Everything you need to know about the new E-Conveyancing Mandate
Electronic conveyancing is now the norm in Queensland with the new mandate having come into effect on Monday, 20 February 2023.
Queensland now joins Western Australia, South Australia, New South Wales and Victoria in having mandatory Electronic conveyancing in place.
The new mandate means that property transactions throughout Queensland will need to be completed electronically, through the use of the Electronic Lodgement Network (ELN).
From the mandate date of 20 February 2023, the majority of transactions/documents must be settled electronically – including transfers of land, mortgages, requests to record death on a title and caveats, which encompass the majority of transactions.
There are some exceptions to this, for example if the ELN does not have the required functionality to prepare or lodge a certain type of document, it will be required to be manually lodged via paper at the Titles Office.
For a full list of what is included and excluded, please click here to visit the Titles QLD Website.
Property Exchange Australia (PEXA), is the ELN that is used in Queensland. Established in 2010, PEXA operates nationally and will facilitate the hundreds of transactions that occur every day throughout Queensland.
The move towards electronic conveyancing is being driven by a desire to make the property buying and selling process more efficient and secure. By using PEXA, conveyancing practices will be able to lodge and withdraw documents, pay and receive funds, and exchange information with other parties in a secure online environment.
The Benefits of Electronic Conveyancing
One of the main benefits of electronic conveyancing is the speed and convenience it offers. Transactions can be completed faster, with less need for paper-based documents and in-person meetings. This can save time and money for all parties involved, as well as reducing the risk of errors and delays.
It also makes cross jurisdictional conveyancing much easier – for example if a client is selling a property in Queensland and simultaneously purchasing in New South Wales, these two transactions can be linked in PEXA so that the funds flow smoothly from the client’s sale through to their purchase.
Another major benefit is improved security. The ELN uses advanced encryption and authentication technologies to ensure that all transactions are secure and protected from fraud. This helps to give buyers and sellers peace of mind that their personal and financial information is safe and protected.
Both buyers and sellers have the ability to track the progress of their settlement and safely manage their account details through the use of the PEXA KEY. This is a smartphone app that allows clients to securely input their banking details, which eliminates risk of cybercrime via phishing, email interception and of course human error.
Sellers will receive their proceeds of sale the day of settlement (usually within the same hour), instead of waiting up to 3 business days for settlement monies to clear via bank cheque. Similarly, agents, council and water rates, body corporate levies etc will all be paid in clear funds on the settlement day, instead of waiting for a bank cheque to clear.
For the Buyers, the title is immediately transferred, putting the property in their name almost instantaneously with the settlement (instead of taking weeks manually via paper). Buyers will receive a Registration Confirmation Statement showing that they are the new registered owners of the property usually within half an hour of settlement being effected.
The mandate to use electronic conveyancing is a significant step forward for the property industry in Queensland. It will bring benefits for buyers, sellers, lawyers, real estate agents and banks, making the property buying and selling process quicker and more secure.
Contract updates
In response to the Electronic conveyancing mandate coming into effect, the Queensland Law Society and the Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ) have prepared updated REIQ contracts which have also been released this week.
These changes include:
- Amendments to the current electronic settlement clauses
- The cluse will apply if a transfer is required document under the Land Title Regulation 2022
- The clause outlines a process for nominating an electronic lodgement network operator (ELNO) system by the seller
- Where there was previously a right to withdraw from an electronic settlement, this option has now been removed.
We are #PEXAexperienced
Despite many law firms only subscribing to PEXA during 2020 in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic as a necessity, Lockett McCullough Lawyers first subscribed to PEXA in March 2019, long before any indication of electronic settlements becoming mandatory. We are among the most prolific users of PEXA among conveyancing practices in Queensland and proudly promote that we are not just #pexasubscribed but #pexaexperienced.
We have years of experience and have completed thousands of transactions on the platform. We completed our first ELN QLD property transaction via the PEXA platform in March 2019 and not long after that we were trying to settle as many transactions as possible through the PEXA platform.
Along with many conveyancers and solicitors around Queensland, we are genuinely excited for the mandate, and look forward to continuing to help thousands of buyers and sellers every year with their conveyancing.
If you are wanting to buy or sell and need a conveyancer, please don’t hesitate to contact our experienced conveyancing team:
Toowong – 07 3870 8244
Albany Creek – 07 3264 7692
Noosa – 07 5449 7500
