A consortium has been formed that aims to speed up the home buying and selling process and improve transparency via mobile banking.
It is being hailed as a game changer for the entire industry – and for its home buying and selling customers.
Consumers will be able to apply for and gain approval of their mortgage applications and monitor the entire transaction from offer through to completion via an app.
A trial earlier this year – the UK’s first test sale of a home using blockchain, or ‘distributed ledger technology’ – suggested that the entire process could be reduced from three months to less than three weeks.
The technology used during that test, now being developed by a company called Coadjute, is being used in the initiative which aims to create a new digital “home buying journey”.
The consortium includes NatWest, estate agency software provider Dezrez, and other industry names including Search Acumen, Redbrick Solutions, eTech, Conveyancing Data Services and LMS.
The enormity of the project is underlined by the fact that Coadjute says it has already linked up with 1,000 estate agents.
John Reynolds, CEO and founder of Coadjute, said: “Customer adoption will be driven by businesses coming together to provide a joined-up service.
“Even at this stage, we have connected up 12% of the mortgages market, 1,000 estate agency brands, 4,000 conveyancers, and 80% of all property valuation instructions.
“With a pipeline of leading platform providers signed up and ready to on-board, we will have a significant percentage of the property industry on the platform when it goes live.
“We envisage a time when Coadjute-enabled businesses will be the go-to choice for all customers to get a mortgage and move home in one simple, fast and secure digital journey.”
Coadjute will work with NatWest to design an end-to-end home buying journey for their customers, by connecting each software provider’s platform to build a home buying network.
The ‘distributed ledger technology’ means that the information required to secure a mortgage and finalise an offer to buy can be shared between each party on the network.
Specifically, with NatWest’s key involvement, consumers will be able to apply for mortgages with the bank, have them approved and keep tabs on the entire transaction from offer through to completion via a companion app.
Dan Salmons, director of mortgage innovation at NatWest, said: “We know that the complexity of conveyancing is a key pain point for many.
“The Coadjute consortium has brought all the parties involved together to create a single mobile app, and used distributed ledger technology to make the customer journey safe and seamless.
“We believe the approach has the potential to be a real game changer, not just for our customers but for the entire property market.”
Richard Price, managing director of Dezrez, said: “One of the biggest stresses in the home buying process is a lack of transparency for consumers – everyone hates not knowing what is going on.
“Whilst estate agents, solicitors, surveyors and banks are working hard in the background, the consumer is unaware of progress.
“The Rezi platform was built to break down these barriers by utilising modern technology to connect disparate software systems.
“We are excited to be part of this innovative group of companies with one aim – to create an end-to-end customer journey.
“As a result, estate agents will be able to continue to provide their customers with valuable information and benefit from a speedier sales process.”
The first milestone for the project is due next year, with the launch of a ‘minimum viable product’.
Another day, another “ Game Changer ”!
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This will not work.
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Phew. I was worried it would be a ‘disruptor’, not just a ‘game changer’. That’s a relief.
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if buyers had to pay a deposit of £500 at instruction of solicitor stage , we would knock 4 weeks off straight away.
#timewasters
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Zzzz.. and a stupid name. On the upside..it is Friday !
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Looked impressive till the moment when I found out that the company has 2 employees in the UK and a few developers in Philippines!!! Fake
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Anything that relies on a solicitor to fill in milestones won’t work – the end
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J1 I think you can shorten that further.
Anything that relies on a solicitor……….
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They could shorten that even more if they got the Solicitors to use email rather than the Royal Mail.
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Damn your eyes Sir! How dare you impugn our communication methods. Only the finest and swiftest carrier pigeons are used to transport the parchments upon which our clerks have, by candlelight, scribed with their freshly sharpened quill pens.
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Thumb down? Oh dear. Fancy having no sense of humour AND being a solicitor. I bet you’re a bundle of joy at the Rotary/Masons/Golf Club.
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It will speed up the home buying and selling process until you get Purplebricks involved in a chain
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Once a sale is agreed, the estate agent has no clout in how it progresses, they are the advertising arm to get the buyer and tie the deal up, the conveyancers and mortgage advisers should be pushing things along for their part of the transaction
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Utter b0ll0cks.
You clearly aren’t an Estate Agent (so maybe you shouldn’t be expected to know what they do in the sale process after agreeing terms between buyer and seller… even though you believe you are able to throw this wildly misinformed comment in)
…but have you ever actually met an Estate Agent? Been into one of their offices? Observed what they do?
No need to respond – I think we all know the answer to the above.
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No mention of cost!
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We bank with Yorkshire Bank and they have just taken over Virgin. When their new system rolls out in March we will be able to see all money movements in real time. No more waiting to find out if the money has gone through. Everyone in our chains should be able to start moving house earlier on completion day.
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Like all innovation and change to processes, there will always be those that don’t believe and are unwilling to accept that change can be a good thing. The technology is here now to facilitate trust and transparency and could be the future of how property transactions are conducted. As with all innovations, there is a chance it may fail but if we don’t try, we’ll never know.
With the wealth of property data in the industry, there is a need to tie it all together. At the same time, we don’t expect this to be a silver bullet from day one. It may take many iterations for this platform to truly reach its potential but as more and more companies provide API access to crucial data, all the way through the property transaction, you can really start to envisage how it’s going to work in practice.
The home buyers of the next decade will expect to be able to do almost everything from their smart devices and there is no reason why we shouldn’t all work to make that a reality.
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Despite the numerous flaws as many have already pointed out there is one glaring issue …
A chain is only as strong as the weakest link, be it buyer, seller, agent, conveyancer or mortgage adviser. If just one is inept in a chain it impacts on others.
Although many things can and should be done to speed up sale agreed to exchange most agents, conveyancers are better off looking in house at processes and training rather than waiting for a silver bullet in the form of prop tech.
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Searches are what holds up a chain. If next door sold 2 weeks ago, why are their searches not held on a data bank for the next sale to move along…. money making exercise at its best
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