Many of our clients have told us that in past property transactions they have been overwhelmed by the entire process…despite hiring a conveyancer or lawyer to assist them.
Whilst there is always going to be stress surrounding a large property transaction, it’s pretty clear that the current processes are just not good enough.
STOP DUMPING DOCUMENTATION ON CLIENTS!
The main issue that our clients have had (and that we have aimed to fix) is not dumping huge amounts of paperwork on them without any explanation.
Below is the Client Authorisation, this is one of the first documents that we will ask you to sign. By signing the Client Authorisation you are authorising Your Property Australia to act on your behalf in a conveyancing transaction.
Let’s take a look at the individual sections of the document. Remember that in most cases the Client Authorisation will already be pre-filled by your lawyer. This helps you understand the function of each section.
CLIENT DETAILS: This includes the details of the parties involved in the transaction. If there is more than one party (individual, company etc.) involved in the matter then each individual party will sign.
TRANSACTION DETAILS: This section gives Your Property Australia the authority to act.
A Specific Authority is the most common and allows your lawyer to act for you in a specific matter (ie. the sale of a property).
A Standing Authority is for a period of time that that parties signing would like their lawyer to act for. The expiration date for that Standing Authority will be listed on the Client Authorisation.
A Batch Authority allows your lawyer to act on your behalf for multiple transactions which are listed on or attached to the Client Authorisation.
This section also lists the type of transaction and the details of the property. If you were selling your home you would see that the address in the client details and the transaction details would be the same. If it was a rental property being purchased then those details would be different.
CLIENT AUTHORISATION AND SIGNING:
By signing this section you authorise the legal representative to act on your behalf.
Importantly it allows them to
- sign documents on your behalf,
- submit documents for lodgement with Land Registry,
- authorise the financial settlement and
- anything else necessary to complete the transaction.
REPRESENTATIVE SIGNING AND DETAILS:
This is the section where Your Property Australia will sign to acknowledge that they accept the authorisation and that they have taken reasonable steps to have it signed.
TERMS OF THIS CLIENT AUTHORISATION
There are additional terms which are attached to the Client Authorisation. They provide an explanation about your rights and the definitions associated with the terms used in the document.
Click here to read more about PEXA, the online settlement platform that will be used in your property transaction.
