Meet our Clare conveyancers.
From first homes and family farms to commercial leases and business contracts, Johnston Wither's experienced team is here to help with comprehensive conveyancing services in Clare.
Buying or selling a property is one of the biggest financial and emotional decisions you’ll make in your lifetime.
Enlisting the expert advice of an experienced conveyancer in Clare or regional South Australia to take care of the fine print is the key to enjoying a stress-free settlement.
If you need assistance with conveyancing in South Australia, our team of tenured conveyancers can take the hassle out of your settlements.
Our conveyancers in Clare are here to:
Advise you about the terms of your contract, including any special conditions
Provide advice on the Form 1 (Vendor's Statement)
Consider whether you need specialist advice, including goods and services tax (GST) and capital gains tax (CGT)
Communicate with the agent as needed and tell them when the settlement is completed
Liaise with your bank or financial institution to arrange discharge of existing mortgages as well as registration of new mortgages
Verify your identity
Provide advice on the options available in regards to how the property should be held
Calculate all rates and tax adjustments
Prepare settlement statements
Prepare and certify legal documents
Attend at settlement whether electronic or in person
Notify rating agencies of change of ownership
Confirm all details of the settlement with you in writing
Advise you on your stamp duty requirements, including any possible exemptions. You can use the SA stamp duty calculator to work out your property transfer fees
You don't need to wait to sign a contract to engage our Clare conveyancers. Our team of property conveyancers are here to provide advice before you sign.
South Australia, 5453
How Our Clare Conveyancing Team Can Help
Private sale contracts
When a property is sold without being advertised it’s known as a private sale. This means the buyer and seller negotiate the sale directly, usually without input from any sales agents.
If you’re buying or selling a property privately, it’s especially important to enlist the expertise of an experienced property conveyancer to make sure the settlement process is as smooth as possible.
Business contracts
If you’re buying or selling a business in South Australia, you should keep in mind that it’s a very different process from buying or selling property.
The conveyancers in our Clare and regional offices work alongside our expert business contract lawyers to provide comprehensive, practical advice. We can reduce your risk by making sure you’ve considered all the necessary factors and completed the steps required for a successful transaction.
Land and community divisions
The first step in dividing your land is instructing a surveyor. Johnston Withers’ conveyancers in Clare and regional South Australia will work closely with your surveyor to make sure your land is divided as quickly as possible.
No matter the size of your land division, our experienced conveyancing lawyers in Clare are here to help. We can prepare and lodge your application for you and take care of all of the associated paperwork for an efficient, hassle-free land division.
Family farm transfers
Family farm transfers are a complex area of the law. Our team of property conveyancers have extensive experience in regional conveyancing, including transferring family farmland or farm businesses.
We work closely with our rural clients, their accountants and financial advisers to provide comprehensive advice about intergenerational farming land and business transfers. This includes the assessment of stamp duty, which is one of the most important and common issues relating to family farm transfers.
Section 71CC of the Stamp Duties Act provides an exemption for family farm transfers from one generation to the next, but to qualify for this you need to meet a number of conditions.
Subject to accounting advice, we often see farming families take the opportunity to transfer their land or farming business to a family trust, which is then controlled by the next generation. It’s important to remember that there are limitations on who can be named as the beneficiaries of a trust (they’ll be the ones that the land or business is eventually transferred to) if you want to receive a stamp duty exemption.
If you need help preparing a family trust deed, our conveyancers in our Clare and regional South Australian offices can make sure you comply with all of the relevant requirements.
Commercial leases
A commercial lease is one of the most important documents a business owner can sign. It outlines the rights and obligations of the commercial property owner (also known as the landlord or the lessor) as well as those of the third party who’s agreed to rent the property (known as the tenant or lessee).
Poorly drafted, ambiguous and non-existent commercial lease agreements are often the subject of legal disputes where one or both parties have failed to understand their rights and responsibilities under the terms of the lease.
Our team of experienced conveyancers in our Clare and regional offices work closely with our commercial lease lawyers to help property owners prepare watertight agreements. We also work closely with tenants to help them understand the lease agreements for properties they’re considering occupying.
Private mortgages
If you’re a private lender or borrower, our team of conveyancers in Clare and regional South Australia are here to help you prepare the loan documentation you need to secure a debt. We have years of experience assisting clients with everything from preparing simple loan agreements to more complex loans involving mortgages, caveats, guarantees and bills of sale.
Caveats
Need expert advice about putting a caveat on a property? Our experienced property conveyancers are here to help.
A caveat is used to protect your interests in a property. If you have a legally-recognised caveat interest, you can use a caveat to let other parties know about it and to put a freeze on the property in question.
Examples of legally-recognised caveat interests include:
A right of an individual who’s contributed to acquiring, maintaining or improving the property
Unregistered mortgages and loan agreements
Unregistered leases
Caveats by authorities, including those for unpaid taxes or rates
Charges on the land for commercial ventures
A purchaser’s interest in a contract to buy land
As a beneficiary to a will (more on this here)
As a beneficiary of a trust
Applications to register a death, change of name, or marriage
Need to make changes to the registered proprietor’s name on a certificate of title? Our conveyancing lawyers can prepare and lodge applications with the land titles office on your behalf. We can help with updates or corrections due to:
Marriage
Reverting to a maiden name
Changing of company name
Change of address
Correcting incorrect registration details currently on the title
Death of a proprietor
Easements
When a person other than the property owner is allowed to access and use the land, this is known as an easement. An easement can also restrict how the owner can use that section of their property.
Common easements include:
The right to walk across the land
For the supply of utilities, including water, electricity and gas
For access roads
The right to park a vehicle
Party walls
It’s important to remember that easements can only be removed from a property when both the easement holder and the property owner agree. Registered easements on a certificate of title will remain in place regardless of whether the land is bought and sold.
If you’re looking for assistance with easements relating to your property, Johnston Withers’ team of experienced property conveyancers is here to help with honest, practical advice.
The conveyancing process
Instruction to proceed with Conveyancing in Clare
Inform the agent that you would like us to handle your conveyancing as soon as possible.
Contract signing and cooling off period
Once the Contract is signed and Form 1 has been served, you have 2 clear business days to cool off (unless the property is purchased at auction).
Forward the Form 1 to us for review as soon as you receive it.
Insurance and deposit
We recommend obtaining the required insurance once the Contract is signed.
Your deposit will be due the next business day after the cooling off period expires.
Document review and initial authorities
Upon receiving the documentation from the agent, we will review the Contract, Form 1 and any ancillary documents.
We will contact you and forward our initial authorities, which need to be completed, signed and returned to our office promptly.
We will verify your identity which can be done in our office, virtually via text message or at an Australia Post Office (we will forward further information with regards to this with our initial authorities).
Liaison with financier and vendor's conveyancer
We will coordinate with your financier (if applicable), the vendor's conveyancer and any other associated parties to prepare for settlement.
Settlement statement and funds
Approximately 7-10 days before settlement, we will prepare your settlement statement outlining our fees, stamp duty and adjustment of rates and taxes.
If additional funds are required, they should be deposited into our trust account at least 3 clear business days prior to settlement or authority provided to your financier to draw any shortfall from a nominated bank account.
Booking and attending settlement
We will book and attend settlement, notifying both you and the agent once settlement is complete.
Post settlement
We notify the rating authorities of the change in ownership.
Land Services may take up to 6 weeks to process the Confirmation of Registration.
If you are building on a vacant block, your builder may require a copy of the title. We can provide this service at cost.
Meet your Clare Conveyancing team
What our clients say about our Conveyancers in Clare
All the staff were very helpful and dealt with any questions we had promptly. Both the property we sold and the property we bought were finalized in a timely manner.
For my first experience purchasing property, the team at Johnston Withers made it an enjoyable and stress free process. Thank you so much for the valued assistance during the process.
We engaged Johnston Withers as our conveyancers. Although we didn't end up settling the property they were very good to deal with and provided excellent advice. Would highly recommend.
Amazing experience. Super helpful and put us at ease for buying our first home! Every question I asked was answered and I felt very supported with the paperwork side of things.
Frequently asked questions
When do I need to get a conveyancer in Clare?
We recommend enlisting the help of a local Clare conveyancer as soon as you decide to buy or sell.
If you’re a vendor whose property has recently gone on the market, it’s important to consider who your property conveyancer will be. Securing a conveyancer as soon as you accept an offer will help make sure the settlement process is as smooth as possible and that all requirements are met.
If you’re purchasing a property or business, make sure you seek the expertise of an experienced conveyancer in Clare or regional South Australia before you sign any contracts.
Do the conveyancers at Johnston Withers have indemnity insurance?
Yes, all registered conveyancers at Johnston Withers are covered by professional indemnity insurance to protect you in the unlikely event that an issue arises.
What is eConveyancing?
Also known as electronic conveyancing, eConveyancing is a mandatory process for managing a settlement and completing the conveyance via PEXA.
What is a Form 1 Statement?
A Form 1 Statement is one of the most important documents you’ll encounter when you buy a property. It outlines the property’s specific details, including planning restrictions and covenants, as well as your cooling-off rights. You can learn more about the ins and outs of a Form 1 Statement here.
It’s important you pay careful attention to the Form 1 Statement and carry out your due diligence. If you don’t understand something, our team of experienced property conveyancers in Adelaide and regional South Australia is here to help.
What is verification of identification (VOI) and what documents do I need?
When our property conveyancers complete your conveyance transaction, they need to verify your identity in accordance with the Registrar-General's verification of identity requirements.
This process is a little different to the usual 100-point check that your bank will undertake. You can only use certain forms of ID together. The two combinations are:
Medicare card, driver’s licence and Australian passport
Medicare card, driver’s licence, birth or citizenship certificate, and marriage or change of name certificate
It’s important to remember that any birth or marriage certificates you produce must be the full certificates from the office of Births, Deaths & Marriages, which are stamped by the Government. We can’t accept birth extracts or a marriage certificate from the day.
News & views from the conveyancing team
Browse allStressed about settlement dates? Start here
Buying property? With the market booming, settlement dates have become a big topic of conversation between conveyancers and clients. Here’s what you need to know about choosing a conveyancer early and getting the settlement date right.
Everything you need to know about Form 1 Disclosure Statements in SA
The Form 1 – Vendor’s Statement is a required statutory disclosure statement that must be provided by a vendor to a purchaser of land.
Don’t forget the Form 2! Tips and traps for selling a business in South Australia
If you are selling your small business it is important that you comply with your legal requirement to provide a purchaser with a Form 2 – Vendor’s Statement.