PEXA UK chief executive officer James Bawa says 2023 has the potential to be “a year of progress towards a better and more resilient conveyancing and mortgage market”.
In a blog for UK Finance, Bawa suggets that the turmoil seen in the mortgage market in the second half of 2022, combined with a deteriorating economic backdrop and the cost of living increase has “crystalised the benefits of consumers being able to secure new products quickly, seamlessly and transparently”.
But with this set to continue in 2023, Bawa expects to see more people looking to shop around when remortgaging.
“Equally, those who took out a two-year fixed rate mortgage in 2021 to take advantage of the temporary reduction in stamp duty will be adding to the demand.”
He suggests this will put “a strain on capacity” in the market as it currently stands.
Bawa explains that increased collaboration and embracing technological innovation as best practice will help ensure peaks in demand for mortgage completions can be more easily managed going forward.
He suggests that throughout this year there will be a greater focus on Consumer Duty and moves to support better customer outcomes.
With one lender already dropping its transfer fees, Bawa says “we hope more will take bold steps to follow suit”.
To be able to provide better customer outcomes, PEXA’s chief executive says that embracing technological innovation will be “central to this”.
“By removing the unnecessary, often manual, administration involved in sale/purchase and re-mortgage transactions, workloads and timelines shrink for service providers and their customers alike.”
Bawa explains that collaboration among industry bodies and practitioners will also be key.
“To name just a few, the Conveyancing Association, the Building Societies Association and the Payments Association are doing great work to champion the success of the industry.”
“Membership bodies like UK Finance, techUK and the Bold Legal Group provide essential support to drive innovation. The benefits of driving positive change are clear, but we can only do so if we work together.”
