Hammondsdirect presentation

"hammondsdirect is one of the largest dedicated conveyancers in the country, employing over 500 people based in offices in Bradford, Manchester, Sheffield and also in Mumbai, largely concerned with e-conveyancing, which is the future."

Conveyancing - the past

"Years ago conveyancing was a relatively small market as most people rented property. The client would see their solicitor, who liaised with the vendor's solicitor, obtained the deeds, conducted surveys, contacted the lender regarding the mortgage offer et cetera before contracts could be exchanged.

All communication was by post and the occasional telephone call and was a lengthy business. It always entailed 28 days between exchange of contracts and completion, with the process taking upwards of 2 to 3 months.

It was a fairly relaxed affair since clients purchased houses very occasionally and did not anticipate that it would be done quickly. Funds were transferred by bankers drafts and the personal passing of cheques between the parties' solicitors."

Conveyancing - the present

"In recent years home ownership has risen dramatically and whereas once purchasers often bought a house and stayed there for a lifetime, today the average expectancy is to move house every 7 years. The combination of these two factors has led to an explosion in demand for conveyancing.

Today solicitors obtain deeds, client instructions and enquiries. Solicitors communicate by fax and searches are done instantaneously online. This means that the whole process is speeded up and contracts are exchanged much faster. Lenders are now much more aggressive and they send documents and money much quicker. All money is transferred electronically. Access to the Land Registry database has considerably quickened the pace. Solicitors can view records online and no longer need to obtain title deeds leasehold, so there is no waiting around for deeds. They can now be received the same day as instructions.

The Land Registry first considered the principle that every property would have to be registered on their computer database five years ago. Currently 84% of the 19 million properties are registered, including records of owner, property details and mortgage information. This means that there is no longer any need for deeds.

Previously land certificates or charge certificates were required but paper certificates are no longer required due to the dematerialisation process. Once 100% of properties are registered over the next 4 to 5 years, firms will be able to proceed with electronic conveyancing.

Presently lots of solicitors communicate with each other but in the future all contact will be online with the Land Registry."

Conveyancing - the future

"The procedure will be:
1.Client sees solicitor.
2.Solicitor logs on to Land Registry site, opens and downloads file.
3.Solicitor prepares the contract in a standard form - this is sent to the solicitor for the other party.
4.Land Registry check this and it is cross-referenced on the database.
5. Land Registry then advises the solicitor who has lodged it.

All transactions are linked. The Land Registry have a matrix where every linked transaction has its own line in the grid. Once the solicitor receives the client instructions and mortgage offer, they click on a box on the website. As the transaction proceeds they tick a series of boxes. Any solicitor in that chain can look at any stage in the transaction as the whole process is totally transparent. Once all the ticks are made, everyone is ready to complete the transaction, which can be done at the click of a mouse.

But the notion of 'Ping - it all happens' presumes that every solicitor in the country will have to be computer literate and have an up to date system. This is currently not the case."

e-conveyancing

"Another crucial change is that the whole transaction and money will move through the Land Registry. Today when a solicitor buys a property for a client, once the date is agreed they order the money from the lender and on completion transfers the money to the seller's solicitor. This will no longer happen as money will go to the Land Registry and then out to the vendor. The Land Registry want to control the whole transaction and registration of title to be instantaneous.

Currently titles are sent to the Land Registry after the sale. This delay in registration can cause problems in the case of bankruptcy when a trustee may chase for unregistered property."

The Future Position and Impact on the Legal Profession

"Projected implementation will mean there is no need to do local searches any more. Registration will be a complete and total reflection of that property at any time. The transaction could be immediate and eventually we could see solicitors and complete on the same day.

This will create a total need for IT among the legal profession. The law is becoming increasingly IT reliant. If a system crashes on the day of completion a firm may hold up a whole chain of buyers and sellers.

If the Land Registry system crashes (as it did twice last year) it will be disastrous, although they will have 2 back up systems. These are complex issues."