When a mortgagee exercises the power of sale over a mortgaged property in New South Wales, they are bound by specific legal obligations to ensure fairness and transparency. Section 111A of the Conveyancing Act 1919 (NSW) codifies these duties, emphasising the mortgagee's responsibility to secure an ...

Property disputes between neighbouring landowners can often lead to complex legal battles. Such is the case with Hill v Wirepa, a dispute over access to rural land in Hastings Shire, west of Port Macquarie, New South Wales. This case revolves around allegations of trespass and misuse of property rig...

Typically, when selling property, the deposit which is paid at the time of exchange is held by the deposit holder, usually the selling agent, until settlement has taken place, at which time it is released to the vendor.  In some instances, it may be released to the vendor prior to settlement if the ...

Paolucci v Makedyn Pty Ltd [2021] NSWCA 215

In September 2021, the Supreme Court of New South Wales’ Court of Appeal dealt with a matter concerning a dispute between a property owner (Paolucci) and the developer (Makedyn Pty Ltd) regarding Paolucci’s large parcel in western Sydney which had been re...

A property in North Parramatta was owned by Fabian and his wife, Mina, as tenants-in-common in equal shares.

The plaintiff, Fabian’s brother, Sergio, sought orders for:

• Possession of the land;
• Judgment against the defendant (Mina) for approximately $145,000 (including interest);
• Mina to sign a
...

As some people may be aware the government passed new legislation, the Conveyancing Amendment (Sunset Clauses) Act 2015 (NSW), at the end of last year with the sole purpose of amending the Conveyancing Act 1919 (NSW) to prevent a developer from unreasonably rescinding an off-the-plan contract for a ...

With the wild weather in New South Wales of late, the question has come up – what happens if the property you are buying is damaged between exchanging contracts and settlement? What are your rights? Does the vendor have to fix the damage? Do you have to settle?

Part 4 Division 7 of the Conveyancing...

In recent weeks there has been a story in the news about the evacuation of a unit block in Harris Park after a sink hole opened up alongside the building. The recent heavy rain combined with the flooded excavation site next door caused the wall of the excavated site to wash away to such an extent th...

As part of the normal conveyancing process, the purchaser will make enquiries with the vendor about the Title of the property.  These are referred to as “requisitions on title”.

The purpose of requisitions is to ask the vendor information which may not have been disclosed in the contract or discove...

Like many commercial transactions, the transfer of ownership of property is underpinned by the common law doctrine of “buyer beware” (aka “caveat emptor”).  That is, the purchaser needs to make sure they make their own enquiries and carry out their own pre-purchase inspections to be satisfied as to ...