What do we mean by "online conveyancing"?

When we talk about "online conveyancing" sometimes we will refer to it as a PEXA transaction.

PEXA (Property Exchange Australia) is the name of the organisation that runs online conveyancing in Australia — and so is also the platform used.

PEXA was no easily organised start up, rather in order to ensure e-conveyancing could happen in Australia required an agreement at COAG way back in 2010. The work since then was on getting all the banks, the state title offices, the state governments and stamp duty requirements and the reserve bank were all committed to the process. From there it was building the system as well as organizing relevant changes to legislation and processes.

Which brings us to today where the transfer and exchanges of money for buying and selling money can happen online.

So econveyancing is not just us using an app to organise the settlement it is the actual settlement happening online as has now been established by all levels of Australian government.

So what actually happens in the settlement? PEXA works by having a "settlement room" for your settlement. This is a virtual meeting place where all the representatives relevant parties can make the arrangements for settlement — the buyer, the buyers bank, the seller, the sellers bank.

Within that space all documents are checked, the figures are finalised and a time for the settlement is booked in. The change that this brings is one of the best improvements of online conveyancing. In traditional conveyancing to book in a settlement time would involve ages on the phone to banks, lots of calls back and forth to make sure it suits everyone and everyone is ready.

When it comes to the actual settlement that occurs online with money being transferred from the buyer and their bank to the seller and their bank through the reserve bank (for the highest security) in a matter of minutes. Even the stamp duty and other fees are then paid.

At the same time the records at the titles office are updated and the title showing the buyer as the new owner is instantly produced - although, consistent with the new approach of online conveyancing the title is an online one.

All this means you know your settlement has happened more easily — and much easier for you to be enjoying your new property or the money from your sale!