CONVEYANCING SYDNEY FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Confused about Conveyancing or have a million questions going through your head
The Conveyancing Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):
Q: What is Conveyancing?
A: Put simply, conveyancing is the legal process of transferring the title of a property from one person to another.
Q: Why should I use a Conveyancer?
A: Buying or selling property is one of the biggest financial transactions or your life. Due to the financial and legal aspects of transferring property, the consequences of making a mistake can be both costly and heartbreaking.
By having a qualified solicitor take care of your property transfer, their qualifications and experience can help protect your assets.
A qualified solicitor has an in-depth understanding of the law concerning property transactions, is required by law to carry professional indemnity insurance, and can offer you their experience on other matters related to your property transaction that may arise.
Q: What is the cooling off period and how does it affect me?
A: A cooling off period is the right of a purchaser of property to cancel the agreement within 5 working days. It offers some protection to purchasers that may have rushed into a contract to purchase property and can be used to finalise financial arrangements or perform title searches. Cancelling the agreement (or rescinding, as it is known) will cost the purchaser 0.25% of the total purchase price.
The cooling off period does not always apply (at auction, for example) and can be waived providing a 66W certificate is signed by a qualified solicitor who has briefed his or her client with regard to the implications involved of waiving the cooling off period.
Q: What is a disbursement?
A: A disbursement is an expense incurred on behalf of you related to the purchase or sale, and includes the costs of obtaining a certificate from local government authorities or local councils and agency settlement fees.
Q: What happens if either party cannot settle on the due date?
A: The vendor or seller can issue a ‘Notice to Complete’ which means the vendor or seller has 14 days (including weekends and public holidays) to settle the matter. If left unsettled due to the vendor, the purchaser has the right to terminate the contract and is eligible to receive their deposit back (depending on the circumstances). The purchase may also issue a ‘Notice to Complete’ if provided for in the Contract. The purchaser may also apply to the Court to have the vendor complete the agreement and hand over possession.
If the vendor is ready to settle by the settlement date and the purchaser is not the vendor is entitled to charge the purchaser interest for the number of days settlement is delayed. The contract usually stipulates the applicable interest rate. When a ‘Notice to Complete’ is issued, the vendor may terminate the contract and keep the deposit, and can legally place the property back on the market to sell.
Q: What happens at settlement time?
A: Settlement is the finalisation of the sale or purchase process. There are usually four parties involved – the buyer and sellers’ solicitors and the banks for the vendor and purchaser.
On settlement, the purchaser’s bank will exchange cheques as per the instructions of the buyer’s solicitor and in return, receive the Certificate of Title and ‘discharge of mortgage’ (if applicable) from the seller’s bank.
Once the settlement date arrives, the keys can be handed over to the purchaser. The deposit is released by the depositholder (usually the agent) to the seller or as directed by the seller. At this stage, the buyer’s bank registers the change of title and mortgage, and notifies authorities (such as the water company) of the change.
Q: Who notifies the authorities that I have purchased a property?
A: When your transfer papers are lodged for registration after settlement, the council, water providers and the Valuer General are automatically notified of the new purchase. Other providers, however, will need to be notified.
Arrange a consultation with a Solicitor.
The Conveyancing process looks closely at what happens when a purchaser buys a property, from the pre-purchase stages, and on to the actual conveyancing process itself.
At Platinum Lawyers, we have qualified Lawyers and Solicitors looking after your property purchase at every stage of the conveyancing process.
Simple. Low Cost. Low Risk.
Q. Do I have to answer police questions?
Generally, you do not have to answer police questions however there are important exceptions to these rules.
As a matter of common sense, if you are asked questions by police about a simple matter of which you are innocent, it is probably a good idea to answer their questions. In other situations, speak to one of our Criminal Lawyers first.
Our Criminal Lawyers Sydney strongly advise that, if the police want to record an interview with you on tape or video, always ask to speak to a criminal lawyer first.
The exceptions to the general rule regarding not having to answer police questions are:
– A police officer can request a person to provide his or her name and address if those details are unknown to the police officer and if the police officer believes on reasonable grounds that the person may be able to assist in the investigation of an alleged offence because the person was at or near the place where an alleged indictable offence occurred around the time when the offence occurred.
– Where a police officer reasonably suspects that a motor vehicle was or may have been used in the commission of an indictable offence, the police officer can ask the owner, driver or passenger of the vehicle to supply details of the driver and passengers in the vehicle at the time of the offence.
Q. When do the police have the right to arrest to me?
If a police officer has reasonable grounds to suspect that you have committed or are in the process of committing a criminal act.
A police officer does not have a right to arrest you to collect further evidence or to investigate whether you committed an offence. In such circumstances the arrest may be illegal.
Q. If I am arrested how long can I be held in custody?
Generally the police must either charge you with an offence or let you go. The police have a four (4) hour investigation period in which they can hold you without charge. However, this four hour investigative period may be extended under certain circumstances.
However, if you are charged the police will make a decision whether to grant you bail. Should the police officer refuse bail, you will remain in custody till a bail application is heard by the court.
