Personal Property Register affects Conveyancing
The Personal Property Securities Register (the Register) and the Personal Property Securities Act 2009 (Cth) (PPSA) came into operation on 30 January 2012.
Land is not personal property under the PPSA and the PPSA does not apply to interests in fixtures.
Under the PPSA the secured party is responsible for amending the Register when there is a change to a security interest.
Secured Party means a person who holds a security interest for the person’s own benefit or for the benefit of another person.
Other parties may also correct the register. There is currently no prescribed release form.
Buyers may take personal property free of security interest in some cases. Under the PPSA there are extinguishment rules which mean that in some situations a purchaser will take possession of personal property free of a security interest if for instance: Read more 
Why does your bank require a solicitor to explain the guarantee?
If you are borrowing in the name of a company your bank will always require the directors and sometimes others to personally guarantee the obligations of your company.
If the bank requires a guarantee from someone who is not a director or from someone that they suspect gets no benefit from the loan then they may insist that the guarantors get legal advice. This is done by insisting that a lawyer give a certificate confirming that the lawyer has provided legal advice.
Lawyers are not keen to give this advice for a number of reasons:
1. Lexon is the company that provides insurance to all Queensland lawyers. Lexon sees the issuing of these certificates as risky.
2. Many of the clauses in the bank guarantees are inherently unfair.
3. The terms of guarantees can be complex.
The issuing of a solicitors certificate adds a significant cost to the expensive process of obtaining a loan.
You should speak with your bank before documents are issued to see if this cost can be avoided. We are not suggesting that you should not obtain advice. It is important to understand your rights and obligations however there is a significant cost to obtaining this kind of advice and the issuing of a certificate to the bank does not, of itself, protect you.
All of this started with a case known as Armadio.
Commercial Bank of Australia v Amadio [1983] HCA 14: An elderly couple known as the Amadios, signed a guarantee for thier son’s bank, so that their son could obtain a loan. The Amadios believed that their son’s business was doing well, but it was not. When the son’s business failed, the bank sought to enforce the guarantee against the Amadios. A court decided that the guarantee was unconscionable and said that the bank could not rely upon the guarantee. It was held that the guarantee was “manifestly disadvantageous” to the Amadios. The court decided that the bank must have been aware of this but chose to take no steps to ensure that the Amadios were properly advised.
The result is that banks will now often require a solicitors certificate to ensure that steps have been taken to protect the guarantor. Often the requirement for a certificate can be waived if the matter is dealt with early. If however, arrangements are not made at an early stage the bank may seek solicitors certificates even when the only guarantors are directors of the company.
Riba Business Lawyers
Strength Through Knowledge
Franchising, Leasing, Acquisitions
Head office: 34 Duporth Avenue, Maroochydore, Sunshine Coast
Maroochydore: 07 54791488
Brisbane: 31032115
What is the legal Date of a Sale
Most transactions whether for the sale of property or a business include at least two or three important dates. These dates are:
1. The date that the contract is signed by the parties to that contract
2. The date that special conditions are satisfied
3. The date that the contract reaches settlement or completion. The completion date and the settlement date are different words, used to describe the same thing.
Which of these dates do authorities rely upon when determining the date of the sale? Read more
When is Land Tax Payable?
Land Tax Thresholds Change regularly.
You should contact Riba Business Lawyers to ensure that the rates have not changed since the date of this Post.
For Individual who are resident in Queensland.
| Taxable value | Rate of tax |
| $0–$599,999 | $0 |
| $600,000–$999,999 | $500 plus 1 cent for each $ more than $600,000 |
| $1,000,000–$2,999,999 | $4,500 plus 1.65 cents for each $ more than $1,000,000 |
| $3,000,000–$4,999,999 | $37,500 plus 1.25 cents for each $ more than $3,000,000 |
| $5,000,000 and over | $62,500 plus 1.75 cents for each $ more than $5,000,000 |
For Trust and Companies
| Taxable value | Rate of tax |
| $0–$349,999 | $0 |
| $350,000–$2,249,999 | $1,450 plus 1.7 cents for each $ more than $350,000 |
| $2,250,000–$4,999,999 | $33,750 plus 1.5 cents for each $ more than $2,250,000 |
| $5,000,000 and over | $75,000 plus 2.0 cents for each $ more than $5,000,000 |
Land Tax valuations do not normally include the value of the building. For advice please contact us.
Riba Business Lawyers
Strength Through Knowledge
Franchising, Leasing, Acquisitions
Head office: 34 Duporth Avenue, Maroochydore, Sunshine Coast, Queensland.
Maroochydore: 07 54791488
Brisbane: 31032115
Sale of Owner Builder House in Queensland
An owner builder should provide you with a notice in relation to the work carried out on the property under an owner builder permit if the sale is within six years of the completion date of the owner builder work. An owner builder should provide you with a notice in relation to the work carried out on the property under an owner builder permit if the sale is within six years of the completion date of the owner builder work.
When should the notice be given and what should it contain? The notice should be given PRIOR to the contract of sale being signed. The notice should contain:
Details of the domestic building work performed
The name of the person (permit holder) who performed the work
A statement confirming the work was performed under an owner builder permit
Provide the following notice – “Warning – The building work to which this notice relates is NOT covered by insurance under the Queensland Building Services Authority Act 1991″. Read more
Duty – How to save thousands when you buy a House!
The Queensland Budget handed down in June will make it cost many thousands more to buy an existing home, if you are not a first home buyer. There is a big incentive to buy or sell now, before the changes come into effect.
If you are planning to build a home you can receive a grant for $10,000 if you get your timing right.
There are winners and losers in this Queensland Budget and if you are thinking of selling or buying you must pay careful attention, because, everything will change on 1 August 2010.
Queenslanders do not pay duty on FIRST HOME purchases up to the value of $500,000.00 and this is not changing. The rest of us are in a different situation.
Existing home owners hoping to upgrade or downsize to another property face stamp duty hikes of up to $7175.00. These changes come into effect on 1 August 2011 so there is an incentive if you are looking to buy at the moment. If possible sign the contract before 1 August 2011!
Sellers should also take notice as they may find that buyers are more motivated to purchase before 1 August, before they get hit with the additional duty!
If you are thinking of buying a newly constructed home or considering signing a building contract you may wish to wait until the governments $10,000 grant is on offer. The building grant is restricted to properties under $600,000.00. The contract will need to be signed between August 2011 and January 2012. Six months will be allowed after signing, to commence construction and, then another 12 months is allowed to complete the construction. To be eligible it is essential that the time frames are complied with.
Obviously the winners from this budget are those buying a new home as they will receive $10,000 which was not previously on offer.
First home buyers of existing properties may be unaffected.
Buyers and sellers of existing homes should take advantage of the time lag before introduction as they will be worse off after August. The cost of the transaction may increase by as much as $7175.00 if they cannot sign a contract before 1 August 2011.
If you have any questions please contact Riba Business Lawyers.
Queensland Floods
Some of the houses that were damaged in the Queensland floods were under contract to be sold.Have you been wondering what will happen to the buyer and seller of a house that was damaged in the Queensland floods? Can a buyer escape if the building has been destroyed or damaged?
If you have any questions about a realestate conveyancing please contact us
