Your Settlement Agent in Secret Harbour

Getting a property to settlement without the stress

Secret Harbour is part of Perth’s southern suburbs, roughly 50 km south of the Perth CBD. The settlement side of a sale is unglamorous, deadline-driven work, and it is what Jacaranda Settlements does every day.

Our office is roughly 41 km to the north, so we run these settlements by phone and email rather than in person. Give us a call and we will explain how it works.

Buying or selling a house is a lengthy and complex process and obtaining professional advice will help ensure your smooth and successful property settlement in Secret Harbour. The main job of a settlement agent is to transfer the ownership of the property and depending on whether you are buying or selling has various different components.

What we see settling property in Secret Harbour

Newer areas like Secret Harbour generate a different kind of settlement work, because the land is often being sold before the title exists rather than after.

In this part of Perth we are most often dealing with:

• developer covenants and design guidelines noted against the land
• keeping finance approval valid while titles are pending
• vacant land purchases where the title has not yet issued
• house-and-land contracts and the timing between land settlement and build start
• new-lot titles created from a deposited or survey-strata plan

The practical consequence for a Secret Harbour buyer is that the important dates are often not the ones you would expect. Finance approval has to stay valid while titles are pending, and the timing of duty, first-home concessions and any grant depends on what is actually being bought and when it settles.

So the work here is as much about tracking and communication as it is about paperwork. Titles issue when they issue, and the value of having someone on it is that you find out early rather than on the day.

Neighbouring areas we work in include settlement agent Golden Bay, Karnup, Singleton, Port Kennedy and Keralup.

What we take care of for you

Between the accepted offer and settlement day sits several weeks of unglamorous, deadline-driven work. The list is long: title searches, enquiries to the council and Water Corporation, strata information where relevant, verification of identity, preparation of the transfer, duty assessment, settlement figures, settlement itself, then notification to the authorities and registration at Landgate.

One practical tip for buyers: do not book removalists for first thing on settlement day. Settlement happens when the funds and documents are exchanged, and until it does, the keys are not yours to collect.

Settlement in WA is now conducted electronically, which means no one drives across town with bank cheques. We complete it online and let you know the moment it is through.

The settlements we handle

The services we are asked for most, in and beyond the standard transfer:

• Private sales – Where there is no agent involved, we handle the transaction between the parties.
• Lodgement at Landgate – Preparation and lodgement of documents for registration.
• Vacant land settlements – Land purchases and sales, including contracts that are conditional on the title issuing.
• Home settlements – Transfers of established houses, duplexes, townhouses and villa strata, for buyers and for sellers.
• Buying – Everything from the accepted offer through to registration of your name on the title.
• Transfer duty through State Revenue Online – We arrange stamping, so duty does not need to be paid before settlement.

Not sure which of these applies to your situation? Call and describe the property, and we will tell you what is involved.

Phone, email and electronic signing

Being roughly 41 km from our Myaree office does not put a Secret Harbour settlement out of reach. We handle these transactions by phone, email and electronic signing: the documents come to you, we explain them on a call, and you sign without needing to drive anywhere.

Because settlements in Western Australia are completed electronically, there is nothing for you to attend on the day either. We will confirm it with you as soon as it is done. Call Shelley on 0428 336 878 to discuss the timing and what your property needs.

We offer cost-effective and stress-free settlement

We are licensed in all aspects of conveyancing in Western Australia. Other services that we offer:

Questions we are asked most

I am buying land in Secret Harbour and the title has not issued yet. What happens?

Settlement is triggered by the title issuing rather than by a fixed date, so the timing is driven by when the plan is registered. We monitor it, keep your lender in the loop and give you as much notice as we can once a date firms up.

How long does settlement take?

The settlement date is set in the contract rather than by us, and in Western Australia it is commonly somewhere between 30 and 60 days from an accepted offer. We work backwards from that date, and we will tell you early if anything threatens it.

When do I need to appoint a settlement agent?

As soon as your offer is accepted, and ideally before. The earlier we have the contract, the sooner we can order searches and raise enquiries, which is where the time goes.

Don’t have time to get to an office?

Our services include Secret Harbour home appointments, including weekends to sign confusing documentation and to conduct a verification of identity check for sellers to avoid going to Australia post. However, we are also able to work remotely to do all this over the phone or in person.