All publications relating to ‘Property’
Top Ten Tips for Landlord Leasing
This article contains some useful tips and insights on matters of importance for landlord leasing. The information is general in nature and does not take into account any personal circumstances. Get your commercial terms in order The document which sets out the agreed commercial terms of a lease has several different names…
Government and ATO tighten laws in relation to sale of property by foreign residents
IN BRIEF It’s all about low voluntary compliance by foreign residents who sell Australian property – and the government is tightening tax laws to shift the compliance burden on certain transactions. It’s complex – and it comes into effect on 1 July 2016. In this article, Daniel Kentwell addressess how the…
Protecting In-house Counsel’s advice
In brief Swaab believe the recent case of Holman v Warringah Council [2015] brings some clarity to the law surrounding legal professional privilege, especially when it comes to information prepared by in-house counsel. The question is – in what circumstances can legal professional privilege be claimed over information prepared by in-house counsel? What…
Breaking News: the sun is setting on unfair use of sunset clauses in off-the-plan sales!
In brief The recent amendment to the Conveyancing Act by the NSW Government has shifted the balance in relation to strata developments. For a long time, the perception has been that developers have held all the power in off-the-plan contracts. Daniel Kentwell shares his insights. Terms: “off the plan contract” (for the…
NSW strata reform: a different kind of deposition
In brief ‘Strata housing’ is a term that originated from the field of geology, where different ‘strata’ were the layers of sedimentary rock or soil that had been deposed over thousands of years. A more important type of deposition, however, may be the one you face if you infringe upon the ‘Strata…
Landlords beware — Incentive claw-back provisions deemed to be penalty clauses
In Brief The recent Supreme Court of Queensland decision of GWC Property Group Pty Ltd v Higginson & Ors affirms the long-held but (until now) untested fear that the ubiquitous claw-back provisions which accompany most incentive provisions may very well constitute a penalty clause. What is a penalty provision? The modern law of penalty provisions…
NABERS Certification: Don’t get caught on the wrong side of the fence
In Brief With the commercial property market heating up, if you are a vendor or a lessor you should ensure that your building has appropriate NABERS certification in place. The Commercial Building Disclosure (CBD) Program requires vendors and landlords of disclosure-affected buildings to obtain a Building Energy Efficiency Certificate (BEEC), before the building goes…
Swimming pool compliance legislation delay: A sensible outcome
In Brief Legislative changes were to come into effect from 29 April 2014 requiring swimming pool compliance certificates to be annexed to contracts for the sale or lease of land. The Office of Local Government announced on 28 March 2014 that the implementation of these changes would be postponed for a further 1…
e‑Conveyancing — The “e” stands for “exciting”!
In Brief Anyone who has discovered the highs and lows of dealing with exchange and settlement in relation to real property knows how delicate and unreliable the process can be. Enter e‑conveyancing. Wendy Conceicao, Associate and manager of our Conveyancing portfolio, and Euge Power, solicitor, look at the reliability and other…
Selling a property with a pool? Dive right into compliance
In Brief Just because summer has come to an end doesn’t mean it’s time to forget about your swimming pool for the year. As at 29 April 2014 all properties listed for sale or for lease with a swimming pool (including strata properties if there is a pool in the common property) must…