About Morvanna

Hi There,   We’re approaching the traditionally busy end of year period for our industry and we know it’s likely you have a high number of transactions to be settled before you spend time with your loved ones these holidays).   As we prepare to navigate the coming weeks, we’d encourage you to keep three key things in mind:   Be Early   Where possible, we recommend you progress your Workspaces as early as possible. This includes:   Sending Workspace invitations early, at least 10+ days out from settlement Finalising the source funds required for settlement 5+ days out, ensuring they are cleared 3+ days out if using the PEXA Source Account Finalising Payment Directions at least 24 hours prior to settlement Tip: 12pm and 2pm AEDT are popular time slots for settlement – consider selecting a different time.   Be Safe   Please remain vigilant at this time. Our Security team has provided the below guidance:   PEXA will only ever contact you from email addresses ending in "@pexa.com.au" Avoid email for the exchange of sensitive information Use PEXA Key to securely transfer trust and bank account details Be Kind   It’s been a challenging year, but we’re nearing the finish line. It’s important to remember we’re all working towards the same goal – supporting buyers and sellers, so I encourage you to be supportive of your Workspace colleagues and the PEXA Support Centre team.   Keep an eye out for a notice about holiday period operating hours from industry bodies across the states later this month. If you require any assistance, please reach out to your PEXA representative. ... View more

When an ownership of a title is in the name of a trustee for a bankrupt transaction in PEXA these are limited to a Release of Mortgage.   Unfortunately as the name of a trustee for a bankrupt is stored all in the surname field and when returned to Land Registry for verification it sends it as an individual due to no given name and organisation and is therefore deemed an incorrect party type.   Please check here in regards to scope in QLD.  Please rest assured that we are working closely with all third parties to further expand the scope of documents in QLD in 2021. ... View more

Reason for Outage: There will be a 6 hour outage window Friday 20 th November between 17:00pm and 23:00pm. During this time OSR Connect and OSR Online will be unavailable.   If you have any queries in relation to this outage please contact OSR directly via this link. ... View more

Hi Community, The Department of Natural Resources, Mines and Energy (DNMRE) and subsequently, the Queensland Land Registry, has confirmed its holiday closure period as Friday 25 December 2020 to Sunday 3 January 2021, inclusive. We’re pleased to share with members that settlement will remain available during this period. It’s important to note however that while settlement will proceed, lodgement and registration will not be confirmed until the Land Registry’s return date of Monday 4 January 2021. From this point, the Land Registry will begin to work through the backlog of matters accumulated during its shutdown. For more information, reach out to your PEXA representative or visit DNRME here.   ... View more

The previously reported issue impacting Stamp Duty verification for select Workspaces in Queensland has now been resolved. Workspace activity should now proceed as normal however please note you may need to re-confirm that your assessment has been submitted in OSRConnect. If you require further assistance, please reach out to your PEXA Queensland representative. ... View more

PEXA is dedicated to supporting firms transacting digitally in Queensland. As part of this commitment to the state’s members and industry, PEXA has provided a 50% pricing discount on Transfers, Priority Notices and Transmissions related to Queensland properties – with this offer concluding on 31 December 2020. After this point, from 1 January 2021, QLD transactions will re-align with PEXA’s national pricing. To help you prepare for this change, we’ve compiled a list of FAQs which you can access below:   When is the pricing offer ending? In support of industry, PEXA’s 50% discount on fees for Transfers, Priority Notices and Transmissions related to Queensland properties remains in place till 31 December 2020. After this date, the offer will no longer run, with PEXA fees in Queensland reflecting our national pricing schedule moving forward. This date was first communicated to members on 1 September 2020, ensuring practitioners were provided ample time to prepare. Why is the pricing offer ending? Since November 2019, a 50% pricing discount has been provided to all Queensland members to assist with the industry’s adoption of digital settlements and support the network through its ongoing transition. PEXA has extended the duration of this offer to run until the end of 2020, in support of industry and in light of the exceptional year we’ve experienced. We appreciate that the ongoing operational change for firms and the industry as a whole is significant and running dual processes is not ideal. The 50% discount on fees was one way for PEXA to help members navigate this challenge and the challenges presented over recent months. What happens if a Workspace is opened during the campaign, but settlement is executed after 31 December 2020? The Workspace must settle within the campaign’s time period to receive the discount. If the Workspace is created during the campaign period but settles or rolls over to settle outside the campaign period, standard PEXA fees will apply. What is PEXA doing to support members in Queensland moving forward? Though PEXA has been supporting members in Queensland with a pricing discount throughout 2020, we’ve been providing free on-the-ground support for members in Queensland since 2015, and we remain committed to assisting practitioners with their transition to digital settlements in this way. As digital settlement volume has increased in Queensland, PEXA has dedicated additional support and training to help ensure the network is best supported. The market has progressed significantly in recent months, which is testament to how members have embraced change, particularly in the difficult recent months as a result of COVID-19. PEXA will continue to support the Queensland community moving forward, by maintaining our extensive team of local, on-the-ground experts, providing a wealth of free digital learning materials courtesy of our training team, continuously enhancing the member experience and collaborating with practitioners, financial institutions, representative bodies, regulators and government to advance online settlements for the industry and consumers alike. ... View more

Daylight savings time will resume in New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania from Sunday 4 October 2020.   The following changes will be effective from Tuesday 6 October 2020 until Friday 2 April 2021.   For members in NSW, two additional settlement slots will be made available: 6.00pm and 6.30pm AEDT.   In Western Australia, settlement rebooking cut-off time will be at 1.00pm AWST.   Please also be mindful of the 4.00pm cut-off time in Queensland, with the jurisdiction not observing daylight savings time. ... View more

Our practitioners and financial institutions are working more closely than ever before, thanks to digital settlements. Hear from Bendigo Bank’s James Astill and Ruth Behrends about digitisation in the banking sphere and how all parties can best collaborate to streamline the settlement process.   For our Members that missed the Behind the settlement scene at Bendigo Bank webinar you can now watch the recording here.     ... View more

   It has been an incredibly busy August in Queensland. Our members have been driving significant momentum in the sunny state and this blog is dedicated to celebrating those firms who are helping lead the industry’s digitisation, showing leadership in their regions and collaborating selflessly with their peers.    Without further ado, I’d like to acknowledge the following firms:   Empire Legal, Spring Hill - Surpassing 100 PEXA settlements.   Empire Legal has been registered with PEXA for 12 months now and has embraced e-conveyancing ever since joining. They are strong advocates and are always encouraging other Brisbane CBD firms to embrace PEXA. They celebrated this achievement with a well-earned morning tea.   Colwell Lyons Lawyers, Northside Brisbane – Celebrating 500 PEXA settlements and becoming PEXA Certified   Colwell Lyons Lawyers is a well-established and recognised law firm on the northside of Brisbane, with the firm’s Principal, David Colwell, having practiced in the area for more than 30 years. With many long-standing clients and business referrals, the firm has an extensive knowledge of the conveyancing process. It has been an absolute privilege to observe the firm’s PEXA journey – having started transacting towards the end of 2019, and now being graduated to PEXA Certified status as well as recently eclipsing 500 PEXA settlements milestone. Congratulations to the entire fantastic team!   Sunshine Coast Members – Busy Bees   Our cohort on the Sunshine Coast has been extremely active in August, with the following members now having all completed in excess of 10 PEXA settlements:   Caloundra Law Vantage Law Siemons Lawyers Turbo Legal SJP Law Conveyancing First Bill Lyons Solicitors Fox Taylor Mildwaters Hopkins Manttan JHK Legal (Sunshine Coast) Young&Co Law It is a credit to each of these firms on how they have embraced PEXA during COVID-19 and created a sense of community on the Sunshine Coast to support each other during the need for change at this time.  We look forward to celebrating more milestones with each of you in the near future.    Wallace Davies Solicitors, Redcliffe – hitting 100+ settlements!   Wallace Davies Solicitors has recently exceeded 100 settlements and continue to advocate for PEXA on the peninsula. Well done to the team for their tremendous efforts.   Connor Hunter, Wynnum – surpassing 250 PEXA settlements   Congratulations to Connor Hunter for surpassing 250 PEXA Settlements and becoming PEXA Certified. Connor Hunter were early adopters in the Redland Bay area and continue to encourage the local firms to get onboard!     Bell Legal Group – hit 100 QLD PEXA settlements!   Bell Legal was founded in 1955 and is the Gold Coast’s longest established law firm.  Steeped in history, Bell Legal Group reached a PEXA milestone this month celebrating 100 QLD PEXA settlements! The team at Bell Legal have been an absolute delight to support while they transition to electronic settlements. @JPrins    Foxlaw, Rockhampton – PEXA Certified & 100+ settlements!   Josh and the team at Foxlaw have been using PEXA for a while now and have always been great advocates in the Rockhampton Region. Josh got his team on board early and made sure they could help any other firm in the area make the transition. Foxlaw’s drive to change the way a traditional transaction was completed saw them power on up over 100 settlements and become PEXA Certified. Congratulations team, enjoy your well-earned success.   Bowen Law, Cairns – PEXA Certified   Congratulations to Bowen Law on becoming the first firm in Cairns to become PEXA Certified.  As one of the early adopters of e-conveyancing in the area of e-Conveyancing, Bowen Law love the time saving benefits of PEXA and the fact they can do multi-jurisdictional, contemporaneous settlements which is something that is impossible to do in a paper settlement.    They are also embracing PEXA Projects with an upcoming development ensuring their clients are provided with a more streamlined and secure transaction from start to finish.   Again, congratulations to all the members mentioned this month for their hard work with these achievements.   PEXA has a strong support network for new and inexperienced users and very quickly, with the guidance from our team, and the friendly nature of our community, you’ll be up-to-speed and achieving milestones like the above firms in no time. Keep an eye out each month for our wrap up of the community’s achievements!   ... View more

QLS have provided an update to their COVID 19 related FAQ's in response to the recent changes in restrictions in Queensland.   You can view this update on the QLS website  here. ... View more

ARNECC have issued a Notice to Subscribers (2020-NS1) to clarify their position in relation to the digital Verification of Identity.     You can view their notice here. ... View more

Titles Registry have issued a reminder that, further to Titles Registry Alert 171, revised Queensland Titles Registry fees will take effect from 1 August 2020. The revised fees are prescribed in the Natural Resources, Mines and Energy Legislation (Fees) Amendment Regulation 2020 which is available on the Office of the Queensland Parliamentary Counsel website. Attached for your information is a summary listing the revised Titles Registry fees (click here) The Titles Registry online fee calculator will be updated on 1 August 2020 to reflect the revised fees that commence on that date. Please note that up to and including 31 July 2020 the calculator will continue to function using the existing fees. ... View more

      With PEXA Plus it is easier than ever to track your PEXA Exchange workspaces and keep up to date.   Want to see a calendar of upcoming settlements? Or a status summary of all your workspaces?   Visit PEXA Plus today and access a dashboard of helpful tools to assist you in managing your workspaces.   GET STARTED   Access PEXA Plus via the app menu in the top right-hand corner of your PEXA account.     FAQs are available in the PEXA Plus hub on Community.     Why use PEXA Plus to manage your workspaces?   Customise your dashboard with the features you find most helpful:   Interactive workspace overviews Prioritise with ease thanks to a calendar of upcoming settlements, a list of matters settling today and a colour-coded summary of all workspaces. Monitor invitations you’ve sent or those requiring a response from you with the handy tracker. Simply click through to any workspace to take action.   Learning assistance Fast-track your way to PEXA proficiency with a Learning Checklist linked to help articles in the e-Conveyancing Community.   Announcements Stay up to date with important announcements. New releases, pricing updates and more - delivered directly to your dashboard.   PEXA Plus is evolving to provide you tools and services to assist with your conveyancing matters. If you have suggestions for new features, the team and I would love to hear them. ... View more

To start the week  of  In Conversations, we are hearing from James Harding, Senior Associate at Holding Redlich,Cairns.  Holding Redlich are an extremely tech savvy firm who have embraced e-conveyancing and do a high volume of settlements through the PEXA platform.   1.  Have you had to adapt your working environment since COVID-19?   By utilising the online team meeting platforms such as Zoom, Webex and Microsoft team to catch up with clients and colleagues. Our regular desk phones in the office are integrated with video call so fortunately it hasn’t been too different to our usual day to day operations.   We had already made some progress in moving to a less paper-based environment and we took this opportunity to further enhance many of our processes and functions to be able to do much more of our work electronically.  Our offices have been well fitted out so that there was a choice for employees to be able to work from home, work from the office or do a combination.   Our IT team worked tirelessly to provide hardware and software to those employees who needed to work from home or chose to work from home but didn’t have infrastructure at home to do so.   2.  If so, how is your firm managing to stay connected and together?   With the availability of video calls on our usual phone system and Webex, we were able to have regular contact with our team members, other people in the firm across the country and continue to have our regular team meetings.  In fact, we ended up having more team meetings as those who work flexibly or in other locations were able to take advantage of the technology to be able to meet at any time.  Some teams even got to have more contact with their team mates on a more social basis too as we had ‘virtual’ social events, groups forms on various social media, and some people introduced their family members (furry and human) on various video calls.  Our human resources team also kept in touch with various people by phone, video meetings, instant messaging, social media to regularly check in on people to see how they were coping and if they needed any further support whether they were working in the office or at home.  We also had (and still have) a daily check in so that the leadership team and human resources know which location people are working in and whether they are feeling well.   3.  How do you see PEXA’s role in togetherness?   PEXA has allowed us to continue working with our clients during the disruptions that COVID-19 has caused. PEXA has ensured our staff can continue working in a socially distanced manner to ensure their settlements occur. Without PEXA, a few months ago these necessary transactions would have potentially come to a standstill.   4.  What’s something you have learnt recently about Cyber Security?   Property transactions are often subject to scams and fraudulent transactions. Verification of Identity and Multi-factor authentication is integral to the safety of sellers and purchasers to ensure the dealings are legitimate and the respective interests are protected.   5.  Why do you use PEXA Community?   PEXA supports flexible work arrangements as our conveyancers and team are able to communicate with all parties and proceed to settlement in their own home or remote office. It provides a convenient platform to facilitate settlements where all the required documents are in one place. The platform has ensured we can continue to deliver for our clients in a prompt and secure way.   6.  How do you actively seek feedback from your clients to improve your business?   Informally, we touch base with clients for feedback within the course of working on their matter. We have also recently moved to a new client feedback program where we seek formal feedback by way of an annual online survey.          ... View more

QLD Titles Registry have today advised the following updated arrangements for titles registry lodgements:-   “The preferred way for professionals to lodge Titles Registry documents is through eLodgement or eConveyancing.    The Brisbane Titles Registry office (located at Level 11, 53 Albert Street, Brisbane) remains open for Titles lodgements using the drop-off box facility from 9:00am to 4:00pm, Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays). Postal lodgements can be made by posting documents to GPO Box 1401, Brisbane, 4001.  Lodgements can also be made at a number of regional business centres*. See the Titles Registry contacts page for lodgement hours and street addresses.  For more information, see Payments and lodgement of Titles Registry forms.“ ... View more

Hi Community,   There’s currently three ways to lodge documents in Queensland: eLodge as provided by the state government, in paper or digitally via PEXA.   Each channel follows varied processes and as such, has unique characteristics. To help you better understand these lodgement methods, we’ve provided the attached overview. ... View more

This week In Conversations, we hear from Yasmin Parker, Principal of QPLG in Townsville.   For many years Yasmin has been a strong advocate for e-conveyancing and is passionate about ensuring she provides her clients with the very best customer service possible.   Have you had to adapt your working environment since COVID-19?   There has been less face to face contact with clients – what can be done over the phone or electronically is done that way and the essential tasks such as witnessing transfers are completed face to face.  For some clients, I have travelled to see them to reduce the number of people they come in contact with.   How have you maintained connection and the relationship with your clients during this time?   I’m still available for appointments with clients if they would like to meet and clients know I will always pick up the phone when they call.  It’s also been interesting to hear the experience of clients from New South Wales, Victoria and New Zealand about how the COVID-19 changes have impacted them.   What security features about PEXA do you think benefit your client?   I have just started using PEXA Key and I think this is the safest way to make sure that the clients settlement funds are ending up exactly where the client wants them.     Why do you use PEXA Community?   I know that it is a place I can go to if I have a question or a problem, because there is always a chance someone else has had a similar experience and I might find the answer there.  I also enjoy reading about what is happening with PEXA in the other states and seeing what opportunities Queensland has to look forward to.     What’s been your experience when providing feedback to PEXA?   I haven’t yet provided feedback directly to PEXA.  If ever I have a problem or a concern in the PEXA workspace, I know I can always ask our Practitioner Specialist, Morvanna Jones.  Morvanna is always happy to answer questions, provide assistance of find out more information for me.   ... View more

DNRME have today announced that the revised Queensland Titles Registry fees will take effect from 1 August 2020.    The revised fees are prescribed in the Natural Resources, Mines and Energy Legislation (Fees) Amendment Regulation 2020 which is available on the Office of the Queensland Parliamentary Counsel website . To view the summary listing of the revised Titles Registry fees that will apply from 1 August 2020 please  click here. The Titles Registry online fee calculator will be updated on 1 August 2020 to reflect the revised fees that commence on that date. Please note that up to and including 31 July 2020 the existing fees will continue to apply.   For further information on the amended fees please contact the Titles Registry on 1300 255 750 or email titlesinfo@dnrme.qld.gov.au.   ... View more

Starting this week of In Conversations, we hear from Madeleine Hillier, Solicitor at Smithfield Law in Cairns.   The Team @SmithfieldLaw are lawyers with attitude, compassion and a sense of humour.  Their  aim is to provide their clients with professional and affordable legal and practical advice and to assist them when they need it the most.   Have you had to adapt your working environment since COVID-19? Increasing our office cleanliness (wiping down surfaces etc), avoiding sharing pens, emailing/posting documents rather than offering collection and keeping a safe distance from visitors/staff.   How have you maintained connection and the relationship with your clients during this time? A good number of walk-in clients greatly appreciate that we have not locked our doors and are still open to assist with our Free JP service or taking appointments for initial consultations.   New faces are a refreshing break from isolation – we enjoy the new opportunities to share our experiences and having an ear for theirs.   We have been contacted by interstate law firms to assist with witnessing/identification. We go the extra mile with helping out the members of our community who have been cut off from other states. We have been waiving some disbursements like printing – every penny counts and clients are very grateful for our friendly assistance and time.   Is there anything in particular your firm focuses on for security? We are vigilant with confirming bank account details either in person, by video link or over the phone with regular clients.   What’s something you have learnt recently about Cyber Security? We have recently learned about the risks of using the Google Chrome saved passwords function. Our IT team have recommended we use ‘Last Pass’ instead – it is really handy to use especially for saving usernames and passwords for council searches we do not regularly use. No more flipping through our outdated folder of passwords and calling up councils.   What’s your favourite help tool on community? The webinars are a great way to refresh our knowledge on procedure and answer any questions we have (or didn’t know we had) about using PEXA.   Why do you use PEXA Community? It encourages individual professional development and is quick and easy.   What’s been your experience when providing feedback to PEXA? We have not provided much feedback but when we do we contact our PEXA Direct Specialist, Morvanna Jones, and we are satisfied that we are heard and a solution is provided.     ... View more

Congratulations to Salerno Law for achieving over 100 PEXA settlements!    Salerno Law are a firm that are committed to their clients and who care about the outcomes that they deliver.  This is what drives their unique attention to detail and commitment to results and it is of no surprise that they have reached this amazing milestone so quickly.   With offices in Queensland, Western Australia, New South Wales, South Australia, Victoria, Los Angeles in the USA, and Ayrshire in Scotland they recognised early on the importance of embracing e-conveyancing as it enables them to provide a streamlined service to their clients wherever they are in the world and aligns with their values of providing excellent customer service and being committed to their clients.   Great work to the team at @Salerno.  Thanks for sharing the pics of your well-earned celebration with us.  We all look forward to celebrating many more milestones with you in the future.   ... View more