Media Release19 August 2015

PEXA's push to digitise $6 trillion property industry snares two major awards

Poised to swiftly reform the 150-year-old way of buying and selling real estate, a market newcomer has been saluted twice for its push to transform the $6 trillion residential property industry.

For its endeavours to bring real estate transactions online and into the 21st century, Property Exchange Australia (PEXA) joins the 2015 BRW Most Innovative Companies list, snaring two awards: BestOverallInnovation and Best Business Model Innovation.

PEXA CEO Marcus Price said the $6 trillion mum and dad residential property market is Australia’s biggest asset class and too important to be held back by current error-prone settlement practices, causing 1 in 3 consumers unnecessary stress.

“People buying and selling properties are stuck with a process harking back to the 1850s. Yet for decades online commerce has advanced with ATMs, EFTPOS, online banking and share trading. Even next year’s Census is going online making it one of the biggest digital events in Australian history,” he said.

“Thankfully the digital economy push has been led by the banks, national and state based arms of the Institute of Conveyancers, Law Societies and land registries. And with four state governments, 30 financial institutions and a growing number of practitioners behind PEXA, we expect that most property transactions will be online by 2019.

“The BRW innovation awards acknowledge this critical industry collaboration."

PEXA is a new online property exchange. It aims to achieve for real estate transactions what the ASX did for taking shares online. Digital real estate transactions are finalised faster than traditional paper settlements.

PEXA at a glance:

  • A world-first digital platform for completing online lodgement and property settlements
  • Conveyancers, lawyers, banks and land registries interact, collaborate and share information
  • Banishes cheques, postal services and attending settlement in person
  • PEXA integrates into state-based land registries’ databases
  • Property sellers' funds can be banked in hours rather than days compared with paper settlements
  • 30 financial institutions have subscribed to PEXA including the four major banks
  • Nearly 2,000 legal and conveyancing firms are active or joining PEXA

PEXAevolved from a 2010 Council of Australian Governments’ mandate to deliver a national

e-conveyancing solution in collaboration with the Australian Bankers Association, the Australian Law Council, the Australian Institute of Conveyancers and the four major banks to reform a paper-based settlement system dating back to the 1850s. PwC’s Digital Property Reportcites key opinion leaders calling to bring conveyancing into the 21st century.

Media enquiries: PEXA Corporate Affairs Director, Kerrina Lawrence, 0434 198427

Caption:

PEXA Chairman, Alan Cameron AO and PEXA CEO, Marcus Price, accept BRW’s Best Overall Innovation Award, crediting the digital economy push by lawyers, conveyancers, banks, state land registries and revenue offices.