What is wrong with the way we buy and sell property in England? Why do transactions take so long? Why do so many deals fall through? Why are so many dissatisfied and left hugely out of pocket?
Property transactions are ostensibly an analogue and linear process in a mostly digital world.
So who's fault is it? Truthfully nobody's, we have all been getting on with it but have succumbed to malaise and reticence in a mostly buoyant property market. We have seen unprecedented activity levels accompanied by dramatic price increases of late. Post covid the market has cooled somewhat and we are now left on a hiatus where we could take stock and make positive changes to improve our market.
Upfront information is heralded as a panacea but in truth what will it mean and how will it benefit the property market? We work in a largely unregulated market with currently little appetite for mandating real change, laissez-faire politics it is then!
Logbooks, Property Passports, Digital Twins - (whatever you call them!) help facilitate digitisation of the home moving process. Logbooks are a simple conduit between the demand for up-front information and the necessity to speed up the whole process.
All 28 million homes in England now have a Logbook ready to be claimed by the owner, a safe, informative, and highly useful depositary to track the history of the property and store vital documents in one place ready for another move.
Sellers need to take more responsibility and stop being a passenger in the sales process. They can claim their Logbook and start the process of updating it and then share a digital Buyer and Seller Property Information form (BASPI) as they see fit.
Estate Agents need to put their heads above the parapet and understand that they hold all the cards as they are often the sellers' first port of call. Agents can
embrace a great opportunity that exists for the bold and innovative by grasping the opportunity that exists NOW!
Conveyancers also need to get involved and promote Logbooks as a post-completion service where all salient information is downloaded into a Logbook ready for when it is next needed.
Imagine home movers presenting their agents and conveyancers with all of their upfront information ON DAY ONE! No nasty surprises, no need for unnecessary enquiries, just a massive leap forward not seen for decades.
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