It’s been an energetic start to 2018 at RoS, with product updates and the announcement of our 19th register.
ScotLIS was one of the main stories of 2017 for RoS, and we’ve continued to develop the service since launch, with two new features added this month. ScotLIS business users can now access the Register of Inhibitions (ROI), one of the significant judiciary registers in our care, through ScotLIS, meaning they can now search the ROI, land register and sasine register through one digital service. See our recent blog feature for more information. We’ve also introduced a new password reset tool for ScotLIS, which improves the user experience for this and all our online services.
Looking ahead to the rest of 2018 and beyond, we’re working to introduce further improvements to our core products and services, all based on the vital insight we gain from our customers. With this in mind, in the coming weeks and months we’ll be working on proposed changes to our land register application form. These updates are designed to improve the user journey for this essential process, and reduce the number of rejected applications as well. We’ll be sharing more information as we continue to work with stakeholders to implement these important changes.
We’re also pleased to announce the launch of our newest register, the Letting Agent Register. Like the Landlord Register, it has been developed in tandem with the Scottish Government, and it provides a valuable record of registered letting agents in Scotland and their details. This development will support the rental sector in Scotland, and ensure people can confidently rent property from letting agents.
Our monthly HPI releases remain an important part of the RoS calendar. This month’s report reflected the continued upward trend in average house prices, with a mean price for November 2017 of £145,992 – an increase of 3.6 per cent on November 2016, and 1.1 per cent compared with the previous month.
I’d like to close by extending my thanks and bidding farewell to two members of our executive team. Firstly, our Digital Director Tom Meade stepped down in January, and we have appointed Greg Urquhart, who will continue to spearhead our digital transformation, and brings valuable experience from both within and outside RoS to the role. And secondly, after many years of service our Corporate Director John King has announced his retirement, with his role being taken by Billy Harkness. I’d like to thank Tom and John for their commitment to RoS over the years, and I look forward to working with Greg and Billy as we transition to a new keeper in 2018, with whom RoS will continue to progress to the next stage of our digital transformation.
Stay in the loop
You can follow the team via @RegistersOfScot on Twitter and on Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube for more updates. Want to comment? Let us know below.