Follow the rules for a successful sale

Whether you are a buyer or a seller, there are multiple conditions of sale that should be followed throughout the sale of a home.

Conditions of sale is the terms upon which the vendor of the property proposes to sell it, and making sure it is adhered to will make the process less stressful and time consuming, and will ensure there are no legal repercussions.

Realmark Urban Sales Representative Adam Ghizzo said some red flags indicating that one of the parties wasn’t following the conditions were lack of updates and limited communication, not receiving documents on time, reasons withheld or ghosting.

If you find yourself in a situation where one of these issues is taking place, he said to ramp up communications and make it clear that all parties were there to honour the contract in place.

“To ensure none of the parties default on their contractual obligations, reach out to settlement agents, a broker and the non-conforming party to understand the reasons why and whether notices need to be issued to prompt an extension or default,” Mr Ghizzo said.

Specifically regarding sellers, Edison McGrath Residential Sales Consultant Christopher Dee said if the seller was not going to sign the seller’s disclosure statement, it would mean that they are either hiding something or they have added something to the property that has not been granted approval by the local council.

“This can be very messy post-sale,” he said. “When the buyer has a building inspection done by a registered building company and that inspector picks up on something such as a pergola, or some sort of structural improvement of the property, and works out that improvement hasn’t been approved by the council, then the seller of the property has to go back to council and have it approved in retrospect.”

Agents have an integral part to play in the process of selling and buying a house and they are crucial to making sure conditions of sale are followed by all parties.

“Many buyers are new to the process and our position as an agent is help guide them through the process to meet deadlines,” Mr Ghizzo said.

“We should be keeping an open channel of communication with both parties, including inspectors, to facilitate a smooth transaction.

Further to this, Mr Dee said the agent should ensure all fields of the exclusive agency agreement were completed.

“Copies of the agreements need to be given back to the seller for their records,” he said. “The agency agreement and the seller’s disclosure statement are the two documents that have to be executed and copies must be provided to the seller before it can be put on the open market.”

Regarding what is expected of the buyer, Mr Dee said their finance should be pre-approved, so they are prepared to make a fair and reasonable offer, rather than opportunist offers.

“It’s not an opportunist market where you can make lower offers and expect the seller to engage in a dealing on that basis,” he said.

“You need to make fair and reasonable offers if you want to be competitive, because you will be competing against other buyers.”

Once an offer has been accepted, other tasks that need to be completed by the buyer include providing a deposit, which can be between two and five per cent.

“They’ve also got to be able to settle on the property within a reasonable period, which could be 30 or 60 days, and they have to pay for special conditions – that would be building and pest inspections,” Mr Dee said.

Mr Ghizzo said putting an offer on a property is an exciting time, but you must read through the contract and thoroughly understand what your rights and obligations are.

“At the time of signing an offer and acceptance, if you’re not sure or feel uneasy, don’t be afraid to ask the selling agent for clarity,” he said.

“Lean upon your conveyancer and agent for advice, as a good agent will be able to answer any queries or questions you may have with a simple phone call.”