Family owned and operated business | Two convenient locations in Toukley & Belmont | Mobile business operating 24/7 | Fixed fee conveyancing |
A conveyancer deals only in property transactions and will not be distracted by general court work like a solicitor will be. At Ezystep, our conveyancers are regulated by the Conveyancing Regulations NSW and are members of the AIC New South Wales.
A vendor is only legally bound to a purchaser once contracts have been exchanged – that is, both sides have signed a copy of the contract, the identical copies are physically exchanged, and the purchaser has paid a deposit. Until then, a vendor is entitled to enter into negotiations with any number of purchasers. Therefore, even if you have negotiated to purchase a property and even agreed on a price with the vendor, the vendor can still decide to sell the property to another purchaser (usually for a higher price, or on more favourable terms) – typically referred to as “gazumping”. A vendor can gazump you even if you have paid a “holding deposit” to the real estate agent – this payment has no legal basis and is usually only considered to be a sign of goodwill by the purchaser. Of course, if you are gazumped, you are entitled to a refund of your “holding deposit”. However you are usually not entitled to be reimbursed by the vendor for any expenses you may have incurred in anticipation of purchasing the property, such as pre-purchase inspection reports and valuations.
The Conveyancing Act allows purchasers a five day business period commencing the next business day after exchange during which time the purchaser can decide to pull out of the contract and not continue with the purchase. The cooling-off period is a good opportunity for you to obtain your unconditional finance approval from your bank, arrange pest/building/strata inspection reports and make any other enquiries you wish about the property before committing to the contract.
If you decide to pull out of the contract, a Notice of Rescission needs to be sent to the vendor’s solicitor before the expiry of the cooling-off period (ie. 5pm on the final day of the cooling-off period). You are then penalised 0.25% of the purchase price. If you decide to continue with the contract, you just need to make sure that the balance of the deposit is paid to the deposit holder (usually the real estate agent) before the expiry of the cooling-off period, otherwise you will be in breach of the contract and the vendor would have rights to terminate.
Vendors have the right under Section 66W of the Conveyancing Act to not allow you a cooling-off period. In this case, your solicitor needs to complete a “Section 66W Certificate” certifying that they have explained to you that there is no cooling-off period and that you understand that you will be bound by the contract as soon as it is exchanged. You also do not have a cooling-off period if you purchase a property at auction.
Vendors do not have a corresponding right to pull out of the transaction during the cooling-off period. The cooling-off period only gives rights to the purchaser.
Our fees are fixed with no hidden costs! We don’t charge upfront costs and carry your costs until settlement of the matter. However, disbursements incurred will vary depending on the property location, documents already provided and searches that you may wish to obtain. Please contact us for a more accurate quote.
If you are selling a residential property you must have a contract prepared before your property is placed on the market for sale. The Contract must contain prescribed documents as provided by the Conveyancing Act.
If you are selling a commercial or rural property you do not need a contract to advertise a property for sale but will need a contract once a sale has been negotiated. If you would like a quick transaction then we would recommend preparing the contract once you decided to market the property.
What we will need from you;
Complete your instructions with one of our staff (This will involve supplying your personal and property particulars to commence ordering the necessary certificates and searches).
Verify your identity in the office (VOI) – 100 POINTS of Identification required
Evidence of supporting documents if in possession (ie.building certificates, survey reports)
Once the Contract for Sale has been prepared we shall submit the Contract to an agent of your choice or to you directly should you wish to privately market the property.
Pre Approval is recommended to ensure you are aware of your buying power, once you know your maximum range you can look for dream home or investment.
Click on the link for our Step by Step Guide to Purchasing. This will help you understand what will be required from you.
Exchange is the process of dating the contract signed by you, the purchaser, and the contract signed by the vendor.
Contracts can be exchanged by:
Settlement is completion of the matter. This is when the balance of the monies is paid by the purchaser to the vendor. Settlement occurs usually within 28 (4 weeks) to 42 days (6 weeks) after exchange. The contract will specify the time period for settlement. Completion dates will vary it is not uncommon to have a longer settlement especially if the vendor is looking at buying again.
You are not required to attend settlement, we will organise all of this on your behalf. You will be kept up to date from the start to finish of the matter and everything in between. Our office will book in and direct your bank for funds to complete your matter on behalf of you if applicable.