Purchasing residential, commercial or off the plan is a major life decision and therefore it is important to seek the advice from a licenced and experienced Conveyancer. It is likely that you will purchase by Private Sale or Auction. There are significant differences between private and auction purchase. Most notably is when buying at auction, auction rules apply, there is no cooling off period and payment of deposit is due upon signing of the Contract. There is also little opportunity to make negotiate amendments to the Contract of Sale.

It is always wise to arrange your finances before you begin the search for a suitable property. Once you have found your chosen property, it is advised to have your Conveyancer review the Contract and Vendor Statement (Section 32) to ensure you are aware of any Special Conditions and specific property information. If satisfactory, It is then that you may make an offer! As soon as your offer and terms are agreed upon by the Vendor, signing of the Contract should be arranged and Contracts exchanged. Payment of deposit should be paid by the due date and copy of the fully executed Contract of Sale must be provided to your Conveyancer as soon as possible.

Your Conveyancer will discuss your current situation and take your instructions on various matters including applying for any relevant government duty reductions, lodging a Purchasers Caveat, applying for relevant certificates, preparing statement of adjustments and liaising with your bank to ensure your settlement runs smoothly and on time.

Your Conveyancer will attend settlement and formally notify the relevant authorities of your acquisition of the property.

There are many things to consider once you’ve made the decision to sell your property. Once you’ve chosen a Real Estate Agent that you are comfortable with, they will market your property and advise the best way to sell your property, whether this be by Private Sale or at Auction. You will then require a Conveyancer to look after your interests and ensure the process is as smooth as possible, from start to finish.

Upon receiving your instructions and completed questionnaire, we will prepare a Contract of Sale and a Vendor’s Statement (also referred to as a Section 32). This is a disclosure statement by you about the property that must accompany the Contract of Sale. The Vendor’s Statement should include information on: zoning; restrictions in the use of the property; outgoings of the property; services available; details of any building permits; details of builders warranty insurance (if applicable); notices received from local authorities by the Vendor; water authority information; and VicRoads information. At Westbourne Conveyancing, we guarantee to provide the Vendor Statement and Contract of Sale to your Real Estate Agent within 24 hours of receiving all the property information, including property reports and certificates.

It is important to note that under Private Sale, the law allows a Purchaser a 3 day “cooling off” period after signing a Contract. This does not apply when selling by Auction. It is also possible for your property to sell prior to Auction, your agent will discuss this possibility if it arises. As soon as all terms and a settlement date has been agreed to, the Agent will arrange for the Contract to be signed and exchanged. Once we receive the fully signed Contract we will check for any amendments. We will then request that you sign a Section 27 to which we will request a letter from your lender to confirm the details. Please note, that early release may not occur if the Purchaser makes a reasonable objection.

We will liaise with your lender to commence preparation of the Certificate of Title and Discharge of Mortgage to be provided at settlement. Upon receipt of the Purchasers Statement of Adjustments, we will confirm all outgoings on the property and seek your approval to proceed to provide payout details to the Purchaser. Settlement will then be arranged between the parties and post settlement, we will attend to the deposit of any surplus funds from the sale into your nominated account as well as instruct the Real Estate Agent to advance the balance of deposit monies according to your instructions. The final step is to inform the relevant authorities in writing that you no longer own the property.