Making sure your name is on the title to the land is an essential step in purchasing your first property. It sounds simple enough but, for a first-time buyer, 'conveyancing' (the process of transferring the ownership of land from the seller to the purchaser) can be a little confusing. Top Choice Home Loans's conveyancing partner, Mills Oakley Lawyers, sheds some light on this integral part of buying a home.

Whether you buy your first home privately or at auction, it's crucial to get your name on the title to the land you've just bought. In the case of most Australian properties, the title of land document (the original of which is kept at an Office of Titles in your home State or Territory) identifies where the land is located and who owns it.

Once you've committed to buying a property by signing the contract, the period leading up to the settlement of sale is when the conveyancing process takes place. This process is not merely a case of, say, contacting your local Office of Titles and changing the title details over the phone; rather, getting the title in your name can be complicated. As such, while you can do the conveyancing yourself, it's often a safer bet to rely on someone experienced because things can and do get tricky from time to time.

The contract

Most contracts of sale allow a period from 14 days up to 120 days for a settlement to occur but, typically, this tends to happen within 30 to 90 days (the precise amount of time will depend on where you live and what you can negotiate with the vendor/seller). Having signed the contract, you give this and the vendor's statement to a solicitor or conveyancer.

Aside from the contract, there are several other processes to set in motion, while it is also in your interests to undertake checks specific to your property - your solicitor/conveyancer will assist you with these.

Transfer document and searches

It is up to you, the purchaser, to prepare the transfer document for your solicitor/conveyancer. Assuming you're taking out a housing loan, your solicitor/conveyancer will also send the contract and a copy of the transfer document to your lender, so that they can begin to prepare your mortgage documents.

While this is going on, your solicitor/conveyancer will find out as much as they can about the property. Some of the necessary information will be in the vendor's statement but certain additional searches (checks) will need to be made with local government authorities in order to ensure there is nothing unusual about the property (e.g. you would want to know if a highway was going to be built right next door).

Common stumbling blocks you should look out for relate to when improvements have been made to an existing property or where a house has been built over a registered easement (right of way). In such instances, it is important the relevant permit or consent was/is obtained.

Finally, it is also important that you be organised with the necessary arrangements for your settlement.

Settlement

Once all of the property-related searches have been made, you need to prepare for the settlement date as set out in the contract. Make sure that the vendor's lender will provide a discharge of mortgage at the settlement and that your own lender will accompany your solicitor/conveyancer to hand over the balance of the contract price (taking into account that a deposit will have been paid). Your lender will wish to see a certified copy of the title to the property, as well as a discharge of the existing mortgage over the land.

Your lender will then lodge the signed transfer with the new mortgage with your local Office of Titles for registration. That is when you get your name on the Title.

Once all this has happened you'll have the green light to get the keys and move into your new home.

The conveyancer

Conveyancing can be a stressful experience, so it's important to have an experienced professional, who communicates well, on your side. Again, depending on where you live, conveyancing can cost you between $800 and $1500, which includes the solicitor/conveyancer's fees as well as outgoing (search and certificate) fees and GST. While conveyancers and solicitors essentially do the same job, conveyancers do tend to charge less for their services, but they do not have the same qualifications as solicitors. At the end of the day, the decision on whether you choose one over the other will depend on your needs and situation.

Click here to find out how to save money on your conveyancing costs