Success with e-Signature at Hackett Estate Agents

Hackett Estate Agents use of e-Signature platform Legalesign has dramatically improved efficiencies and reduced costs. Read the case study of how Legalesign benefits Estates Agents.

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Full text below:

Summary

• 85% reduction in contract cycle time

• 87% reduction in printing costs

• 100% reduction in mailing costs

• 100% reduction in incorrectly submitted documents

• 17% cut in overall business costs

The company

Gareth Mason and Nick Maund founded London-based Hackett Estate Agents in 2004. With a combined experience of 36 years between the Directors, Hackett’s has an in-depth industry knowledge and know-how in all aspects of London property, with a special expertise in new build properties.

Before Legalesign

Hackett’s contracts were printed or emailed, posted or personally delivered, signed in the office or signed abroad. The plurality of methods led to extra costs and, as the business grew, increased the potential for human error. After a Landlord was unable to sign a tenancy while out of the country, leading to tenants being denied access, Hackett’s realised they needed a new solution.

When management subsequently assessed the business’s contract signing system it was found that documents were often printed multiple times as details and plans changed, leading to significant wastage in paper, ink and time.

Choosing Legalesign

After Hackett’s assessment of contract signing and decision to adopt an e-signature solution, all the major online e-signature providers were tested. Taking into account their specific needs for property management, Hackett’s concluded that Legalesign:

was the best software on the market from an estate agents point of view. You can track the contract process in real-time and the system is so easy to use, Legalesign also takes data security very seriously and this was paramount to us.

How Legalesign improved the signing process

Gareth remarked

there are so many ways it has improved our contract signing I don’t know where to begin

and in particular he identified the following features:

Signers abroad: An issue for a landlord abroad caused Hackett’s contract signing review in the first instance. Legalesign online e-signing means all contracts are signed and returned in hours.

Automated follow ups: Tracking and following up late signers was previous time consuming. The reminder email functionality means signers can be automatically prompted to complete paperwork.

Signer time-saving: Gareth said:

One of our landlords is a well-regarded solicitor in London and she says that apart from the slick and profession style of the software Legalesign has saved her a ton of time, no more printing and scanning, she can now sign and return contracts on the go.

Handling regulatory change: Lettings regulation requires estate agents to ensure that the tenant has read the Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS). Legalesign live tracking provides confirmation once the document has been opened and this is all the evidence required.

Results

Since using Legalesign Hackett Estate Agents has reduced its carbon footprint and overheads significantly. Previously printing required 80 pages per tenancy and this is now just 10 pages, an 87.5% reduction in printing and ink costs.

In addition, costs from stamps, recorded deliveries and couriers have been eliminated. Hackett’s have also seen a 100% reduction in incorrectly submitted documents. The sales cycle has dropped from 2 weeks to 3 days on average, and can take minutes in many cases. Apart from the benefits for signers, their sales cycle and their time, on average Hackett’s estimate a 17% decrease in direct costs since the company started using Legalesign.

To learn more about online electronic signature for for property and real estate firms, to contact us and for a free trial of Legalesign go to https://legalesign.com