The speed of change in the property market must be tempered by having the right ‘guard rails’ in place to ensure the more than £8tn of property registered at HM Land Registry (HMLR) (and the additional value of unregistered property) is properly protected throughout the current digitisation and modernisation of the home moving process.
In the latest ‘Property with a View’ podcast from the Digital Property Market Steering Group, HMLR Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Customer and Strategy Mike Harlow discusses current efforts to modernise the home moving process with John Baguley of UK Finance and Robert Stevens of Nationwide.
Both Harlow and Stevens reiterated the point that protecting property was a vital role of organisations across the property services sector and the knock on effect is the speed of change is not where some might want it to be.
Challenged on what the consumer’s view of home moving is, Stevens suggested the most important issue for home movers is certainty.
We’re not exchanging contacts and getting that certainty until the very end of the process which means people’s lives are up in the air for a greater length of time.
He further explained how Nationwide, one of the largest lenders in the UK, was using a range of data in their decision-making to ensure they can be ‘as certain as we can there aren’t any problems post mortgage offer.’ Lenders can, he added, collect some information quickly via HMLR and through the mortgage valuation process, but they remain in the hands of conveyancers once they are instructed for some information still.
“As that data becomes digital we will want to collect as much of that as we can so we can build that into our decisioning.”
added Stevens. And while data, and the ability to use and share that data, is the golden thread through this whole discussion, from a lender perspective Stevens says they need to be able to make judgements on what they can and can’t rely on.
Take for example up front and material information. More up front information is a positive step, says Baguely, but that information has to be verifiable and provided by the right people. Steven concurs; material information is useful from a consumer perspective, but as but stands we’ve got to create standardisation in the data (a project the Open Property Data Association are making significant progress on) and we’ve got legacy systems and technology people need to change before we can share and rely on this information.
Asked what the property market needs Stevens reiterates the need for ‘certainty sooner’ and Baguley adds the lack of compulsion around change is a challenge. Using the example of Property Logbooks, there is acknowledgment they are worthwhile and have value, but while questions over who owns them, and how they are paid for remain.
One Response
Two thoughts struck me after reading this article:
First, several of the statements attributed to the above DPMSG members seem confused; and
secondly, why does the DPMSG think it can restructure homebuying sans property lawyers? It’s like a team of medical equipment suppliers holding a conference to tell consultant surgeons how they will operate on patients in the future.
Nationwide and other lenders must understand that if they want ‘data to be standardised’ and/or conveyancing condensed, they cannot expect property lawyers to undertake full due diligence to perfect their securities with both hands tied behind their backs.
‘Guard rails’ are there to stop people falling off cliff edges. Does Nationwide understand this?