Doug Crawford, CEO of My Home Move, comments on “Improving the home buying and selling process: call for evidence” (DCLG 22nd October 2017)

“My Home Move welcomes the recently announced call for evidence into improving the home buying and selling process and will be developing a comprehensive response based on our experience as the UK’s leading provider of mover conveyancing services; one of the top 10% of firms who carry out over 50% of the conveyancing required annually, by the UK housing market.

“We strongly support the government’s stated desire to “modernise the home-buying process so it is more efficient and less costly”, along with their aim of replacing the current, largely paper-based approach through a digital revolution.  We have been blazing a trail in these areas, operating a largely digital conveyancing model for over 15 years; and as such we have real and relevant learnings to share.

“Over the next few weeks we will be compiling our evidence based on the insights of the 100,000 clients we have surveyed over the last 3 years. While many in the industry don’t even measure customer satisfaction, we have clear, evidence based, statements on what home movers actually want from their conveyancer; a combination of expertise, easy to use technology and great customer care – and when these are delivered for an agreed price, often inclusive of a referral fee, clients feel they have received a good home buying or selling service. It’s clear that general trends in consumer behaviour towards digital online services are being resisted by many in our industry so it’s important that the consultation process reflects the up to date views of clients through specific research into the areas where change is being considered.

“As an industry we must continue to operate with the client’s best interest at heart – a message we will deliver loudly and clearly over the coming weeks.”