Consider this if…
- You have found a property and been handed a contract to sign
- You have already signed and need someone to take it through to settlement
- You are buying your first home and want to know what you are entitled to
- You are buying with a partner, a family member, or through a trust or company
- Your settlement is close and something has gone wrong
- You are buying an apartment and want the owners corporation position checked
How it works
Before you sign — we read the contract
Contract of sale and section 32, in full, with our view back to you in writing. This is the point at which advice can still change the outcome.
1–2 business days
You sign, and we take over the conditions
Finance, building and pest, sale of your existing property — each has a date, and missing one can cost you the contract or your deposit. We diarise them and chase them.
Typically the first 14–21 days
Searches and enquiries
Title, council, water, land tax, owners corporation where relevant, and anything the section 32 raised that needs following up.
2–4 weeks before settlement
Duty and figures
We calculate the land transfer duty payable on your purchase, apply any exemption or concession you are entitled to, and give you a single figure for what has to be available on settlement day.
2–3 weeks before settlement
Settlement
Adjustments for rates and outgoings, the electronic settlement itself, and confirmation to you and the agent so you can collect the keys.
On the settlement date
Fee
Quoted in writing before we start
GST inclusive
Excludes: Government charges, search fees and settlement costs are separate and charged at cost. We itemise them so you can see what is ours and what is the government's.
Quoted in writing before we start, and it does not move unless the scope does.
Turnaround
A lawyer replies to your enquiry within one business day.
Before you sign
The most useful thing a lawyer does in a purchase happens before you have committed to anything. Once you sign, the question stops being should I buy this and becomes how do I manage what I have agreed to.
Read the contract and section 32 first. That means someone reading the title and the plan, the covenants and easements, the vendor's disclosures, the owners corporation position if there is one, and every date and special condition in the contract — and then telling you in ordinary language what it all amounts to.
After you sign
The conditions and their dates. A finance clause with a date your lender cannot meet is not a protection, it is a trap. Building and pest conditions, and conditions on the sale of your existing property, work the same way. Each has a date, and missing one can cost you the contract or the deposit. We diarise them and chase them rather than waiting to be told.
Searches and enquiries. Title, council, water, land tax, owners corporation where it applies, plus anything the section 32 flagged that needs following up. These are what confirm the property is what the documents say it is.
Duty. Land transfer duty is calculated on the dutiable value of the property, and what you actually pay depends on the price, whether you will live in it, and whether any concession or exemption applies to you. We work out the figure for your purchase and make sure you claim what you are entitled to, rather than discovering afterwards that you qualified for something.
Adjustments. Rates, water and owners corporation fees are apportioned between you and the vendor at settlement. Small amounts individually, and worth getting right.
Settlement day
Settlement in Victoria is electronic. Funds and documents are exchanged, the transfer is lodged, and the property becomes yours. We confirm it to you and to the agent so the keys can be released.
The things that delay a settlement are almost always known about in advance: finance not ready, a discharge of mortgage not lodged by the vendor's bank, a figure in dispute. If we are watching for them they get resolved. If nobody is watching, they surface on the day.
Where purchases go wrong
A restriction nobody checked. A single-dwelling covenant on a block bought for two townhouses. An easement under the extension. These do not go away, and they are visible in the documents before you sign.
Owners corporation liabilities. A special levy already struck but not yet billed. Defect litigation on foot. Cladding rectification. The certificate discloses it — if it was obtained and read.
Dates that were never achievable. A 30-day settlement with finance that takes six weeks.
The wrong name on the contract. Buying in the wrong name, or the wrong proportions, can cost duty relief you were entitled to and can be expensive to correct afterwards.
Buying with someone else
If you are buying with a partner, a family member or a friend, two decisions get made early and are hard to unwind: whose name goes on the title, and in what proportions. Joint tenants and tenants in common are not the same thing, and the difference matters for what happens if one of you dies or the relationship ends.
If you are buying through a trust or a company, the structure needs to be settled before the contract is signed, not afterwards. That is one of the places where having a solicitor rather than a conveyancer earns its keep, because it is outside what a conveyancer can advise on.
Frequently asked questions
How long does settlement take in Victoria?
It is negotiated in the contract. Thirty, sixty and ninety days are the usual options, with sixty the most common for an established home. Shorter periods suit a cash buyer; longer ones suit a buyer who has a property to sell. Off-the-plan purchases run far longer, because settlement follows registration of the plan of subdivision.
Do I have a cooling-off period?
For a private sale of residential property, generally three clear business days from signing, and ending it early costs you a penalty. It does not apply at auction, or within three clear business days before or after a publicly advertised auction, and other exceptions apply. Treat it as a safety net rather than a plan.
What is the difference between a lawyer and a conveyancer?
Both can carry out a conveyance. A licensed conveyancer cannot advise outside conveyancing — trust structures, contested duty positions, caveats, or a dispute heading towards court all have to be referred elsewhere. With a solicitor it stays in the same matter, with someone who already knows the file.
How much stamp duty will I pay?
Land transfer duty is set by the State Revenue Office and calculated on the dutiable value of the property. What you pay depends on the price, whether it will be your principal place of residence, whether you are a first home buyer, and whether any concession or exemption applies. We calculate the exact figure for your purchase and tell you what relief you are entitled to.
What happens if settlement is late?
The contract sets out what follows, usually penalty interest running from the settlement date and, if the delay continues, a notice of default. Delays are common and most are resolved between the parties. The thing that makes them expensive is not knowing your position — tell us early rather than on the day.
Can you act if I have already signed?
Yes, and the sooner the better. Depending on where you are there may still be a cooling-off right, an unsatisfied condition, or a disclosure problem in the vendor's statement. Those options are time-limited, so the earlier we see the contract the more of them are still open.
Related services
Send us the contract if you have one. If you have not signed yet, say so — that changes what we can do for you.
Start your purchase