The buildings we use and manage are rapidly evolving from concrete blocks to digital platforms and nowhere is this more apparent than in the residential property sector.
We have always used data, but in our increasingly connected world, we are now using more than ever before and it is becoming increasingly complex. Property management involves a vast array of information, communication and decision-making. At any one time we need to be able to pinpoint the cost of operating and maintaining our buildings, understand their impact on the environment and be aware of the requirements of our residents alongside many other legal and technical considerations. Data is available on all these aspects of our role, often from multiple sources and with different attributes. And while identifying the data that is needed might be a challenge, bringing it all together to use it efficiently can be even more difficult.
The good news for property professionals is that there is a simple tool out there that could enable us to much more quickly and easily identify and tie different data sets together. This is something called the Unique Property Reference Number or UPRN and, if adopted across our industry, not only could it create enormous efficiencies and avoid errors, it would also allow us to gain significantly more valuable insights into the buildings we manage and the people who live in them. So what exactly are we talking about here? The UPRN is what is known as a common identifier. Of course these already exist in our business, the most obvious one being postal addresses. But addresses are often misread or misused and in our increasingly digital age they are far from foolproof because computers can’t tell whether 1 High St is the same as No 1 High Street. As property processes from mortgage lending to letting continue to be digitised, simply relying on an address to identify our homes and workplaces means the potential for mistakes and delays is huge.
We firmly believe that if every property-related piece of data that we use, included the UPRN – it could be a total game changer for our industry. Common adoption of the UPRN as a universal identifier has far-reaching implications for our industry and for the legal and financial services that support it. One example is the opportunity to provide all the detail surrounding a particular property to each party involved in a property transaction instantaneously, ensuring the accuracy of shared data and dramatically reducing transaction times. But the possibilities offered by the UPRN are considerably more far-reaching.
It presents the opportunity to connect the many different data sets that relate to a particular dwelling in order to speed up and streamline the whole property lifecycle and greatly improve the homebuying and renting process – and the full spectrum of stakeholders including mortgage valuation and lending, the legal profession and property agents as well as homebuyers, renters and building owners all stand to gain.
The power of a single identifier comes from it being widely used. So earlier this year, more than 30 industry bodies and some of the leading companies in the residential market called on government to remove the existing barriers to sector-wide adoption of the UPRN. The IRPM alongside TLIC and The Red Foundation were the prime movers behind this letter and IRPM is actively campaigning for widespread adoption of the UPRN for the benefit of its members, residents and the wider market. Now with over 100 organisations supporting the adoption of the UPRN, further steps are being made to continue to urge to government to consider steps to sector-wide adoption.
To find out more about UPRN’s, find out more about this initiative and to pledge your support, please visit: www.irpm.org.uk/uprn.
