Property & Conveyancing
Buying and Selling Property
A conveyancing transaction is probably one of the most common reasons a person engages a solicitor. While conveyancing may be considered ‘routine’ however, a property transaction can be fraught with complexities, jargon and a fair share of stress. Retaining an experienced solicitor to help navigate the sale or purchase of property is money well spent. We provide a quality and seamless service for all property transactions whether you are a first home buyer, a seasoned investor or selling your family home.
Conveyancing in Queensland – Residential Property
Conveyancing is the process of transferring the legal title of real property from one person or entity to another. It involves an intricate understanding of property law, contract law, the land title practice manual, and various processes and regulations.
In Queensland, the conveyancing process typically begins with the preparation or review of the contract for sale. We always recommend that our clients provide us with a copy of the contract prior to signing. We provide complimentary contract reviews that ensures your rights are protected prior to signing the contract.
The contract is normally prepared by the seller’s agent and contains specific details and information about the property. It outlines the terms and conditions of the transaction, including the purchase price, deposit, whether building and pest or finance conditions are applicable, a settlement date, and any special conditions requested by either party.
All standard contracts contain a cooling-off period of five business days, which applies after contracts are signed to allow the buyer to pull out of the contract without reason. In such cases, however, the buyer will have to pay 0.25% of the purchase price. The cooling-off period is sometimes used if a buyer signs a contract without first seeking legal advice. In that case, the five-day period allows for an urgent appointment to be made with a solicitor to have the contract reviewed. The cooling-off period might also be used to confirm that finance can be obtained for the purchase or to have a building and pest inspection carried out, although these items are often included as conditions in the contract itself.
Cooling-off rights do not always apply, for example, when a property is bought at auction and the sale is unconditional. In such cases, it is critical that proposed buyers have the contract reviewed, finance approval in place, and due diligence conducted before attending the auction and bidding on the property.
Once a contract goes unconditional, statutory searches are carried out by the buyer’s solicitor to obtain a current position of the property with respect to rates, water usage, land tax and body corporate levies (where applicable). Adjustments are then undertaken to ensure the buyer and seller only pay a pro-rata amount for the time period in which they are in occupation of the property.
The settlement process is the final stage of conveyancing, where the legal transfer of property ownership is completed. It involves the exchange of legal documents, payment of the purchase price, lodgement and payment of stamp duty and registration of the transfer of ownership.
Settlements traditionally involved meeting in-person however most property transactions in Queensland are now completed online. Electronic conveyancing was mandated in Queensland in February 2022 and provides an online platform which enables solicitors, and financial institutions to complete a transaction remotely, which streamlines the process and enables the online lodgement of documents.
Joint Tenants or Tenants in Common – What’s the Difference?
The way that legal interests are held in property between co-owners is an important consideration when buying property. If you hold property as joint tenants, the interests are held as a whole and cannot be separately apportioned. Joint tenants must deal with the property collectively and joint tenancy is subject to the rules of survivorship. If a co-owner dies, their share passes to the remaining owner/s.
Property held as tenants in common can specify the individual shares held by each owner which need not be equal and may be transferred, sold, or left to a beneficiary in a Will.
Joint tenancy is common between spouses and domestic partners, while tenants in common may be more appropriate when the co-owners are business partners or investors and/or the contributions to the property are disproportionate. Note, however, that all cases are unique, and it is important to check with your legal advisor about any specific implications from either form of property ownership.
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