Buying and selling property could eventually become a seamless online process if Queensland’s property law was “brought into the 21st century”, say QUT law researchers.
An overhaul of the 43-year old Property Law Act is sorely needed to simplify the process and save time, money and a lot of paper, said Professor Sharon Christensen from QUT’s Commercial and Property Law Research Centre.
The Centre’s comprehensive review of Queensland’s Property Law Act is online and open for submissions until August 24, 2018.
“Technology being applied to real estate agency and legal practice is moving ahead faster than the law,” Professor Christensen said.
“Our recommendations would validate electronic contracting in land sales including the use of electronic signatures.
“This would facilitate digitisation of the ‘front-end’ of the real estate transactional process. It would complement the existing electronic conveyancing system, which already exists through PEXA (Property Exchange Australia) for the settlement and registration process.
“It would also complement the increasing number of pieces of government information already available online.”
Professor Christensen said for an entirely digital land sales process to work, client identity would need to be checked at the outset.
“At the moment you have to have a lawyer do a 100-point identity check before engaging the PEXA process which must be undertaken through a lawyer.
“An identity check for an e-signature would be needed so that the process could then be digitised from the signing of the contract to the registration of the land in the owner’s name.”
Professor Christensen said the Review’s recommendations, if enacted, would legally validate the electronic processes already in use.
“Digitisation of most processes is going to happen anyway so the recommendations are just bringing property law into the 21st century.”
The 1000-page Property Law Act 1974 – Final report recommends modifications to many aspects of Queensland’s property law and transactions including co-ownership, the creation of electronic deeds, together with simplifications to the law affecting mortgages, leases and easements.
QUT Media contact:
Niki Widdowson, 07 3138 2999 or n.widdowson@qut.edu.au
