Rebellion frustrates e-conveyance

VICTORIA and Queensland have threatened to go it alone on their land title and property transfer systems, but banks and the industry say they're not interested in dealing with players outside the agreed National Electronic Conveyancing System.

Australian Bankers Association director Ian Gilbert said the banks were "dismayed" there had been "alternative discussions" between the states outside the joint initiative to form a central communications exchange.

Victoria, which is to launch its own e-conveyancing system on November 16, has refused to share its software with other states unless they agree to certain conditions.

Mr Gilbert said the banks had invested with the Victorian Government in developing the software, "with the expectation that it would find its way into the national process and, eventually, into a national system. At this juncture, that hasn't happened."

The fate of the $44 million e-conveyancing project is uncertain since the major banks pulled out in September, citing frustration over Victoria's flagging commitment to NECS.

A co-operative venture between state government agencies and industry, NECS aims to establish a nationwide exchange and settlement platform for real estate transactions by 2010.

Simon Libbis, executive director of the National Electronic Conveyancing Office, said all parties had agreed to develop common data standards, and in May engaged the Lending Industry XML Initiative (LIXI) to assist with its mortgage and bank processing expertise.

"With eight land registries and the banks, lawyers and conveyancing firms, it's fairly clear we couldn't get everyone to change their systems to meet the requirements of a central system," he said.

"The whole idea of NECS was to have a system that allows all those systems to talk to each other."

Mr Libbis said five jurisdictions and NECO had signed the agreement with LIXI, and it was understood the ACT was in the process of signing.

"Victoria and Queensland have given us no indication of their plans, so we're working on the basis they don't intend to sign," he said.

"Every other state is strongly supportive as well as the industry, particularly the lending institutions, so we are just getting on with it," he said. "The announcement of our death was a bit exaggerated".

A NECO steering committee meeting will be held in Brisbane on November 23, and the rebel states' alternative position would be discussed then.

The ABA's Mr Gilbert said a national e-conveyancing system required more than just a piece of software: there had to be a governance structure, rules for participation and common data standards to support the process.

"It's recognised the system will need flexibility to accommodate the different state requirements, but there's a core piece that could operate in a fairly standardised way," he said.

"For users, it's important that there should be seamless interoperability across the jurisdictions, with a single point of entry."

Victoria and Queensland were essentially suggesting a return to a state-centric approach, with each jurisdiction using similar software but without the nationwide interoperability.

Mr Gilbert said bankers wanted the NECS steering committee to "bring everybody back to the original focus", and "work collaboratively towards delivering" an e-conveyancing system.

Karen Dearne | October 30, 2007
The Australian IT