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This page will outline the Conveyancing process for those who are in the process of buying property or making preparations to buy property in the future.
The first steps that a purchaser should take are:
A property must have a Contract of Sale prepared before it can be advertised. This means you can obtain a copy for your Conveyancer or Solicitor to review prior to attending any auctions or open homes. This is advantageous because:
Pest and Building Inspections
You are not legally required to acquire pest and building inspections before purchasing a property, however, they are very important. The reports are relevant for knowledge of the property, identifying risks, future maintenance and can also play a role in negotiations.
When buying at private treaty – The purchaser should organise pest and building inspections during the cooling off period after contracts have exchanged.
It should be noted, during a private treaty sale, a vendor can verbally accept an offer, then allow the person to organise (and pay for) pest and building inspections, and then decide to sell the property to another buyer. This is known as gazumping, and the person will forfeit the costs of the inspections and miss out on the property. You can contact us to learn more about avoiding gazumping.
When buying at auction – The purchaser should organise pest and building inspections prior to attending the auction. The purchaser or their Conveyancer is able to organise these inspections with the selling party before the auction, giving the buyer time to consider the findings.
Occasionally, a seller may organise pest and building inspections of their own property. When these are performed by a reputable company, it can improve the peace of mind for buyers and potentially increase the interest in a property. In addition to this, buyers can also obtain their own inspections, for total confidence.
Please note, Hunter Legal & Conveyancing is able to organise fully licensed and qualified professionals on your behalf.
NSW Taxation & Other Costs
Stamp Duty – When purchasing a property, the NSW Office of State Revenue will impose a levy, which scales with the purchase price. For example, for a owner-occupied property that costs $530,000, the stamp duty would be $19,340. In NSW, first home buyers are often eligible for a concession to this levy, visit our first home buyers page to learn more.
There are many variations to be considered when calculating stamp duty. Contact Revenue NSW or ask your Conveyancer to calculate this for you.
How you pay for everything
The majority of the time, when a person is obtaining loan approval for a property, the bank will also allocate money towards the upcoming legal and associated costs. The Conveyancer will use these additional funds to pay for the legal costs on their client’s behalf.
As an example, buyers don’t need to directly liaise to Revenue NSW when paying stamp duty. The Conveyancer simplifies the process by performing these tasks for their client, and then lists these costs as disbursement fees on their invoice.
No. However, if you would like to negotiate a different purchase price and we’re instructed by you to forward this to the selling party’s legal representation, then we can perform this. In terms of directly negotiating with the sales agent on the purchase price, this is not something we can do.
No. After contracts are exchanged, the selling party is legally required to sell.
We would recommend you obtain a copy of the contract and forward it to us for review. We offer complimentary contract reviews.
As mentioned in our selling property page, a Contract of Sale must be prepared before a property can be advertised. So whether you’re attending an auction or a private sale, you can contact the seller and obtain a copy of the contract in either circumstance.
Auctions can be high pressure situations. So by having our Conveyancers peruse the Contract of Sale prior to attending, you’ll be in a much better position to make a confident decision on the property.
No. In more complex scenarios like this, we often recommend you engage a quantity surveyor, which we can organise on your behalf. A quantity surveyor will be able to perform these calculations for you, so you can make a better financial decision.
Fences can cause an array of problems for adjoining property owners. Before purchasing a property, ensure your Conveyancer performs thorough groundwork on the property so you can avoid problems before they surface. For more information read our article on property fencing.
At Hunter Legal and Conveyancing, we’re real people who talk plain language. Our solicitors and conveyancers listen, are compassionate and help you to take it one step at a time. We pride ourselves on our communication and friendly and personable staff who are here to meet all your legal needs.