Buying a house is one of the biggest purchases in your lifetime, so do you understand the fine print? If not, then you need the help of a property solicitor.
Regardless of if it’s your first house or your tenth house, it’s important to understand and be engaged in the process – one tiny sentence in your contract of sale can dramatically alter the result that you’re anticipating. After all, terms that you interpret as being “fair” can actually be quite detrimental to you in the long term, and a property solicitor is crucial in ensuring that nothing gets missed or overlooked.
What Does A Property Solicitor Do?
When it comes to buying a house, the services of a property solicitor are invaluable. Their role is to assist you with the settlement, contract of sale and title transfer of a property, ensuring that you meet all of your legal obligations, understand the terms that you’re signing up for, and to ultimately protect your interests during the duration of the transaction.
One of the major benefits of utilizing a property solicitor is that they can significantly help you to navigate the wording involved in a contract of sale, so it’s important that they read all documentation before you sign it. Your property solicitor will be able to point out any unusual or disadvantageous terms in the contract, and if applicable – amend them accordingly. When it comes to purchasing property, their role is to fundamentally ensure that you know what you’re getting yourself into.
Four Benefits Of Using A Property Solicitor
They Speak Legal Lingo – Buying and selling property in Australia is complex, with the applicable laws differentiating between each state. At the end of the day, you’re ultimately hiring a professional to translate legal formalities that you may not quite understand.
Extensive Property Searches – A house may look good on the surface, but without property searches you may be taking on hidden surprises such as flooding, outstanding taxes or council rates, or unapproved structures or building amendments.
Financial Know How – When purchasing a new property, most buyers will require a mortgage of some form. When dealing with a financial institute and a real estate agent, the contract of sale can be loaded with complex terms and conditions that need to be carefully checked.
Amendments In Your Favour – Once your searches are finalised, a property solicitor can help you to negotiate or amend a contract of sale before settlement to ensure that it works in your favour, as minor surprises can also be used to barter on price.
Where To Find A Property Solicitor In Brisbane
George and the team at Madd Loans love referring their clients to other Brisbane based businesses, who they can see have a similar ethos and customer service ethic as Madd.
If you are looking for a Brisbane based property solicitor, Madd happily recommends the services of John Drakos and the team at JDS Lawyers. Specialising in estates, commercial litigation, commercial and property law, John has been an invaluable asset to many Madd customers over the years and certainly knows his stuff.
“You might be told that you’re signing a fair contract, but that may not necessarily be the case. There are many things that a buyer should be made aware of, such as special conditions or real estate agents making custom amendments to the contract. We ensure that the contract makes sense, and is corrected if required,” says John.
“Buyers are often given a pile of disclosure documents which are loaded with information that nobody ever seems to read or understand. The role of a property solicitor is to ensure that buyers understand exactly what they’re getting themselves into before they sign.”
Before committing to the services of a property solicitor, it’s important that you have a pre-approval loan under your belt. Otherwise, if thinking about your financial future strikes a chord with you, then it might be time to speak to a professional. Whether you’re chasing mortgage solutions or a financial fairy godmother, the team at Madd work together as a collective to turn your goals into reality.
