Ruth is one of the professional conveyancer in the industry. Her knowledge, experiences and enthusiasm are even better than many solicitor.

She helped a lot of my vendors and purchasers and led the settlement smoothly. I will keep recommend Ruth to all my clients. If you are ready to buy or sell your properties, please make sure you speak to Ruth !

You negotiate with the seller and agree on a sale price, usually with the assistance of an agent.

The contract can be conditional. If the seller agrees, you can make the sale subject to obtaining a loan, a satisfactory building inspection report, or other conditions.

For residential properties and rural properties less than 20 hectares, you have three business days to think about your decision and change your mind. This is called ‘cooling off’ and is not possible in some circumstances. For more information, view the cooling off on a property sale information below.

Making an offer on a property
If an agent is managing the sale:

• you must make your offer to buy a property through the agent
• you will be asked to make an offer by signing the contract of sale
• the agent will take your offer to the seller, unless the seller has instructed them not to.

If an agent is not managing the sale, you make your offer to the seller. The seller will negotiate with you about the price and terms of the contract.

We recommend you write into the contract a date by which your offer will lapse. This way you will know whether the seller has accepted your offer, by a time that suits you.

Conditional offers

In a private sale, you can negotiate with the seller to make the sale subject to certain conditions such as:

• obtaining a loan (‘subject to finance’)
• the sale of an existing property
• the successful completion of a building or pest inspection

If the contract is subject to obtaining a loan, you should always nominate a lender in the relevant section of the contract.

When you buy at auction, you cannot put conditions on the contract.

How much to offer?
The decision on how much to offer is difficult. You need to consider whether to:

• make your best offer up front
• offer a lower price and be prepared to negotiate upwards. A seller with several offers may decide to accept another offer without inviting you to offer more.

A seller may reject an offer for reasons other than the price – including conditions placed on the offer. For example, a seller might reject an offer conditional on a longer settlement period, if another potential buyer offers a similar sale amount with the seller’s requested settlement period.

You can engage a buyer’s advocate or other professional to bargain for you. You can expect to be charged a fee for this service. For more information about engaging a buyer’s advocate, view the Seek expert advice on property page.

Negotiating a property sale
If the seller does not accept your offer, the agent may ask if you are prepared to make another one.

Through negotiation, the agent will attempt to achieve a mutually acceptable price and terms. This negotiation may involve:

• verbal offers (but only written offers can lead to a binding contract of sale)
• more than one person making an offer. The agent will negotiate between parties to obtain the highest possible price for the seller
• agreeing on the settlement period, usually between 30 and 90 days
• agreeing on the items that will be included or excluded from the sale; for example, a dishwasher.

When making an offer in writing, make sure the contract of sale lists:

• the price you are offering
• a settlement period you are comfortable with
• any conditions you require about obtaining a loan or a building inspection
• items that are part of the purchase. (There is a space for this in the contract of sale.) If not listed, it may be difficult to claim ownership of those items at settlement.

Paying the deposit on a private sale
When you make a written offer you will be asked to pay a deposit of either:

• the full amount
• a nominal amount, with the remainder to be paid by a date set out in the contract of sale.

Your deposit will be returned to you if the seller does not accept your offer.

If an agent is managing the sale on behalf of the seller, you pay the deposit to that agent. It will be held in the agent’s trust account until settlement or it is transferred to a legal practitioner’s or conveyancer’s trust account.

If an agent is not managing the sale, you will pay the deposit either:

• directly to the seller, who must pay the deposit to their solicitor or conveyancer, or bank it in a special purpose account in an authorised deposit-taking institution in Victoria. The account must be in both the seller’s and your name
• to the seller’s legal practitioner or conveyancer, who will hold it in trust until settlement.

If you agree, the deposit can be released before settlement to the seller. For this to happen:

• the contract must be unconditional
• you must be satisfied with the proof of debts information provided by the seller.

You cannot release the deposit until 28 days after the date the contract was signed.

When is the property sold in a private sale?
The property is sold when both you and the seller have signed the contract of sale.

All parties who sign the contract must be given a copy.

The sale is finalised at settlement when all checks have been made, the title and transfer documents exchanged, and the balance of the purchase price paid.

Contract of sale – private sale of property
The contract of sale contains:

• details of the property
• names of the seller and buyer
• details of the seller’s estate agent, if they have one
• seller’s and buyer’s legal practitioner or conveyancer, if they have one
• the price
• the deposit paid
• the balance of the purchase price owing at settlement
• any special conditions (such as ‘subject to finance’).

An agent can complete the details on a contract in preparation for you and the seller to sign.

Property sales and GST
The goods and services tax (GST) applies to the purchase of new homes. It does not apply to established homes unless the seller is registered for GST. You can check a seller’s GST status on the Australian Business Register.

Do not sign the contract without checking whether GST applies. If uncertain, seek professional advice.

The contract must clearly specify whether the price is inclusive or exclusive of GST and, if included, how the amount will be calculated.

Cooling off on a property sale
A cooling-off period of three clear business days applies to private sales of residential and small rural property sales regardless of price.

The cooling-off period gives you time to consider the offer. It begins from the date you sign the contract, not from the date the seller signs it.

To cool off, you must give written notice to the seller or the seller’s agent. You will be entitled to a full refund of money paid, less $100 or 0.2 per cent of the purchase price, whichever is greater.

The cooling-off period does not apply when:

• the property was purchased within three clear business days before or after a public auction
• the property is used mainly for industrial or commercial purposes
• the property is more than 20 hectares and used mainly for farming
• you previously signed a contract for the same property with the same terms
• the buyer is an estate agent or corporate body.

The reference site :Consumer Affairs Victoria

If you buy property at auction, you cannot make the contract subject to conditions (for example, getting finance) and there is no cooling-off period.

Before you bid:

• research the market, search the internet, attend auctions, speak with several estate agents and monitor auction results
• get independent, expert help on legal, finance and building matters.

An auction is a public sale, usually conducted by an estate agent acting as an auctioneer, and governed by strict rules.

The auction is advertised for a specific place, time and date. Prospective buyers bid and the property is offered to the highest bidder.

There is an advertising campaign with open house inspections for several weeks leading up to the auction date. In the lead-up, the agent may contact you to gauge your level of interest.
On the day of the auction, the property may be open for inspection, generally half an hour before the bidding starts. This gives you a chance to have a final look at the property, the relevant paperwork and the auction rules.

By bidding, you accept the terms of the contract on display before the auction, so you will not be able to negotiate matters such as a longer settlement period.

Pre-auction offers

If the seller has agreed to consider pre-auction offers, you can make an offer through an agent prior to an auction.

Your offer will usually be in the form of a signed contract and the process of negotiation is the same as buying by private sale.

If your offer is accepted less than three clear business days before the auction date, you do not get a cooling-off period (time to change your mind).

Auction conduct

There are strict rules about how an auctioneer runs an auction, and how people attending must behave.

The auction rules and the auction information statement outlining Victoria’s auction laws, must be on display:

• for at least 30 minutes before an auction starts
• at the place where the auction will take place.

The auction rules, information statement and announcements the auctioneer must make are set out in the Schedules to the Sale of Land Regulations 2005. Substantial penalties may apply to anyone who breaks the auction rules.

Before bidding starts, the auctioneer must tell bidders:

• the auction will be conducted according to the auction rules
• the rules prohibit bids being accepted after the fall of the hammer
• bidders will be identified on request
• it is against the law to make a false bid, hinder another bidder, or in any way intentionally disrupt an auction
• substantial fines apply to anyone who engages in illegal auction conduct
• whether or not there will be vendor or co-owner bids
• any additional conditions that apply to the auction.

It is illegal to disrupt an auction, but you can still ask questions. During the auction, anyone can ask the auctioneer a reasonable number of questions about the property, the contract, or the auction.If you are bidding, you can also ask the auctioneer to indicate who else made a bid.

Bidding at auction

Auctioneers have different ways of conducting an auction. Generally, they aim to encourage as many bidders as possible to compete, to achieve the highest possible price.

The auctioneer can set the amount by which bids increase. These are called rises or bidding advances.

You can bid at the amount stated by the auctioneer or offer an alternative amount. The auctioneer may choose to accept or reject that bid.

Be clear about your bidding limit. To bid successfully:

• bid confidently
• ask relevant questions of the auctioneer, including who made a bid.

Generally, the amount the bidding advances will decrease as the auction draws to a close.

The auctioneer may:

• refuse a bid at any time during the auction, including when the auction hammer is falling
• if there is a dispute over a bid, resume the auction at the last undisputed bid or start the bidding again
• refer a bid to the seller at any time before the conclusion of the auction
• withdraw the property from sale at any time.

Vendor and co-owner bids

Vendor and co-owner bids are allowed at auctions in two circumstances:

Vendor bid:

The auctioneer bids on behalf of the seller because the seller is not satisfied with the amount of the last bid. This type of bid:

• can only be made by the auctioneer
• must be announced by the auctioneer when the bid is made.

Co-owner bid:

When a property is jointly owned, one or more of the owners who genuinely wants to buy the property may bid from the crowd.

Co-owners may bid themselves or through a representative in the crowd but not through the auctioneer.

The arrangements for making vendor and co-owner bids must be:

• set out in the rules displayed before the auction starts
• announced by the auctioneer at the start of the auction.

Dummy bidding

A dummy bid is either a:

• false bid made up by the auctioneer
• bid accepted by the auctioneer from a non-genuine bidder from the crowd.

All dummy bids are illegal.

Auction language: ‘on the market’ and ‘passed in’

On the market

The auctioneer may halt proceedings and say they are ‘going inside’ or ‘seeking advice or instructions’ from the seller. They use this time to discuss the progress of the bidding with the seller.

If the bidding has reached or is close to the reserve price (the lowest price at which the seller will sell), the auctioneer will ask the seller if they will sell at the highest bid.

If so, the auctioneer will say the property is ‘on the market’. Bidding will continue and the property will be offered to the highset bidder, at the seller’s discretion.

Passed in

If bids do not meet the seller’s reserve, the auctioneer will seek more bids. If bids still do not meet the reserve, the property may be ‘passed in’ or ‘withdrawn from auction’.

The highest bidder then gets first right to negotiate with the seller.

When is the property sold at auction?

There is no legally binding contract until both buyer and seller have signed the contract of sale.

If you are the successful bidder at the auction, you:

• will be asked to immediately sign the contract
• cannot make the contract subject to conditions and there is no cooling-off period
• sign the contract before the seller, to make your formal offer to buy the property. The seller accepts your offer by also signing the contract
• have to pay the deposit specified in the contract (unless otherwise agreed).

When you and the seller have signed the contract and the deposit has been paid, the sale is binding and enforceable.

The sale is finalised at settlement when:

• all checks have been made
• the title and transfer documents have been exchanged
• the balance of the purchase price has been paid.

Paying a deposit at auction

When you sign the contract of sale after an auction, you will need to provide a deposit. There are no laws about the amount of deposit but it is usually 10 per cent of the purchase price.

If you are using a bank cheque to pay the deposit, your cheque will be for 10 per cent of the amount you are prepared to pay for the property. This means that if you buy the property for less than you expected, your deposit will be more than 10 per cent.

Before the auction you can ask the seller if they will accept a part deposit with the remaining amount due on a specified date. This would require a change to the contract. The seller may or may not agree to this arrangement.

The deposit is held by the seller’s estate agent, conveyancer or legal practitioner in a trust account until the settlement date. The deposit can be released to the seller before settlement, if you agree.

A seller who does not have an estate agent and takes your deposit directly must either:

• pay it to their legal practitioner or conveyancer
• bank it in a special purpose account in an authorised deposit-taking institution in Victoria. The account must be in both the seller’s and your name.

The reference site : Consumer Affairs Victoria

Property finance for sellers

If you plan to buy a new property before selling your home, you may need to arrange a loan to cover the cost.

You may face a financial gap if you plan to use proceeds from the sale of your home to pay for the new property, and settlement for your new property is before settlement of your home. A bridging loan can cover this financial gap.

If possible, negotiate the settlement dates to ensure you have the proceeds from your home to pay for your new property, rather than get bridging finance. Bridging finance is often much more expensive than an ordinary home loan.

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission’s consumer website, MoneySmart, has tools to help you work out your budget and investigate home loans and finance.

Presenting your property for sale

It is natural to want to present your property in the best possible light. First impressions count, so it is a good idea to mow the lawn, place a few plants in the garden, keep the house clean and tidy, and add a lick of paint.

While it is acceptable to present a property in a good light, it is not acceptable to cover up, misrepresent or in any way mislead a buyer about its true condition.

Open for inspection/open houses

If there is anything you do not want the public to see, hide it from view. Lock your valuables away.

Your agent may ask anyone entering the property for proof of identity and contact details. This is a security measure. It also can provide the agent with a database of potential buyers.

It is not a legal requirement for people to leave their details with an agent at an open house, but you can make this a condition of entry to your property.

Selling an owner-built house

There are specific legal requirements for selling a property you built yourself or managed contractor to build on your behalf.

Reference Site ：Consumer Affairs Victoria

They deliver professional service with honesty and great attitude.