How Realtime gives Chris the work-life balance she desires

When Chris Bradbury decided she wanted to improve her work-life balance and hand over her conveyancing business to her son, she began a search for the best technology solution.

Chris, who established Federation Settlements in 2011, wanted to work remotely without impacting her clients. Whether logging in from her Perth home or while on holidays overseas, she was determined to find a technology that would deliver the consistent service that has underpinned the success of her business.

A second challenge confronted Chris – how to quickly and effectively train her son Matt as a conveyancer so he could take charge of Federation Settlements. 

‘New way of doing things’

Chris says she was seeking a solution that would digitise conveyancing in the same way the banks had designed online banking – quick, secure and trusted.

When Chris hear about Realtime Conveyancer and our vision to digitise traditional and expensive conveyancing practices, reducing the time to process documents required to complete a residential purchase, she wanted in. Immediately, Chris asked to be part of our pilot program. “I really wanted to see a new way of doing things,” she says. 

Rather than worry or delay a decision that would fundamentally change the internal processes of Federation Settlements, she took the step decisively. “I just did it,” says Chris. “I said, ‘Right, first of the month, that’s it’. And the transition was so easy. I’m not a big settlement agency, so my trust account was quite easy to bring over. I love everything about it. It’s simple and user-friendly.” 

Mobile access another big advantage

Chris tells us her favourite features include the ability to upload documents to PEXA directly, avoiding jumping in and out of the PEXA platform – “that’s a fantastic feature”. Chris also values the integration between Realtime Conveyancer and Stewart Title. 

The ability to access her Realtime Conveyancer account on her mobile phone is another big advantage as it guarantees she can help her clients while on the move. “If I’m out somewhere and a client rings me, I can just jump on my phone and find out what’s going on. I love the ease of accessibility.”

Another “game-changer” has been the ability to set up workflows that provide each staff member with a guide for the order in which tasks must be conducted and completed. Chris asked her son Matt to set up their own workflows. “We’ve got five tasks in total with subtasks under them,” says Chris. “It’s working really well. I don’t forget anything. It’s just an absolute game changer for me.”

‘It doesn’t take so long to do things’

The Realtime workflow structure has also helped Chris train Matt to become an accomplished conveyancer. Chris says it is possible for anyone to “come in and learn how to be a conveyancer from scratch. The system helps them learn because it gives them guidance on what they’re supposed to be doing”. 

“At the same time, it doesn’t take them a long time to do things now. They can do more files in a shorter period of time, which then gives them time to jump on the phone and speak to people,” says Chris. 

At Realtime, we understand the significant changes that adoption of our technology requires. So, we were keen to understand Chris’s experience with our customer service. 

‘I love the fact it’s our product’

She tells us: “Oh, the support! Wow! Support has been at the highest level I could imagine. The whole (Realtime) team is just so supportive. When you send feedback and emails, everything you put forward is taken as a serious issue or a serious idea. I love the fact that it’s our product.”

As Realtime Conveyancer continues to help her business continue to grow, Chris says she can now “live to work rather than work to live.”

“I’ve been thinking a lot about being able to work remotely. I can go to Bali at least twice a year, and settle from Bali without any problem. The fact it’s a true web-based product makes it so simple.”

Her advice to other conveyancers: “Just take the lead and do it. You won’t regret it.”