Need Conveyancing – Brisbane, Gold Coast, Queensland?
Wanting quality expert service from your Conveyance Solicitor?
- Dave Cheng
Our Conveyancing Lawyers and paralegals are the answer
Our Conveyance paralegals and property law solicitors have put together this list of common mistakes they see buyers of residential real estate in Queensland making.
1. Not making the Contract subject to the sale of your existing home
Not just “sale” & should be subject to a satisfactory settlement of the sale of your existing home
For buyer’s benefit only – special condition should say this & you may want to waive it and get bridging finance so that you don’t loose the property
2. Not enough time for building and pest inspections
Time for searches of building records with the Council
Your building inspector does not check this. We need to.
3. Not doing searches before the Contract is unconditional
There are very limited rights under standard Contracts if a problem comes to light after the Contract is unconditional.
4. The finance clause not being properly completed
If it is not properly completed, the Contract is not subject to finance. Ask us to check the Contract before you sign it.
5. Cooling-off termination costs
Termination under the cooling-off period attracts a penalty (payable by the Buyer) of 0.25% of the purchase price.
6. Not insuring the property
Generally risk moves to the Buyer from the day after the Contract is signed. If the property burns down between Contract and Settlement the Buyer still has to settle and claim on insurance to rebuild.
7. Buying in the wrong name
The time to consider whose name to buy the property in is before you sign the Contract. Changing it later always attracts extra costs (and possibly double Stamp Duty and Capital Gains Tax). Take our advice before you sign.
8. The Seller must clean up the place
The Seller is not clearly obliged to leave the property clean or remove rubbish before Settlement. This will need to be dealt with in a Special Condition.
9. I can extend the Settlement Date later
Wrong. This is subject to the agreement of the Seller which the Seller can refuse regardless of what the agent may have said to you.
10. I can use the finance clause to get out of the Contract
You can only do so if you have promptly made an application for finance and made all reasonable endeavours to pursue that application and then do not have a finance approval by the finance date.
11. Time is of the essence
In Queensland (unlike other States) “time is of the essence” in property transactions which means that if time limits are not strictly complied with you can lose legal rights or have rights of the other party exercised against you.
The solution: engage our expert Conveyance paralegals and Property Lawyers early before you sign a Contract to avoid these mistakes and to carefully lead you step by step through the conveyancing process.
{ 33 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi
we are in the process of purchasing a property as our home, we both signed the contract, the cooling off period is over also the building and pest inspection has been done to our satisfaction, yet for financial reason, my partner will get the loan for the property easier therefore we would like to take my name off the contract and have the contract only in her name with the same conditions.
Is this possible or do we have to ask our solicitor for a new contract
thanks Werner
When Conveyancing in Queensland you can do this with the consent of the seller. You need to be careful not to trigger an extra transaction for stamp duty purposes. The Qld Office of State Revenue has issued a specific ruling to follow in this circumstance. A Deed of Rescission and new contract will be required. Your lawyer will charge extra and the seller usually asks you to pay their extra legal costs.
Find our more about our Queensland wide Conveyancing Services with offices in Brisbane and on the Gold Coast.
Regards
Andrew Lind
(Note: This is information only and not legal advice.)
My de facto partner owns a home and we want to add my name to the title/deed. I think we will have to pay stamp duty to do this, right? But do we have to pay on the TOTAL cost of the house, or only on half of the house? And since I am not an Australian citizen, does this have to clear FIRB before we start?
Thanks, Susan
In Queensland there may be an exemption for this. FIRB approval may not be required if you are a permanent resident or in other limited circumstances. Please let us know if we can help with some specific advice.
I am purchasing land in Queensland. There are special conditions, including the condition that if other conditions are not met, our deposit will be refunded in full by the Seller.
My question is: by agreeing to that condition, is the Seller waiving their right to the 0.25% penalty in the event we cool-off during the requisite period? (I think the 2 issues – return of full deposit and the cooling-off penalty are mutually exclusive.)
Thanks for you help.
Juanita
It doesn’t sound like a waiver of the cooling-off penalty. I would need to see the contract to advise. Please let me know if I can help.
regards
Andrew Lind
I want to change the name on the title deed on my investment property as i have just got married and have taken my husband name, how much will it cost to do that? thanks
Generally most people don’t make the change but just leave the title in their maiden name. If you still want to make the change and the property is subject to a mortgage I suggest that you speak with your bank first as to what their requirements and costs are and then let us know if our Property and Conveyancing lawyers can be of any further help.
regards
Andrew Lind
My husband and I have separated I am using the proceeds of our home to build a new one for myself and three young children. Is it possible to purchase the land in just my name while my husband will be paying the mortgage on my behalf as I have no income. My husband has a new partner so we wish to have the title in my name only.
The short answer is yes. The longer answer is that you should take some family law advice before launching down this path. We do not provide family law advice at this time. There are a number of specialist family law firms who could assist you.
More infomation: http://www.corneyandlind.com.au
My mother recently passed away leaving her share of their house to my father. I know he should get the title deed changed to his name but he is not interested in doing it. There is no mortgage involved. What happens if he just leaves it as it is?
Hi I live in Queensland, and I was wondering who do I contact to get a title deed saying I own my apartment outright now?
thanks.
Assuming you have paid off your Mortgage you should as your financier for a Form 3 Release of Mortgage.
You will then need to arrange to lodge the Form 3 with the Titles Office. A Registration Confirmation Statement will then be issued by the Titles Office showing the registered ownership without the mortgage.
You are also able to apply for a duplicate (paper) title deed to be issued. This provides some protection as the title to the property can then not be dealt with without the production of a paper title deed.
Our Property and Conveyancing lawyers would be happy to help you with this.
This will make the administration task more complex and costly on your father’s passing especially if a significant amount of time goes past. In the meantime it may make insurance and other arrangements more difficult as well.
Our Estate Administration Lawyers can help.
I have been with my defacto partner for 5 years and we are paying off a block of land which was meant for retirement, however I have decided to leave. He wishes to keep the land and refinance the loan. He wants me to sign a form from the bank taking me off the loan, does this also mean I am no longer part-owner of the block as I won’t be paying half of the loan? If I do sign, am I entitled to still place a claim for my half share of the value of the land after we deduct the outstanding loan amount?
Hi there
I live in WA and just wanted to know if i can purchase a property (residential) in my maiden name?
I currently have my husbands surname, but am thinking of reverting back to my maiden name in the future. So, can I purchase a property now, in my maiden name? and will a birth certificate be enough for me to provide for identity for the purchase and sale?
thanks
Hi just got a question regarding buyers that are unconditional
If a buyer has bought a house and its unconditional can they then terminate the contract? This has been threatened by our buyer if we do not settle on the propsed date they wish us to, which wasnt agreed to at the time of contract (they have brought it forward).
The need for swift good legal advice in this circumstance cannot be overstated.
Generally a settlement date cannot be changed without both the seller and the buyer agreeing. Without that agreement the buyer is bound by the agreed date in the contract. A buyer threatening not to complete unless a change of date is agreed to may actually give you the right to terminate the contract if you act quickly. This is a minefield. Good legal advice from experienced conveyancing and property solicitors is a must.
Our conveyancing solicitors would be happy to help. Just give us a call.
You will need to check with a local property and conveyancing lawyer in WA. This would be problematic in Queensland given proof of current ID requirements.
Is there a penalty for a buyer withdrawing from a contract with the clause “Subject to the successful settlement” (of their home) In other words, their home is not going to settle, therefore they are not buying ours- is there a penalty? We feel it is unfair, as they included this clause after telling us their home had already gone unconditional. ? Thank you in advance
I signed a contract to sell our home with an unconditional date of 4/5/10 and settlement date of 21/5/10. The buyers requested an extension of the dates to 7/6 and 21/6 respectively. I agreed to this over the phone with my solicitor and also was told a sunset clause would be added however I didn’t a new contract and was told I didn’t have to. This did sound strange to me. I really don’t want to sell my house now as there has been a significant change to my circumstances. Is there any way of getting out of the contract?
buying a house in wa
sellers’s are not ready to settle
title in husbands name, he is currently going through a divorce?
Informed that seller is waiting on a document for wife to sign
Can he hold up settlement when title clear and the contract in his name?
Hi,
We have recently put an offer on a property in Brisbane, and were mid-negotiations with the owners on a final price (following 4 days of no response). At this point we were advised that a new offer was received by another party, and the owner wanted us to put in our BEST offer. Once this was done, we were rung and told our best wasn’t quite good enough, HOWEVER the owners would DEFINATELY sign the contract if we offered $x. Upon offering $x we were then told the other couple had offered slightly more, and the owners now wanted $y to secure the contract. Upon doing so, we were advised that the owners now may want to increase the price again.
We are feeling like we are being taken for a ride here, and were wondering whether we could legally stop them from messing us around?
Thanks
My suggestion is simply a practical one. Put your best offer forward with a limitation saying that it is not accepted by a certain nominated date and time it will lapse.
Whether the current conduct of the agent and the seller is lawful or not is something that would need careful analysis. Please let us know if you would like our Property Lawyers to consider that on a fee for service basis.
Our Conveyancing Solicitors can help with a clause on letter put on “expiry time” on your offer if you would like. Fees would apply. Let us know if you would like any help with this.
I wouldn’t have thought so. But your only right may be to terminate. Take advice from a local WA lawyer on this one.
You need specific paid for legal advice on this. Let us know if our Property Lawyers can help.
Not normally. Let us know if our Property Lawyers can help you with specific advice on this.
I live in Sydney and I’m the buyer. The seller had signed the contract on 9th of April asking for 10 weeks of settlement which was 9th June, after 10 weeks he wants 3 more weeks which would be 30th June. I agreed to the extension only if the property price was reduced by $1000 (which he had increased seeing my overwhelming interest in the property). The seller has not agreed and its seem like I have to settle on 30th or may be he might ask for another extension and I’m not getting any help from my solicitor. What can I do? THANKS
I am not a NSW property solicitor. You may want to seek a second opnion from another NSW property solicitir or at lease ask for some written advice from your current solicitor.
This is a great site,
We are currently looking at placing our home on the market and were going to try and sell it ourselves. I would like to know ca we do this without the services of a lawyer? If so how do we go about it. If not how much can we expect to pay and more importantly what do they do for the seller.
Thank you
Tod
Hi ,
We signed the residential Form of offer to purchase on a Monday and our house burnt down Wednesday morning at 5 am . Is the offer to purchase still binding ? We are the sellers but have not recieved any letter of termination from our Realitor , but the buyers have moved on to another house without terminating the contract with us . What are our legal rights ?
Hi Deanna
You need swift considered legal advice from an experienced property and conveyancing lawyer in your state or territory. If you are in Queensland our property solicitors and conveyancing solicitors can help.
regards
Andrew Lind
You should have heard from our Client Services Manager about the conveyancing services our conveyancing solicitors offer.