One in five homeowners regret choosing their conveyancing firm

14 November 2022: One in five homeowners regret choosing their conveyancing firm is one of the findings in the latest Smoove Home Movers Report.

Key points from report:
    • When asked what they would do differently when next moving home, almost a fifth (19%) of homeowners said they would choose a different conveyancing firm, with one in four (26%) reporting that they were unsatisfied with the experience.
    • The cost of service (42%), quality (38%), and length of time to complete (36%) are the top three considerations for homeowners during the conveyancing process, with only a fifth (22%) citing the ease and the use of technology to streamline the process.
    • Overall, the majority of homeowners were satisfied with their conveyancing firm, with 61% saying they would recommend their firm to friends and family.
    • Nearly a fifth (19%) of homeowners would choose a different conveyancing firm if they were to move home again, with a quarter of respondents (26%) reporting that they felt unsatisfied with the experience, according to Smoove’s Home Movers Report.

These figures likely derive from frustrations with conveyancing firms’ cost, quality of service, and efficiency, with these factors reportedly being the main priorities for most homeowners. According to the Home Movers Report, the cost of service (42%), quality (38%), and length of time to complete (36%) are the top three considerations during the legal process.

For people looking to enter the property market or move home, the conveyancing process is known in its current form as a complicated and time-consuming experience. Complex legal terminology and the added inefficiencies of large quantities of paperwork can be a source of stress for many aiming to proceed quickly with their purchase. While conveyancing takes around eight to twelve weeks on average, many factors can delay the process. Client queries are commonplace, with conveyancers receiving four queries per instruction on average. This slow and inefficient conveyancing experience is therefore an obvious reason why nine in ten homeowners (90%) reported that they found the home moving experience stressful.

Nevertheless, just over a fifth (22%) of homeowners cited technology as a useful tool to ease and streamline the process when selecting their conveyancing firm. This shows there is a greater need for businesses to build awareness around digital innovation in the moving process. 

Overall, most homeowners said they were satisfied with their conveyancing firm, with 61% reporting that they would recommend the firm to friends and family. Most homeowners relied on a friend or family recommendation for finding their chosen conveyancing firm (33%), followed by estate agent referral (31%) and a mortgage broker recommendation (23%). 

Tony Leonard, Chief Customer Officer, comments: 

“Conveyancing is often regarded as one of the most complex and stressful aspects of moving home.

“Digitising aspects of the conveyancing process, such as allowing checks and documents to be reviewed and signed digitally is already serving to increase the efficiency and reduce the expense of current systems of conveyancing.

“Increased digitalisation and integration (or communication) between all parties involved will improve the experience for home movers and allow conveyancers to dedicate more of their energy to offering valuable legal insight and client support.”

 

Kindly shared by Smoove

Main photo courtesy of Pixabay