should mean is a more improved and streamlined process for the broker and their engagement with the process.”
“While we at PEXA were designed to enable the lodgement of documents and the exchange of funds that effect the property settlement, working with banks and lawyers, many other areas of the industry are involved.”
How PEXA revolutionised the property buying process
“A lot of that is still done the old paper way: paper loan documents still go out and discharge authority is still mostly manual. What that does is create a lot of bottlenecks and uncertainty for the customer around the timing of their settlement.”
“That’s something that we’re trying to look at on an all-of-industry basis, including the broker network, and thinking about what we can do to make the experience better for everyone.”
PEXA has seen the industry change massively in the course of those ten million transactions.
“A lot has changed!” said Yeoh. “To be quite honest, PEXA has played a small role in how the industry has moved forward.”
“We built the platform and what has been impressive is how the industry has embraced it. The banks, lawyers, conveyancers, the land registry and the broker sector, who have really adopted the understanding of PEXA.”
“What the real difference has been is how the whole industry is working to digitise, so that customers can have more certainty. In recent years, we’ve seen banks issuing loan documents digitally, as well as digital verification of identity and digital signing. It won’t be long before we see discharge authority coming through online portals.”
“That’s been the big difference, compared to what we saw when we did our first transactions. It’s been really pleasing to see that digital adoption across all of industry.”
“It’s been extraordinary to watch the way in which consumers are now savvy, how they look at best loan options and how they can work closely with brokers. The brokers have been instrumental in this transition to digital.”
