Buying Process and Useful Advice

Before setting out on your exciting quest to acquire a property, there are a few things that you need to organise:

• Speak with your financial institution to organise the best loan to best suit your needs and budget
• Compile a list of preferred suburbs that suit your lifestyle, keeping in mind factors such as size of the home and affordability
• Research comparable sales in those areas, using real estate websites and newspapers such as the Herald Sun and the Age Domain, to get an indication as to where the market stands.

Once the preliminary research is done, the following should take place:

• Develop a relationship with a member of the Foxtons sales team that will keep you up to date with the local market and new listings
• Attend auctions and open for inspections in the suburb of your choice to get a feel for prices in the area
• Once you have found a property that suits your needs, request a section 32 vendor’s statement, and forward a copy to your solicitor/conveyancer or your Foxtons agent.
• It is strongly recommended that you organise a building and pest inspection prior to committing; this in turn will make you aware of any defects on the property.
• If the property is being offered as a private sale, you will be able to make an offer on the property through the selling agent, taking into consideration the advice of your solicitor/conveyancer and the building and pest reports
• If the property is being offered at an auction, organise your bidding strategy ensuring that it coincides with the rules and regulations set by the REIV or consult your Foxtons agent.
• Once the contracts have been signed by both parties, you will be asked to pay a 10% deposit that will be held in a trust account until it is released through either a section 27 Early Release of Deposit statement or upon settlement.
• Your solicitor/conveyancer will be in contact with you prior to settlement, advising that a final inspection should be organised with the selling agent. This ensures that the property is in the same condition as when last inspected.
• On settlement day, your solicitor/conveyancer will advise you that the property has settled; at this point the selling agent should be contacted to organise the pickup of the keys.