Celebrating 25 years in business, X-Press Legal Services co-founder Dave Lister joins the latest Today’s Conveyancer podcast to discuss the changes he has seen in his time in the industry.
X-Press Legal Services, a search and ancillary services provider, is run by Dave and his wife Lynne, and their 3 adult children. The origins go back to Lynne’s time in publishing when as the editor of a franchise magazine, she was introduced to the Property Search Group (PSG). The rest, as they say, is history.
In the 25 years since the business has seen the search industry change beyond almost all recognition. In the early days everything was paper-based, there was no digital services, says Dave. And they would spend hours and days hopping between local authorities to get the information.
He empathises with the sentiment that conveyancers are under far too much pressure; everything we do is to help the conveyancer and make their life easier says Dave.
There is still a place for the personal touch, recounting a recent call with a client about an issue identified with lead mining. You can’t automate the process, he adds, there are too many rabbit holes. You won’t ever remove the human from the process.
He calls on the profession to continue to collaborate and work together; and set expectations accordingly when it comes to access to data; let’s not confuse the word “open” with the word “free” – these companies have spent huge sums of money building these data sets; we can’t expect them to provide access free of charge.
Dave says he will continue to play an active part in the business despite approaching a milestone birthday, and continues to enjoy working in the sector and alongside his family.
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