Conveyancer

Flexible team member - Conveyancer

In Australia, a conveyancer is a licensed professional who specialises in the legal side of buying and selling property. Conveyancers review property sale contracts and manage the settlement process, ensuring the legal transfer of the property title into your name.

Conveyancers are typically on licensed to operate in one specific state - they will be aware of all the unique legal aspects of purchasing property in the state you are looking.

It is absolutely crucial that before you start making offers on a property that you talk to a conveyancer to understand the legal nuances of the state you are investing in. Some of these could include:

• what is the cooling-off period (if any)?

• when can I terminate the contract based on a building and pest condition or finance condition?

• when do I become responsible for the property and should get insurance?

• when do I typically need to pay the deposit and in what circumstances am I entitled to receive my deposit back?

• general questions such as, can you give me an overview of the purchasing process in this state and common pitfalls that buyers may not be aware of?

If you are using a buyer's agent, I would double-check that they have a conveyancer lined up for you before making any offers on properties and ask them for a formal introduction via email as soon as practicable so you have a direct line of communication. Remember that the conveyancer works for you, not the buyer's agent.

In terms of finding your own conveyancer, I would just rely on Google or check-out some property forums. Just make sure you look them up on LinkedIn to see if they are experienced and, most importantly, clarify with them what their timing is in terms of reviewing contracts of sale. Or in other words, in the event a deal is moving quickly and you don't have much time to make an offer that they are able to review the contract of sale within a few hours if its urgent. If you are using a buyer's agent, please also clarify the same thing - i.e. that they won't send you a contract of sale to sign that hasn't been reviewed by a conveyancer, noting that review by the conveyancer should be sent to you also.

I am placing emphasis on this because conveyancers will be able to review the conditions on the contract to flag any issues that arise from the disclosures appended to the contract (i.e. zoning, covenants, issues with the title search) or let you know if there is anything non-standard that the sellers may have tried to sneakily slip into the contract. You or your buyer's agent are not qualified to review contracts of sale - this is a legal document, leave it to the professionals.

I know the ‘legal’ aspects of a purchase can be quite daunting for people so in case it is helpful, here is a draft email that you can send to a conveyancer to get the ball rolling:

DRAFT EMAIL

Subject: New Engagement / Property Purchase - [insert your name]

Hi [insert name], 

I’m an investor hoping to purchase a property in [insert relevant city / suburb] in the next few weeks - I am currently actively searching.

I am interested in engaging you as my conveyancer for this transaction - grateful if you could let me know the price for your services and whether you will be able to assist with me this process.

I have never purchased a property in [insert state] so I have few questions about the purchasing process - would you prefer if I sent these questions via email or I could give you a quick call instead?

My mobile number is [insert].

Looking forward to working together.

Kind regards, 

[insert name]