Anyone working in conveyancing will recognise the message that arrives sooner or later on almost every file: “Just checking in – any update?”
Sometimes it comes from the buyer, sometimes from the broker or estate agent. Often it arrives from several directions at once.
In many cases the honest answer is that nothing significant has changed. Searches are still pending and existing enquiries are still being reviewed. But, despite no real updates to report, the request still needs answering, and across a busy caseload those responses quickly add up.
Perhaps a more prudent point to raise is what so those messages actually represent. Increasingly, clients are not simply asking for reassurance, they are asking for visibility.
In most other parts of life people can track progress instantly. Bank transfers update in seconds, deliveries can be followed step by step and even the simplest service requests come with automated updates.
However, historically at least, buying a home rarely offers the same clarity, and this needs to change.
A process that still lacks visibility
For buyers, the period between offer and completion can feel opaque. Long stretches pass with little sense of where things stand or what happens next.
This lack of transparency is a major source of frustration with many homebuyers still citing buying a property as one of the most stressful experiences of their lives, with slow communication from conveyancers and the amount of administration among the most common annoyance.
The timeline only adds to the pressure with the average time from offer to exchange now exceeding four months in many transactions.
During that time, uncertainty quickly becomes anxiety. When buyers cannot see progress, they often assume there is none.
For conveyancers, the result is familiar. Chasing calls increase, email updates multiply and valuable time is spent responding to routine queries rather than progressing the case itself.
Why the traditional approach struggles
Most firms already work hard to keep clients informed but communication is still largely reactive.
Updates tend to be provided when someone asks for them. Information sits across inboxes, case management systems and lender portals and different parties see different pieces of the puzzle.
This fragmented view creates inefficiencies across the transaction. Even when everyone is working diligently, progress can become difficult to interpret or explain.
As a result, simple questions often lead to repeated clarification between multiple parties in the homebuying chain. At this point, it’s important to stress that this breakdown is not caused by a lack of effort, professionalism or willingness to engage. In most cases, it stems from the absence of a shared view of the transaction.
A shift towards structured updates
This is where digital workflow tools are starting to change expectations.
Instead of relying on ad-hoc updates, milestone-based systems record progress as the transaction moves through each stage. Instruction, searches, enquiries and completion steps are logged as part of the case itself.
For all parties involved in the transaction, the benefits are straightforward. They can see that the transaction is progressing without needing to request constant updates.
For conveyancers, the impact is operational. When routine progress is visible through an online portal or mobile interface, the number of incoming chaser calls tends to fall. Teams spend less time reporting on progress and more time moving files forward.
Structured updates also help internally. Supervisors gain a clearer picture of case pipelines, helping identify bottlenecks before they start affecting completion dates.
A more transparent future
Technology will not remove every challenge from the property transaction process. Chains will still collapse; searches will still take time and complex title issues will still arise but expectations around communication are changing quickly.
Buyers and stakeholders increasingly expect to see where the transaction stands and what happens next. For conveyancers, meeting that expectation does not necessarily mean providing more updates, instead, it means making progress visible.
By embedding clear, structured updates into digital workflows, firms can reduce unnecessary communication while giving clients the transparency they now expect.
In a process long known for uncertainty, that shift alone could make a meaningful difference to how the homebuying journey is experienced by everyone involved.
Joy Hagelthorn, Senior Product Manager at e4 Strategic UK (pictured)
This article was submitted by e4 Strategic UK as part of an advertising agreement with Today’s Conveyancer. The views expressed in this article are those of the submitter and not those of Today’s Conveyancer.
