Loan application fee
There is a standard upfront loan establishment fee charged by your lender. The fee covers the preparation of loan application documentation, legal fees for standard mortgage preparation and one standard valuation. Stamp duty The amount of stamp duty payable varies from state to state. Your conveyancer/legal representative will advise you of the amount payable or you can check your state’s website.
- ACT: www.revenue.act.gov.au
- NSW: www.osr.nsw.gov.au
- NT: www.revenue.nt.gov.au
- QLD: www.osr.qld.gov.au
- SA: www.revenuesa.sa.gov.au
- TAS: www.treasury.tas.gov.au
- VIC: www.sro.vic.gov.au
- WA: www.dtf.wa.gov.au
Legal
You will need to appoint a conveyancer/legal representative to ensure that the contract is in your best interest and does not contain any unsatisfactory terms. Make sure you know your legal representative’s qualifications and exactly what service they are offering.
Their role is to:
- give advice on the property contract,
- facilitate council, strata and company title searches,
- order pest and building inspections,
- arrange for the exchange of contracts,
- negotiate with the vendor’s solicitor on your behalf,
- arrange for the settlement process, and
- deal with any difficulties that arise during the settlement period.
Your legal representative should also advise you of any future developments which could affect your home by checking with the local council. It is a good idea to ‘shop around’ for someone experienced, or call the office for our recommendations.
Inspections
Building and pest inspections are a must!
Your conveyancer will enlist the services of an authorised pest and building inspector.
Your purchase contract can be subject to a satisfactory inspection or your inspection can be scheduled during your cooling off period. The inspector will provide a written report pointing out any faults in the property, whether they can be repaired and how much these repairs are likely to cost. Pest inspections are not usually covered in a building report so will need to be arranged separately. If buying at auction you will need to ensure that all inspections are completed prior to the day of the auction. In the case of a strata title property, your contract for sale will provide the name of the strata manager so that you can arrange for an inspection of the books and records of the owners’ corporation.
