Buying a property, whether as a home or as an investment, is a major decision. As your conveyancer, we’re on your side from start to finish. Here are some of the way we look after your interests.
You don’t buy property every day. You don’t read sales contracts every day. We do! And we read them very thoroughly.
That means we can spot easily when something is unusual and requires more investigation.
One common example is an overly generic contract. This can mean the vendor’s solicitor or conveyancer didn’t receive sufficiently detailed instructions. It’s a sign to us that our due diligence needs to be even more thorough than usual.
We’ve seen cases where a standard contract form is used and the sections on the front page haven’t been completed. More often, there are some standard conditions or special conditions which we’d expect to be included, but they aren’t there. There’s no malicious intent, but when details aren’t spelled out clearly, purchaser and vendor may have different expectations. It’s always better to clarify.
There are also cases where something in the contract requires more information. Alterations and renovations are a common example. We ask additional questions about council approval, builder’s warranty and so on.
Usually we review, ask any questions, then collect the information before we get back to you. There’s no point in raising anything with you until we have clarity.
We’re also ready to assist with any searches and inspections you may need when you’re buying a property. We work all across the Hills District, so we have good relationships with all the local councils. Even if you’re buying in a different location (for instance if you’re selling in the Hills and moving elsewhere), we understand how councils work and know all the questions to ask.
If an issue does arise, we don’t just identify it, we also outline all your options. Only you can decide what’s right for you, but we make sure you know what paths you could take.
For example, if it comes to light that renovations on the property you’re buying are not council-approved, the best option for you depends on the circumstances.
· You could insist on extra work to obtain approval.
· You could try to negotiate a lower price, if you’re still in the cooling off period.
· If you’re selling another property, you may be trying to line up two settlements to the same date so that you don’t have to pay rent and live in limbo for a while. That can affect how hard you negotiate.
· It’s also possible that you don’t mind at all about the unapproved works. You might be planning to knockdown and rebuild completely, or to convert that extra bedroom back to the garage it was originally.
We take the time to get to know you and your priorities, so we often have a pretty good idea what you’ll want to do. But we’re careful to make you aware of all your options, plus any risks related to each option. So you’re fully informed and able to make the best decision for you.
The ideal time to review your contract is after your offer is accepted, but before you sign or exchange contracts.
A quick read of the contract and a discussion by phone means you can raise anything which needs to be changed or ask the real estate further questions while you’re there. If the market’s hot, you have less power than when it’s slower, but in either case, the time before you sign anything is when you have the most power in the negotiation.
It isn’t always possible to review a contract during that short window of time, but a standard treaty contract includes a cooling off period. In NSW you have 5 business days. Whether we’ve done a quick read or not, this is a great time to follow up on anything which is unclear – details of inclusions, for example.
If you buy at auction there is no cooling off period. It’s vital that you have the contract reviewed before the auction as you will have no right to change anything afterwards.
If you’re buying a property which is listed for auction and you agree a price before auction, you’ll probably be asked to sign a Section 66W Certificate. This waives the cooling off period. So once again, get the contract reviewed before you sign.
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Are you buying a property in the Hills District, greater Sydney or indeed anywhere in NSW? Get a conveyancer you can trust to be on your side and defend your interests.
