ECT Register

[Jodie_5]

It would be helpful if the ECT register identifying all the C/T we hold as ECT Controller could be viewed easily at any point from PEXA rather than requesting from LTO - will this be a feature soon?

[JoannaBirch]

Hi Jodie,

I agree with you completely, however I have raised this on various occasions with PEXA and going back months - and their response is "meh".

PEXA representatives I have spoken to at various roadshows and other events have advised that we should "just keep your own records".

Not an effective long term solution, nor is it reasonable, to expect individual legal and conveyancing firms to set up their own individual records, particularly when our only other option is to perform a search on the title (at a cost) only to find our own firm is the eCT. Or we have to search through PEXA workspaces to find the conversion transaction completed by us and there is no clarity on how long the workspaces themselves will remain available - 40 years? Or 12 months?

[Jodie_5]

Hi Joanna

That is disappointing - yes unrealistic for us to be the record keeper and/or cost bearer of title searching when essentially PEXA should be the all in one system.  LTO are happy to utilise PEXA to funnel ECT settlements they should therefore trust in the system to display a register.....hope it is not a sign of simple costs revenue raising by forcing practitioners to complete title searches that would be very disappointing given the embrace we have all shown the LTO with the ECT change. 

Maybe a PEXA representative will provide a response.

[Kate_Camilleri]

Hi @JoannaBirch and @Jodie_5 - thanks for your comments, we understand it would be great to have an easily accessible register of eCT's for which you have control, and we're always looking for, and taking note of, opportunities to ehance the PEXA platform. For the current situation, see a post from @Louisa  here. 

looping in @PaulMajor for any further comments. 

thanks, 

Kate. 

[AbigailTBC]

Hi Kate,

Thanks for replying to OP, however this would seem like a fundamental feature I'm disappointed PEXA doesn't offer. 

Could you please provide some kind of update as to any current capabilities of this and if it has been time framed. 

Its hardly acceptable that practitioners are to hold these items in such a haphazard way. 

Many Thanks,

Abigail

[HeatherC]

Hi @AbigailTBC, @Jodie_5, @JoannaBirch, 

PEXA co-hosted a webinar last week with Land Use Victoria just last week (the recording is available here) to answer a collection of frequently asked questions, of which this was one. 

One of the points Paul made in response to this query was that the concept of Certificates of Title - paper, electronic or otherwise - in Victoria has a limited lifespan, and they will likely be retired in a couple of years' time. This has occurred in other jurisdictions, such as South Australia. 

In the meantime, as Land Use Victoria maintains the register of titles, they will be your best contact if you need to check what eCTs you are the controller of. 

As you have mentioned above, we understand a number of law firms and conveyancing practices are maintaining records internally regarding what eCTs they control similar to their records of paper titles held on-site for clients. 

Please let me know if you have any further questions. 

Heather

[JoannaBirch]

Hi Heather,

Thank you for responding. I think that the PEXA employees are doing their best to deal with significant beta-phase problems in the PEXA software and coding.

I appreciate your intention in providing the link to the recent seminar was to make further information available. Unfortunately, I am a sole practitioner and can't take the time to listen to a one hour seminar that includes a reference to a question I have asked. Is there a transcript of the seminar or, alternatively, is the information provided in a written format somewhere?

You mentioned:

"One of the points Paul made in response to this query was that the concept of Certificates of Title - paper, electronic or otherwise - in Victoria has a limited lifespan, and they will likely be retired in a couple of years' time. This has occurred in other jurisdictions, such as South Australia."

I am rather curious that a Certificate of Title, which registered proprietors consider to be their proof of ownership of real property, could be described as a "concept",  as well as the comment that they may be retired "in a couple of years' time".

For those of us who have been around a little longer, econveyancing has been an any-minute-now concept for nearly 20 years.

It would be greatly appreciated if some thought could be put into how commonly-accepted proof of ownership becomes a "concept" and - particularly - how we are to explain that to our clients. Preferably this could occur sooner rather than later.

Change management is an essential element of project management. It would be of considerable comfort to myself, my clients and (I expect) to other practitioners and their clients, to know that someone has an idea of which direction this whole thing is heading. Even better to be told about it.

Kind regards,

Joanna

[StaceyHood]

Hi @JoannaBirch I listened to the webinar I agree with you that this is a very ordinary approach to Certificates of Title. If you listen at about 7:36 Paul Major touches on how you can go about getting a list of titles held by a subscriber but this will not help long term as it will change regularly. If PEXA can validate a title why can it not also provide the eCT Controller at the same time as validation? Seems logical to me.

[SarahF]

Interesting that I just contacted Land Use Victoria and they advised that they do not keep a register of the eCTs a firm has control over, so I was unable to access a list from them.  This would definitely would be a valuable tool on PEXA.