Simultaneous Settlement Explained

Julie Maxfield

PrincipalAitken PartnersView Profile

Steve Maule

Principal LawyerAitken PartnersView Profile

If you are relying on the proceeds from the sale of your property to purchase another (a conditional sale), then you may require a simultaneous settlement. This is a common situation where you arrange for the settlement of your current property and the settlement of your new property to happen at the same time.

If purchasing at a private sale, a simultaneous settlement may be considered at the time of signing of your purchase contract, where you may include a special condition that the purchase contract is "conditional" on your sale contract becoming unconditional. This is a way to ensure that you will not be locked into purchasing a property unless your other property is sold and the contract has become unconditional.

You may also need to negotiate longer settlement periods to ensure both properties are settling on the same day. Doing this eliminates the need to find temporary accommodation or pay off two mortgages at once, or obtain bridging finance. Once the transactions move to the electronic conveyancing platform PEXA, there will be two “linked” workspaces that allow all the proceeds from the sale to be allocated straight to the purchase and settlement will occur at the same time.

In some situations, several purchasers are in a "chain" of sellers and buyers. Once the first contract becomes unconditional, then the following purchasers in the chain can become unconditional one by one. This takes time to resolve and ensure that the sale contracts and funds are all changing hands correctly, overseen by conveyancing lawyers and bankers supporting each buyer and seller.

If you have any further questions, please contact our Property Law team.