All you need to know about conveyancing Gold Coast
All you need to know about Conveyancing Gold Coast
Buying a property on the Gold Coast can be one of the most exciting times in anyone’s life. Yet, it could also be the most stressful time especially when you understand little about the process of conveyancing. It is important to partner with a legal expert to check on the conveyancing laws in the area.
What is involved in the process of Conveyancing, Gold Coast?
- The process of conveyancing
Each party involved in the buying and selling of property on the Gold Coast needs to undergo the process of conveyancing when they come to a mutual agreement. The transfer of a property’s legal title from the name of the seller to that of the buyer is legally known as conveyancing.
The two-step process of conveyancing a property includes:
The first step
Contract exchanging is the first step of the conveyancing process. The seller and the buyer are legally committed to purchasing the property during the exchanging of contracts. Either party can still withdraw from the commitment when contracts have not been exchanged. No legal liability is imposed on both buyer and seller including any costs claimed when contracts have not been exchanged.
The second step
Completion is the second conveyancing step after the buyer and seller have exchanged contracts. Completion is the stage wherein the solicitor of the buyer transfers the purchase money to the bank account of the seller’s solicitor.
The conveyancing transaction is completed as soon as the money is reflected in the bank account of the seller’s solicitor. The completion stage also gives the right to the buyer to collect the keys to the property from the seller.
A breach of contract occurs when the agreed date between parties is not met. The conveyancing law requires compensation from the defaulting party for any financial loss incurred during the transaction. A penalty charge is an add-on payment that has to be met by the defaulting party other than compensation.
- Deposit payment
The buyer is required to pay an initial deposit amount to the seller during the exchange of contracts. The seller is given the right to ask for a 10% deposit payment from the purchase price. Yet, paying a deposit is not often feasible especially when the finances of the buyer are dependent on sales proceeds of an outside transaction as payment for the entire purchase price. However, it is considered a standard practice for a buyer to deposit at least 10% of the purchase price. A buyer that pays less than a 10% deposit is required to immediately pay the balance when he/she fails to complete the payment on the agreed date.
- Seller statements
The seller is required during the conveyancing process to provide a statement/s of the property. The seller’s statement can only be reliable if it is contained in a form known as the Law Society property information. This form is either provided by the buyer’s lawyer or contained in a form of correspondence between the seller and buyer’s lawyers.
- Joint ownership
A property bought by two people makes them either tenants in common or joint tenants of the said property. Equal shares of both parties with the property make it a joint tenancy property. Tenants in common, on the other hand, mean that distinct proportions are held by the share of each party. It is recommended that joint owners create a separate trust deed as a record of their financial agreement.