Santander has joined the Open Property Data Association (OPDA) as part of its ongoing mission to transform and digitise the home buying process.
While the initial stages of the home buying process appear smooth, with two fifths (41%) of consumers confirming that securing a mortgage offer was perceived as ‘easy’.
The lender’s recent ‘Fixing the Broken Chain Report’ found that the latter stages remain slow, paper-based and overly complicated.
What’s more, while 83% of consumers said they felt supported by their broker during the mortgage process, more than half (54%) had to keep chasing during the conveyancing process to move things along, and a quarter 23% found the documents too complicated.
The difficulties in the process contributed to one in three property transactions (530,000) falling through, with an estimated economic cost of £1.5bn every year in fees paid by consumers alongside lost work and leisure time as consumers focus on purchase related activities.
Away from the cost to the economy, the current process puts consumers off wanting to move again, acting as a blocker to a well-functioning market.
Reassuringly, 88% of consumers said they would be more likely to move in future if the system were more streamlined.
As a result, Santander has called on the Government to expedite digitisation and improve data sharing across all parties in the process through a Smart Data Working Group, with its OPDA membership marking the lender’s latest step in working with industry to drive the change.
David Morris, head of homes at Santander UK, said: “Broker guidance and expertise clearly help buyers navigate the early stages of the process efficiently and with confidence, but our research shows that the latter stages of the journey are not fit for today’s buyers.
“We need to address this if we’re going to establish a more seamless and efficient housing market that encourages people to move, whether that be downsizing, second stepping or getting onto the ladder in the first place.
“We’re delighted to be joining the OPDA to drive this mission forward and are well aligned with their calls for action across the industry. We’re urging for more digitisation and the implementation of better upfront data, accompanied by improved data sharing to help simplify and streamline the legal process for all.
“This would not only speed things up but also provide increased security for buyers and sellers alongside reducing the enormous cost – both finally and emotionally – of property purchases falling through.”
Maria Harris, chair of the OPDA, added: “Mortgage lenders, intermediaries, and their system providers have worked incredibly hard over the last few years to streamline the mortgage advice and application process. This has been great for consumers, making lending decisions quicker, less stressful, and more reliable.
“However, with the whole homebuying transaction taking twice as long as consumers expect and a perceived lack of transparency and control, it’s time to focus on improving all of the customer and industry user experience.
“We will only solve the challenges and remove the barriers to change if we collaborate as an industry on the best possible ways of working and transforming the outdated practises that are holding us back.
“That’s why it’s so important to have industry heavyweights like Santander UK join us and commit to working across the ecosystem with a common goal – improving the homebuying process for everyone.”
Ben Thompson, Deputy CEO at the Mortgage Advice Bureau, said: “Many home moves go through seamlessly and we rarely hear about those, however many clearly don’t. For those who try to move home and experience inefficiency, unplanned costs and disappointment, this can be very frustrating, and in today’s tech-ready world leaves many wondering “Why?”
“As an example, digitisation and AI are two enablers that mean so much more is possible today than when HIPs were first a seed of an idea two decades ago. With technology having advanced to where is it today, now is the time to grasp the nettle and make positive change, so people can move home with real confidence in future.”
