For many people, buying a property is one of the biggest (and most expensive!) purchases of your life. Due to the stress and costs involved in securing your dream home, it is important that you get it right. Whilst you may be able to purchase a property without engaging a solicitor or a conveyancer, we recommend that you do so that they can assist you from the start to the finish and save you a lot of stress, time and money in the long-run.

But what do lawyers and conveyancers do?

One of the most important elements of our role is that we review your contract and advise you on the terms of the contract including any additional conditions, the documents contained within the contract, such as the plan or any restrictions or covenants noted on the plan, and any additional items you need to be aware of such as the zoning information for your property and the location and connections for your sewer.

We negotiate any changes to the contract of your behalf and work with the real estate agent and seller's legal team to work towards exchange of contracts and locking in your purchase for you. We do this so that the contract is best suited to your needs and does not lock you into any hidden provisions that could cost you later down the track.

Once contracts have been exchanged and you are locked in to purchasing the property, we work with you every step of the way up until settlement. We liaise with your broker to ensure your loan is on track, we prepare settlement statements to notify you of the total funds required in order to complete your purchase, we lodge your stamp duty return on your behalf and advise you in relation to any stamp duty concessions that may be available to you and we attend settlement on your behalf, electronically via the PEXA platform.

Whilst the settlement date is generally a fixed date, sometimes contingencies do often arise and for some reason settlement may not occur on the agreed upon date. Having a lawyer or conveyancer involved who is aware of all the necessary requirements and strict time frames will help ensure that all the necessary arrangements are made prior to the settlement date, so that you can be moved into your new home as soon as possible.

Our primary role is to ensure that your property is transferred to you in the most efficient way and we take on the stress for you so that you can enjoy the process of purchasing your new home.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.