Step 1: the contract comes before the handshake
In NSW the seller's conveyancer or solicitor prepares the contract for sale before the property is marketed. The agent cannot legally advertise a residential property without one. The contract must include prescribed documents: a current title search, the deposited or strata plan, a section 10.7 planning certificate from the council, a sewerage service diagram and, for a strata property, the by-laws and strata documents. There is no vendor statement in NSW as there is in Victoria; the contract itself carries the disclosure.
Because the contract exists before you make an offer, you can and should have it reviewed before you sign anything. An agreed price is not a sale until contracts are exchanged.
Step 2: get the contract reviewed
A review tells you what you are actually buying: the boundaries on the plan, any easements or covenants on the title, what the planning certificate says about zoning, heritage and flooding, which inclusions stay, the settlement date, and any special conditions the seller's lawyer has added. Special conditions are where buyers get caught; a clause that shifts the cost of outgoings, limits your right to requisitions or lets the vendor delay settlement without penalty is common and negotiable before exchange, not after.
Settle Easy reviews a standard residential contract within 48 hours (24 hours for an urgent review). If you go on to use us for the conveyancing, one standard review is included under the current offer.
Step 3: exchange and the cooling-off period
Exchange is the moment the sale becomes binding. You sign one copy, the seller signs the other, and the copies are swapped, today usually electronically. You pay the deposit on exchange, normally 10 per cent of the price. If you exchange during a cooling-off period, a smaller holding deposit of 0.25 per cent is often paid first with the balance due when the cooling-off period ends.
For a private treaty sale in NSW you then have a cooling-off period of five business days. If you withdraw during it you forfeit 0.25 per cent of the purchase price and the rest of your deposit is returned. There is no cooling-off period when you buy at auction, or when you exchange on the day of an auction after the property is passed in to you. The period can also be waived with a section 66W certificate from your solicitor or conveyancer, which sellers often ask for in a competitive market so that exchange is unconditional. Do not sign a 66W certificate until finance and inspections are done.
Step 4: searches and enquiries
After exchange we order the searches that confirm the property is what the contract says it is: title and dealings, council rates, water rates, land tax clearance, and for a strata property a strata report on the building's finances, levies, defects and disputes. We also raise requisitions on title with the seller's representative, the formal questions about the property that the contract allows.
Step 5: finance, insurance and the deposit
Your lender needs the signed contract to issue formal approval and prepare mortgage documents. We work with your lender or broker so the loan is ready to settle on the contract date. Take out building insurance from exchange; although in NSW the risk generally passes to the buyer at settlement, lenders require cover to be in place earlier.
Step 6: stamp duty, adjustments and the pre-settlement inspection
Transfer duty (stamp duty) in NSW is payable within three months of exchange or at settlement, whichever is first, and in practice it is paid through settlement. First home buyers purchasing a home up to $800,000 pay no duty under the First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme, with a concessional rate between $800,000 and $1,000,000. We prepare the duty assessment and the adjustments: council rates, water rates and strata levies are split between buyer and seller so that each pays only for the days they own the property. You are entitled to a final inspection in the days before settlement to confirm the property is in the condition it was when you exchanged and that the inclusions are there.
Step 7: settlement
Settlement in NSW is usually 42 days after exchange, six weeks, although the contract can set any period the parties agree. It happens electronically on the PEXA platform: your lender provides the loan funds, we direct the balance from your account, the seller's mortgage is discharged, duty is paid, the transfer is lodged with NSW Land Registry Services and the title moves into your name. Once the settlement is complete the agent releases the keys. There is no meeting to attend.
After settlement
We notify the council, the water authority and, if applicable, the owners corporation of the change of ownership. If you claimed a first home concession, Revenue NSW requires you to move in within 12 months and live there for a continuous period of 12 months. Keep the settlement statement with your tax records; the costs of acquisition matter if you ever sell an investment property.
What it costs
Settle Easy's professional fee for a standard residential purchase in NSW is a fixed $1,750 plus GST, agreed before we start. Government and search costs are passed on at cost, typically $600 to $800 for a purchase. Transfer duty and your lender's fees are separate. See conveyancing fees in NSW for the full breakdown, or get a fixed-fee quote in a few minutes.
Buying off the plan? Read what to check before you sign.