Settlement completes the sale. The balance of the price, adjusted for rates and other outgoings, is paid, any existing mortgage is discharged, the buyer's mortgage is registered, and the transfer is lodged so the buyer becomes the registered proprietor.
From the relevant date, instruments available in an Electronic Lodgement Network must be lodged electronically, and paper lodgement is accepted only in limited cases. Settlement is conducted in a workspace on a signed client authorisation, and payment directions are entered once mortgagee requirements are met and the adjustments are agreed. On settlement the network transfers duty to the State Revenue Office and lodges the title, and any GST withholding under Subdivision 14-E or foreign resident capital gains withholding is paid at this point. Titles issued after the relevant date are electronic, and a paper certificate of title must be converted to an electronic title before a dealing requiring its production can be completed. Supporting evidence for electronic transactions, including verification of identity and client authorisation, must be kept for the required retention period.
After settlement a notice of acquisition goes to the council, water authority and any owners corporation, and a notice of disposition goes to the water authority on the vendor side. Where a firm is not set up to transact in another state, a settlement agent is commonly briefed.
CMK Legal's property and conveyancing team can act on matters like this.
Electronic settlement depends on the workspace being correctly set up and funded, so the deposit location and mortgagee requirements must line up in advance. A paper title still held by a vendor needs converting before the dealing can complete.
Law referenced: Transfer of Land Act 1958; electronic conveyancing participation rules; Taxation Administration Act 1953 sch 1 subdiv 14-E; Land Tax Act 2005 s 103; Water Act 1989 s 159.