Enabling a world-leading property market is the strategy's vision, to deliver a more efficient, fully digital property market, supported by a modern land registration system, which includes a three-year business plan setting out the next steps of their digital transformation.
Building on previous digital initiatives, the ambitious new strategy invites the UK property sector to work in partnership to create a simpler, paperless, and transparent process for buying and selling property which will benefit homeowners. The plan is divided into five key areas and aims to create a homebuying process of the future that is quicker, more efficient, and more user-friendly.
Providing secure and efficient land registration
The Land Registry plans to improve the speed of the service they provide through automation and increased use of digital services while guarding against the risks of fraud and cybercrime. Nearly all application types will be able to be made digitally by the end of 2022, and they estimate that the processing of around 70 per cent can be fully automated. The introduction of end-to-end automation within the next year promises to bring a new era of near-instantaneous processing.
To counter fraud, more secure, qualified electronic signatures will be trialled, and the adoption of digital identity checking will be encouraged. Work to fully complete the land register, which currently includes about 88 per cent covered, will continue and voluntary registrations are encouraged.
Enabling property to be bought and sold digitally
Recognising that there is evidence that the average 2021 home sale took 49 per cent longer to complete than in 2007, the Land Registry plans to work with the property sector to drive the transformation to an entirely digital process for buying and selling property. They will work to make their part in property transactions to be fully digital and easily connected to other digital components of the property market in England and Wales and commit to working with the property sector on the setting and adoption of data standards.
Providing real-time property information
The key aims are to automate information services, working towards having a fully digital Land Register that is integrated within a fully digital conveyancing system. All local land charge information is aimed to be available online within the next four years.
Providing accessible digital register data
The Land Registry aims to make the vast quantity of data it holds (more than 26 million entries on the Land Register alone) more accessible, easier to use, interoperable, and reusable. They have also pledged to continue investing in their Geovation Accelerator Programme to find new data uses and users and help deliver the UK Geospatial Strategy.
Accelerating change with property market partners
This strategy section sets out a welcome vision of partnership across the property sector, and co-creating the innovation, research and development plan with other stakeholders. Plus, build on the success of Digital Street to explore and take advantage of emerging technologies.
Timothy Douglas, Head of Policy and Campaigns at Propertymark, comments: "Accurate information is vital to a functional and prosperous property market. Through the home buying and selling process, consumers need to know and understand what they are purchasing. The technological mindset of consumers has advanced considerably in recent years, and HM Land Registry’s 2022+ strategy compliments moves we are seeing in the sector to enhance and improve home buying and selling. With demand for homes recently reaching soaring levels and estate agents reporting record high completion times, the strategy will help improve the efficiency of the sales process and in turn the satisfaction of agent’s customers."
