Connells Group has been involved in a partnership with moving brands Movera and iamproperty Group that has completed a property transaction in just three days, setting a new record for the collaboration. The completion beat the partnership’s previous best of 11 days between receipt of the draft contract pack and completion.
The completion time contrasts sharply with the wider market, where the average time to sell a home currently stands at 205 days, according to data from TwentyEA.
Launched 18 months ago, the partnership was developed to streamline the auction process through closer collaboration between the conveyancing firms acting for buyers and sellers. ONP, part of Movera, and Medway Law, part of iamproperty, pair conveyancers from their respective teams to work on each transaction in tandem.
This approach has created consistency across cases, allowing working relationships to develop and helping both sides progress transactions more efficiently. The firms have also agreed shared processes and protocols and are using a custom-built workflow system to improve speed and communication.
The service is currently available to Connells Group customers purchasing through the iamsold auction service. The three companies are now exploring wider use of the model, with Connells Group beginning a trial across its private treaty Home Conveyancing Panel.
“This partnership is a brilliant example of how much control the leading players in the industry have over the property transaction process,” commented Nick Hale, CEO at Movera. “It also highlights the impact that investing in the right people and technology can make to the home moving journey. While we embrace the government’s proposal to speed up the housing market using digital tools and upfront data sharing, we can’t just sit back and wait for the sector to change around us. As a collective we are already innovating and achieving outstanding results for our customers.”
Jean Coughlan, home conveyancing director at Connells Group, said: “When we sat down with the teams from Movera and iamproperty eighteen months ago, we picked apart the conveyancing process – what is great about it but more importantly what needed to change. We mapped out at a truly granular level the vendor journey, the buyer journey and the different case touch points. It was something we had tried to do before, but this time we had the right people in the room, with a shared commitment to collaboration and using digital solutions to change the home moving process for our customers. The results speak for themselves.”
Since the inception of the partnership, the dedicated teams have completed 614 cases with an average time taken between receipt of the draft contract pack and completion is 47 days.
Julian Lavender, corporate accounts director at iamproperty, added: “For our conveyancing business, a lack of communication with the other conveyancing firm on a case has always been our biggest pain point. This partnership with Movera and Connells has changed everything.
“Now, on each transaction, we have two conveyancers working together, talking to each other, problem solving. As a pair they are building a relationship across brands with a commitment to work as one. Not only has it revolutionised the process, but we have people queuing up to work on those teams. It just goes to show that by combining the right technology, processes and people with a shared mindset, we can really make a difference to the home moving process.”