Six months from Brexit – is the rise of AI, data, and automation a helping hand or a hindrance for the property industry?  

Can robots assist with the roles of estate agents, solicitors, and conveyancers in the wake of a potential Brexit skills gap?

CEO of Proptech disruptor says:

The rise of automation will lead not to mass unemployment but to mass redeployment of vital resource. 

With Brexit only six months away and the potential prospect of a mass exodus of talent within the property industry becoming a reality, When You Move asks what the sector can be doing to prepare itself. In the wake of a staggering 10,420 generalist legal professionals processing property transactions despite only 233 specialising in property, scale of demand vs resource has long been an issue the industry has had to address, further perpetuated with the onset of Brexit.

Technological integration is becoming a widely accepted norm in many low skilled jobs in retail and industrial sectors, however with the varying roles that form the UK property industry – from construction to conveyancing – how will the rapid implementation of technology be the step change for productivity?

What issues can AI, data and automation address in the sector? 

  • Previous When You Move research has shown that 18 million Brits found the legal processing of their property transaction the single most dissatisfying part of buying and selling a home. A property transaction takes on average seven weeks longer than the projected date. This is due to lengthy paper trails, demand for wet signatures, solicitor away days, no central hub for document storage and lack of effective communication between all parties involved in the transaction.
  • There are 10,420 firms registered in the UK with the SRA, but only 233 registered firms with CLC – the specialist property law regulator. Legal professionals are having to practice outside of their area of specialism to respond to demand.
  • Boring, repetitive and mundane tasks have led to a high proportion of disgruntled employees unable to focus on value-added tasks of interaction and relationship building.

Simon Bath, CEO of When You Move, is keen to discuss the impact of AI and other emerging technologies in the industry, and their role in ensuring the sector is future-proof, in light of the upcoming political and economic developments brought in by Brexit.

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