Let us handle the details!
We offer competitive fees for all conveyancing matters. You will have an experienced Property Lawyer prepare all documents for your home purchase or sale. You will be kept informed of the progress throughout. Contact us now for a quote!
Contract Review & Negotiation Before Purchase
Your contract will be reviewed by an experienced Property Lawyer who will go through it thoroughly and contact you within 1 business day highlighting areas to note and anything that needs your attention.
Buying Property
How do you buy and sell property in NSW?
Buying or selling a property can be daunting and complicated. Many of our clients find it quite overwhelming because of the sheer number of documents required for the transaction. As part of our service, our Property Lawyer will provide you with professional and experienced knowledge on navigating the purchase or sale of your property. We aim to make buying or selling a property as simple as possible and will endeavour to ensure that the process runs smoothly from start to finish. That’s what we call value added conveyancing!
What does “Off The Plan” mean?
When it comes to property, in Australia the majority of people buy properties that are already built. Many new homes however are sold ‘off-the-plan’. Buying a house, apartment or townhouse ‘off-the-plan’ means agreeing to enter a contract to buy a property that is yet to be built.
Typically, purchasers pay an initial 10% deposit, with the balance of funds not due until construction is completed. Construction time can be short or long ranging from a few months or years – with houses generally completing faster, and apartments taking longer. As in all property purchases, there are benefits as well as risks involved.
Contact us to discuss how our conveyancing services can work for you.
What is a “Cooling Off” Period?
When you sign a contract for sale, you’ve agreed to buy a property. However, in NSW, property contracts have a mandatory “cooling off period” unless the property is sold at auction or under auction conditions. The minimum cooling off period is usually five (5) business days or ten (10) business days if the contract is ‘off the plan’ with the option to extend cooling off by agreement between the parties.
Bear in mind that during the cooling off period, if you have a change of mind and want to withdraw from the contract, then you will forfeit an amount equivalent to 0.25% of the purchase price.
The purpose of the five (5) business day cooling off period is to generally enable you to:
- Seek the advice of a solicitor on the contents of the Contract
- Ensure that your finances are formally approved
- Obtain any building, pest or strata reports.
If you choose to exercise the option of cooling off, what this means is that you will forfeit your 0.25% deposit to the vendor, but will no longer be legally bound to go ahead with the purchase.
You can always choose to waive the cooling-off period by agreement. If cooling-off is waived, the contract immediately becomes binding on you and you waive your right to withdraw from it.
Reports to consider when buying property:
When purchasing a property, some of the reports which we recommend should be purchased include:
- a Pest Report – a pest report is carried out by a qualified pest specialist. No work is done on the property but the report contains information as to any present or past infestation by pests such as termites.
- a Building Report – again a qualified building inspector carries out a full inspection of the premises and reports as to its state of repair.
- Engineering Reports – these are normally obtained where a Building Report makes mention of structural damage to the property.
- a Survey Report – this report is obtained to confirm that the structures upon the property being purchased sit wholly within the block. It will also confirm whether any structures upon adjoining properties encroach upon the property that you are proposing to purchase.
- Building Certificate – this is a Certificate obtained from the local council to confirm that council will not make any “upgrade or demolition orders” in relation to any structures upon the property. A building certificate is obtained from the local council to confirm if the council intends to or will not make any “upgrade or demolition orders” in relation to any structures upon the property.
It is a matter for you to decide whether or not you obtain all or any of the above reports.
What are your obligations when selling your property?
When selling a property, there is a substantial onus placed upon the vendor. These are:
- the onus of “disclosure” – where the vendor must disclose certain prescribed information about the property in the contract of sale. Generally, it is in the vendor’s interest to disclose as much information as possible about the property as this will assist in the sale of the property and most certainly assist in completing an exchange of contracts and eventual settlement of the property.
- to provide a copy or the original proposed contract for sale, usually through your solicitor . The standard contract for sale of residential property is usually used in New South Wales is a contract devised by and adopted by the Law Society of New South Wales and the Real Estate Institute of New South Wales.
What must be disclosed in a contract?
Vendors are required to attach the following documents in a contract for sale:
- a zoning Certificate from your local Council
- a sewer drainage diagram
- title search
- the Strata Plan if applicable
Other documents may be required depending on the nature of the property being sold. If the documents are not annexed to the Contract, then the purchaser may walk away from the contract without losing any of the deposit within fourteen (14) days from the date of exchange of contracts.
What if I have made some improvements to my property? Must these be disclosed?
If there are any improvements to the property that have not been approved by council then you should consider applying to have them approved by council at the earliest opportunity. If you do not propose to have them approved by council, these will still be required to be disclosed in the contract.
You should obtain a Building Certificate for annexure to the contract for sale. If you do not and if there are matters which would require upgrading or demolition of a structure, this may give rise to the ability of the Purchaser to rescind the contract.
In some cases, council can require you to attend to the demolition or upgrading at your own costs. There is also the possibility that if there is a breach of the warranty in any major way, then the Purchaser could take action in damages.
How long does conveyancing take?
Generally, as a guide in NSW, :
- When a purchaser has been located by your agent, the agent will fill up the Contract for Sale and either forward same to the respective Solicitors or arrange for the exchange. If he arranges for the exchange then you could expect settlement to take place within four (4) to five (5) weeks after the expiration of the cooling off period.
- Where the exchange has not been arranged by the agent then you can expect a formal exchange to take place (probably without the cooling off period) within five (5) to ten (10) days of the actual sale.
- Settlement could then be expected in about four (4) to six (6) weeks from the actual formal exchange.
