If this were an episode in the long-running sitcom, That 70s Show, the characters would surely use the term ‘unreal’ when discussing the major changes on their way to Real Estate law in South Australia this year.
For the first time ever, South Australia will be moving to remove paper from the settlement process in relation to the transfer of title between parties.
I have alluded to it in previous articles, E-conveyancing: It is sending chills down the spines of some conveyancers and lawyers, but now the changes are upon us, it is starting to feel very real.

What changes will effect my real estate transactions in South Australia?

In the next few months, impending changes to the Real Property Act in South Australia are likely to be made, enabling the introduction of e-conveyancing through PEXA, Property Exchange Australia.
In short, once you’ve proven your identity to us (or your lawyer or other conveyancing firm) you can then sign an authority (Client Authorisation) so that we can oversee the rest of the settlement process on your behalf.
When the other party to the transaction, and the banks invovled, have all adopted e-conveyancing it means settlement can take place without a single person or a single piece of paper having to pass through the doorway of the Land Titles Office.
As you can imagine, this will mean greater speed and efficiency.

But which Adelaide conveyancers are ready for e-conveyancing?

There is a distinct possibility that there will soon be a two-speed economy in the conveyancing sector in South Australia as many smaller or single operator conveyancers either don’t embrace e-conveyancing or struggle to find the time and resources to adapt in a timely manner.
I am very proud to be able to say Eckermann Conveyancers clients will have an advantage from the get go because we have been devoting time and resources to this transition for quite a while.
We are already arranging training with both the Australian Institute of Conveyancers SA and PEXA for these upcoming changes and our team has a positive, almost impatient, attitude toward them; wanting to offer e-conveyancing to clients YESTERDAY!
We believe this new system will be better for our clients and referrers as well as our team because vendors will get funds cleared within 30 minutes of settlement whereas they currently wait up to three days for bank cheques to clear.
Furthermore, purchasers will get registration on the title within minutes of settlement as opposed to waiting up to six weeks under our current, paper-based system.

Watch this space

Watch this space for confirmation of the starting date for e-conveyancing and for an announcement when we have completed our first settlement through PEXA.
At this stage, it’s likely to be the middle of May 2016, but we’ll confirm as soon as the legislation has been through the SA parliament to enable this to start.