Conveyancing review

Right conveyancing partners offer way around growing completion times

Karen Rodrigues

sales director, eConveyancer

The time it takes to complete a house purchase is growing.

The latest study from our parent company, Smoove, found that over the last six months it has taken on average 153 days to complete the home purchasing process. To put that into context, back in 2019 it took just 124 days. In other words, since the onset of the pandemic, the time to complete a purchase deal has grown by almost a quarter.

There are various drivers behind the increase in completion times, though it’s certainly true that some lenders have encountered difficulties in processing cases. This has led to an extension in turnaround times, and, understandably, frustration for brokers and borrowers alike.

Indeed, in some cases lenders have withdrawn from the market entirely for a short period, in order to work through their pipeline and get their service levels to a point at which they are comfortable returning to the market.

There are understandable concerns that this situation may become even more pronounced in the weeks and months ahead. The government’s decision to cut stamp duty makes home purchases more attractive, since buyers get to sidestep the additional tax bill, which may lead to a further increase in activity levels.

There’s also the incredible turmoil that we have seen in the mortgage market generally. The fallout from the mini budget has been extraordinary, with lenders rushing to withdraw and reprice their product ranges at record rates. With brokers and their clients desperately trying to get their applications in on time, it has put those service levels under even greater strain, a situation that may take some time to rectify.

THE JOB OF THE BROKER

This service conundrum simply adds to the workload brokers face.

The advice process has always been more involved and complex than simply using a sourcing system to find a cheap rate. The best brokers really get to grips with their clients’ situations, to establish not only what they can afford but also the sort of products they are going to be most comfortable with, as well as what lender will be best placed to help them access the finance they need.

Ordinarily that selection process would focus more fundamentally on criteria, identifying the lenders who would take a more positive view of any exotic, out-of-the-ordinary element to the case.

However, in recent months it has become even more pressing for the broker to factor in turnaround times and service levels. It’s no coincidence that we have seen mortgage technology firms come forward with systems allowing brokers an insight into the service levels at different lenders in one place, from the time taken to respond on live chat services to the typical timescale for moving from application to offer. to put into keeping on top of lender service levels, as well as their product ranges, it is understandable if they don’t want to replicate that workload when it comes to conveyancing.

After all, there are only so many hours in the day.

However, there is little value in the broker selecting a lender because they are able to process a case swiftly, only for the deal to be held up because the conveyancer is struggling to handle their own workload.

That’s where a panel manager can work out well for brokers. In addition to building a comprehensive panel of conveyancers, allowing you to choose the most experienced and knowledgeable for your case, quality panel managers also play a hands-on role in monitoring the capacity of the conveyancers on that panel, ensuring that brokers are able to select legal partners who are going to be able to work on the case immediately.

At eConveyancer, for example, we hold weekly pipeline reviews with the top legal firms on our panel, allowing us to ensure that the highest standards of service are on offer. This hands-on role means that brokers and their clients enjoy a consistent, reliable experience.

There is only so much that a broker can do in order to set a case up for success, only so much of the strain that they can take. Partnering with firms that understand the broker’s business, and that can handle some of that responsibility in terms of pushing things forward, allows brokers to spend more of their time on what they do best – helping their clients find the right mortgage deal. M I