contract

What Happens After You Sign an REIQ Contract?

In this podcast, Legal Practitioner Director Sylvia Lopez shares all the steps that follow after you sign a contract when buying or selling a property.

TRANSCRIPT

 

Speaker 1:

At Big Law, we are big on providing you great legal help. If you have a family law, business law, wills and estates, commercial law, or conveyancing issue, we’re here to help. Now, here is your podcast.

Dan:

If you are buying or selling, it’s inevitable that you may be thinking what happens after you actually sign the contract? Or more to the point, you engage a lawyer to do the conveyancing for you. In this podcast, we find out all the steps that follow with Big Law director, Sylvia Lopez. So Sylvia, once a person has signed a contract, what happens next?

Sylvia:

Sure, Dan. So once you’ve signed your contract, we will get in touch with you and ask you if we can do what we refer to as standard property searches. There’s lots of other things that happen in a conveyance, but I want to focus specifically today on what those property searches are and why they’re critical in the purchase of your home to do them. In Queensland, we are somewhat different to some of the other jurisdictions in Australia, so New South Wales and Victoria specifically.

Sylvia:

A seller will give a buyer all of the copies of the searches and certificates that they need to provide with respect to the property just prior to the entry of the contract or at the time they enter into the contract. Queensland’s different. We get no information when you enter into a contract, so you sign up your contract and then it is up to the buyer to go and make those inquiries. It’s hugely critical that you do that so that you know what you’re buying.

Dan:

So the property searches that you undertake, is there a regular or usual batch of searches that you deploy to ensure full coverage?

Sylvia:

Yes, there is. Some of the searches that we do relate to checking the financial position with respect to the property. There’re things like rates, water and land tax. Now, those three charges attached to the land. So it is critical that we understand what the position is with respect to those charges with those relevant authorities. What I mean by that is, is there are unpaid rates at the time that you settle or unpaid water charges, those charges stay with the land and you could potentially end up paying a significant amount of those charges if we don’t check what the position is before we settle.

Sylvia:

We do those searches. We make sure that we know what’s outstanding. We clean it up at the time of settlement. And by that, I mean that we use some of the purchase monies that would otherwise have gone to the seller to pay out the council or the water authority or the land tax to make sure that there’s no outstanding fees as at the date, but you then become the owner of the property. That one’s really critical. Well, those batches of searches are really critical.

Sylvia:

The next lot of searches that we do relate to title and ownership. We check your title search and we make sure that there’s no encumbrances on the title that we need to deal with. So for example, we check if there’s a mortgage on the property. If there is, we make sure that we pick up a release of mortgage at the time of settlement. We check that things like easements haven’t been registered on the property, and that if there are easements registered on the property they’ve been disclosed to you in the contract. If they haven’t been disclosed, then we go through with you what that means in terms of the use of the property and how that impacts on you and whether or not you have the right to terminate the contract.

Sylvia:

And imagine that if you bought a lovely property and you’re thinking you’re going to be able to put a pool out the back, and you find out that you’ve got a drain [inaudible 00:03:59] that will prevent you from doing that. It may no longer look like the dream home that you thought it may look like. We check building records with the council. So this one’s really important because we make sure that any structures that have been built on the property have no outstanding requirements with the council. We regularly see properties where there’s been no final inspection, therefore no final certificate issued. It’s critical that you understand what that means and what may potentially need to be done to complete those and what the cost around that might be.

Sylvia:

And finally, we do things like your flood search. So obviously given current events at the moment in Queensland and Southeast Queensland, it’s really important for you to understand if you’re sitting in a place or you’re looking at buying a place where there has been floods come through and understanding what that level looks like, and making sure that you’re going to be able to get insurance and so forth in relation to that property.

Dan:

Now, Sylvia, all this does have an impact on the usual or what we call the standard contract that potentially a buyer may be utilising in the sense that maybe that contract won’t offer any protection if some of those searches are adverse. Is that the case?

Sylvia:

Yes, unfortunately it is. I think that sometimes people are allowed into a false sense of security that because you’re signing a standard contract, you’ll be protected. That actually isn’t the case unfortunately. There are limited circumstances under the standard contract that will allow you to terminate the contract if you are not happy with the outcome of your searches, but they are very limited. And a lot of the issues that can come up will not be addressed in that standard contract.

Sylvia:

It’s really important that at the time that you enter into the contract, you negotiate adding a special condition that will protect you in those circumstances so that if there’s something in the search that comes back that you’re not happy with, you can just simply give notice and terminate and get your deposit back.

Sylvia:

We can assist you with that and with drafting that special condition to protect you in making sure that you are happy with what you are buying and that you’re buying what you think you’re buying without any underlying issues that you might have to address, which frankly can be a substantial amount of money can be needed post settlement to rectify these things. It’s really critical that, that is negotiated before you sign the contract so you’re protected.

Dan:

Sylvia, it follows that buyers who potentially are considering bargain basement conveyancing. There’s some inherent risk with that, isn’t there?

Sylvia:

Look, absolutely. My biggest advice to people is, you get what you pay for and you can certainly regret the outcome of some of these things if you don’t deal with it carefully at the outset. The other piece of advice for people is that at the moment, particularly given the way that the current market is, a real urgency to secure properties, but you need to understand that if you don’t negotiate these things up front, that you may be left holding a property that isn’t quite what you thought it was. So whilst it’s very tempting to just sign up, you need to do so understanding what your risks are.

Dan:

And the current price of property certainly dictates the fact that this is likely to be the biggest asset that anyone will ever own, hence the importance of getting it right.

Sylvia:

Absolutely. Absolutely, Dan.

Dan:

Sylvia, thanks for joining me.

Sylvia:

Thanks for that.

Speaker 1:

Thanks for listening. Need further information, visit us at biglaw.com.au.

How We Can Help

Big Law Lawyers Strathpine offers you the same comprehensive suite of legal services that you would expect to only find in the city.

We are a successful well-established legal practice based in Strathpine, Brisbane. We have earned a reputation for providing trustworthy, practical legal advice to a diverse range of clients, in both Brisbane and regional Queensland.

Things to Read

The Presumption of Revocation of a Will in Queensland: Understanding Its Implications and Prevention

In estate planning and succession law, few concepts carry as much weight and potential consequence as the presumption of revocation of a Will. This legal principle can significantly impact the distribution of a deceased person's assets and the fulfilment of their final wishes. As such, both testators (those making a Will) and potential beneficiaries mustRead More »The Presumption of Revocation of a Will in Queensland: Understanding Its Implications and Prevention

Property Owners: Are You Aware of the New QLD Minimum Housing Standards?

As a property owner in Queensland, it’s crucial to stay updated on the latest regulations impacting your investment. Recently, the Queensland government has introduced new minimum housing standards designed to enhance living conditions for renters and clarify property maintenance requirements. In effect, these standards represent a substantial change in rental property management, ensuring that allRead More »Property Owners: Are You Aware of the New QLD Minimum Housing Standards?

What You Need to Know About Changes to Superannuation Tax Concessions and Their Impact on Estate Planning

The Australian superannuation system, a cornerstone of retirement planning, can be reshaped by the Superannuation (Better Targeted Superannuation Concessions) Imposition Bill 2023. These changes in Division 296 tax introduce significant alterations to tax concessions, which affect individuals with a Total Superannuation Balance (TSB) exceeding $3 million. This article examines the impact of these changes onRead More »What You Need to Know About Changes to Superannuation Tax Concessions and Their Impact on Estate Planning

Stamp Duty Relief for Queensland: What it Means for You

In the event of a change of government, Queensland may have changes coming to the stamp duty landscape, making it more accessible for first-time homebuyers to enter the property market. These updates may be a game-changer, given the continuing rise of house prices. In fact, from January 2023 to March 2024, there has been aRead More »Stamp Duty Relief for Queensland: What it Means for You

Podcasts to Listen to

What You Need to Know About Commercial Leases in Queensland

If you're a business owner navigating the commercial lease market, maybe about the sign on the dotted line or just want to understand the basics of a commercial lease, this podcast is for you. In this podcast, Big Law director, Sylvia Lopez, talks about all things to do with commercial leasing in Queensland. Transcript AtRead More »What You Need to Know About Commercial Leases in Queensland

Can Stepchildren Contest a Will?

It probably comes as no surprise, that in the context of estate administration, people who may be beneficiaries, or those that think they should be, may want to contest the Will. This can often concern stepchildren. In Queensland, this process is often referred to as a family provision claim. To learn more about this growingRead More »Can Stepchildren Contest a Will?

How can an Executor be removed?

One of the most important aspects of estate planning is of course, making sure you have the right executor. But what happens if things don't work out or circumstances change and you want another executor. In this podcast, Estate Planning Lawyer, Elise Jacques discusses the matter. Elise Jaques Solicitor Make an appointment

What Does the New Property Law Act Mean for Sellers of Property?

In QLD, the Property Law Act 2023 (the Act) passed Parliament on 25 October 2023. The primary objective of the Act is to simplify, streamline and modernise Queensland's property law regime by replacing the Property Law Act 1974 (Qld). But what are the key elements, in particular those that will impact upon sellers of propertyRead More »What Does the New Property Law Act Mean for Sellers of Property?