Support from a PEXA specialist helped conveyancer Maree Stranieri turn the corner and find e-Conveyancing success.
A self-declared ‘control freak’, conveyancing manager Maree Stranieri says her anxiety around settlements first led her to PEXA. “I was fine running files up until settlement, but then at settlement I’d start to feel stressed out because of everything that could go wrong. When I heard about PEXA and the benefits, I thought it could be a really good thing.”
Despite the initial attraction, it wasn’t love at first sight. “We weren’t 100 per cent sure electronic conveyancing was right for our boutique law firm, MCP Group, at the time. So we stopped the process after signing up.” However, the initial spark of attraction was soon reignited.
Tackling the unknown
“We got a call from a PEXA specialist, Jennifer, who wanted to meet with us. Meeting Jennifer and having a dedicated specialist on hand was a turning point,” says Maree.
But there were still plenty of questions remaining. “Really, it was a bit scary at the start,” Maree admits. “Our clients had lots of questions: ‘Is it safe? What issues can arise? What happens if settlement falls over?’ The unknown is always scary. But the constant support and prompts from our PEXA specialist – with calls every week, visits every couple of weeks and plenty of email interaction – meant there was no longer room for excuses.”
Jennifer also helped the firm maintain a strategic focus. “When we were hearing a lot of people talk about e-Conveyancing and saying, ‘Oh, it’s just not going to work’ and ‘Nobody’s going to do that,’ our biggest concern became whether everyone else was going to do it. Jennifer put the focus back on what would work best for our firm and our clients.”
Trust and reassurance
With a background as both a conveyancer and PEXA specialist, Jennifer was able to apply her combined experience to help ease the way for Maree and MCP Group. “It was a massive help,” says Maree. “We were more inclined to listen to someone who had been there and had run their own files. She always had a solution.”
Having a trusted PEXA mentor also meant Maree could pass on that reassurance to her clients, even while she was relatively new to the PEXA process.
Sharing in success
From the day she first opened an electronic file in PEXA to the celebrations for the first online settlement, Maree says Jennifer has brought not just her knowledge and insights, but also a “positive vibe” to the office. “She’s very proactive in making time to see us. She looks at our workspace, and if she sees that we have a settlement coming up, she makes an effort to come out and see us to make sure we’re tracking well.”
Five settlements later, Maree counts the move to electronic conveyancing as a success, and recommends anyone with doubts about PEXA take advantage of the PEXA Direct support program.
Time efficiencies and increased certainty around settlement with PEXA have given Maree a reason to smile again as settlement day nears. And it’s not just Maree that’s smiling. She says more clients are asking about electronic settlement.
“It’s great being able to say yes, we’re ready and can help you with that,” she says. “We can tell vendors they’ll get their funds in faster without having to wait three business days for cheques to clear. We can tell purchasers they don’t have to wait a couple of weeks for banks to tend to stamping and registration – very quickly their name is on title. They love that.”
Visit the PEXA Community to find out more about getting started with PEXA.