BUYING GUIDE

Buying a home can be very intimidating we have created an easy to follow buyers guide
to owning your very first home or one of many.

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PRIVATE SALES

  • You make an offer through the agent managing the sale. Verbal offers are not legally binding until confirmed in a contract of sale by both parties.
  • The agent may require you to pay a deposit, which will be returned if the offer is not accepted by the vendor. The deposit is made into the agent’s trust account.
  • You can negotiate with the seller to make the sale subject to conditions such as a satisfactory building inspection, finance or sale of another property etc.
  • If the seller does not accept your offer you may start the process of negotiating to achieve a joint price. Negotiation may be verbal, but are not legally binding until confirmed in a contract of sale by both parties.
  • A contract of sale is signed when a buyer is making an offer. The agent completes the details for the buyer and seller to sign. The contract contains the property address, names of both parties, sellers’ agent, price, the deposit paid, the balance owing at settlement and any special conditions.
  • GST generally only applies to new homes, GST may be applied if the seller is registered for GST. You can check a seller’s GST status at asic.gov.au
  • The cooling off period applies to private sales this is three clear business days from the date the buyer signs the contract not from the date the seller signs. This gives the buyer time to consider the offer.To terminate the contract a buyer must give written notice to the seller/seller’s agent within the cooling off period. The buyer will be entitled to a full refund of the deposit monies, less $100 or 0.2% of the purchase price, whichever is greater.The cooling off period does not apply where the;
    • Property was purchased within three clear business days before an auction or after a public auction.
    • Property is used mainly for industrial or commercial purposes.
    • Property is more than 20 hectares and used for mainly for farming.
    • Buyer has previously signed a contract for the same property with the same terms.
    • Buyer is an estate agent or corporate body.

SALE BY AUCTION

  • Pre-auction offers are made through an agent before the auction if accepted by the seller the process is the same as for a private sale.
  • When bidding at an auction be clear about your limit, bid confidently and ask question if needed.
  • On the market; a seller is satisfied the reserve has been reached or is prepared to sell at the last bid offered, the auctioneer will announce the property on the market. This mean the property will be sold to the final bidder. If the reserve is\ not met then the property may be passed in and the highest bidder has first rights to negotiate with the seller.
  • The property is sold after the fall of the hammer, no more bids are accepted and the highest bidder is invited to sign the contract and pay the deposit. They buyer cannot make the property subject to any conditions and there is no cooling off period in an auction sale.

BUYERS CHECK LIST

  • Work out your budget this means finding out if you are eligible for a home
    loan and the amount of the loan. You will need to discuss a pre-approval with
    your advisor or bank if buying at auction, remembering the property will not
    be subject to finance.
  • Research your preferred suburbs.
  • What are you looking for in your new property? (bedrooms, bathrooms, size)
  • Have you looked at other properties within the area to see how much they are selling for?
  • Does the property require a building inspection?
  • Have you read Branon’s buying guide? and understand the difference between Private sale and Auction
  • Will you need to buy the property subject to any special conditions? (satisfactory building inspection or finance)
  • Has your legal representative looked over the section 32 and contract of sale (vendor statement) ?
  • Are you clear about your cooling off period? (refer to Branon’s buying guide)
  • Do you have your deposit organised to be paid when required? Have you completed your final inspection prior to settlement?

 

Download Checklist

BUYERS GUIDE

Branon has created a simple check list that can help get you started when buying a property. Get Check List