I'm new to the forum and am unsure of the protocol regarding posting related questions in 1 thread however, having searched prior posts, I've not found anything directly like my situation so here goes. I have 3 questions all relating to a Coomera duplex/land package (i.e. 2 adjacent houses on 1 corner lot) buying land from a Developer and the duplexes from a Builder.
1) We're being asked to sign a Building Covenant saying 'The land shall be used for a single dwelling only and the Buyer will not use or permit to be used any such building for any purpose other than a single unit private dwelling...'. Apparently, the Gold Coast Council wants duplexes on each corner lot and has stamped its approval on the duplex layout however I'll be much more comfortable when the language is made consistent to explicitly permit duplexes. Any thoughts on if I'm being paranoid.
2) There's also a Special Conditions clause on Resale of Property saying 'The Buyer covenants and agrees with the Seller that the Buyer will not sell or dispose of the Land in whole or part without the prior written consent of the seller which will not be withheld where the Buyer obtains a legally effective deed capable of enforcement by the Seller and in a form approved by the Seller from the Buyer or Disponee from the Buyer covenanting by that Buyer or Disponee in favor of the Seller with a similar force and effect of the covenants and provisions contained in these Special Conditions including a covenant to obtain this covenant.' (Sorry for the legalese - it's not my tortured logic) but in a nutshell I interpret this to mean we can't sell without getting written permission from the Developer after showing a contract which imposes the covenant on all future Buyers. My concerns are that this would put off future buyers and who signs if the Developer goes down the gurgler. They refuse to change the covenant and ask what our problem is as no other buyer or solicitor has challenged this clause. I'm close to walking away even though the yield and cap growth look good.
Mandating written consent for all future sales which seems onerous and overly restrictive, although the intent is clearly to protect all other buyers by enforcing the covenant in perpetuity. The same end can be achieved much more reasonably by mandating that the Buyer adhere to a clause that requires all future buyers to likewise adhere to the covenant. What would you do?
3) I've searched the posts regarding strata vs. torrens titling a duplex and, assuming we get past the above concerns, am leaning towards splitting the duplex into adjoining houses on separately titled lots. I've read quotes of up to $8K to get the Torrens title done however does this include stamp duty or just legal, council, and design fees. I would think that although the land is split into 2 lots both are still owned by the same people so there's no transfer of ownership to trigger the stamp duty.
I welcome any and all comments and sorry again for the length.
Cheers,
David
1) We're being asked to sign a Building Covenant saying 'The land shall be used for a single dwelling only and the Buyer will not use or permit to be used any such building for any purpose other than a single unit private dwelling...'. Apparently, the Gold Coast Council wants duplexes on each corner lot and has stamped its approval on the duplex layout however I'll be much more comfortable when the language is made consistent to explicitly permit duplexes. Any thoughts on if I'm being paranoid.
2) There's also a Special Conditions clause on Resale of Property saying 'The Buyer covenants and agrees with the Seller that the Buyer will not sell or dispose of the Land in whole or part without the prior written consent of the seller which will not be withheld where the Buyer obtains a legally effective deed capable of enforcement by the Seller and in a form approved by the Seller from the Buyer or Disponee from the Buyer covenanting by that Buyer or Disponee in favor of the Seller with a similar force and effect of the covenants and provisions contained in these Special Conditions including a covenant to obtain this covenant.' (Sorry for the legalese - it's not my tortured logic) but in a nutshell I interpret this to mean we can't sell without getting written permission from the Developer after showing a contract which imposes the covenant on all future Buyers. My concerns are that this would put off future buyers and who signs if the Developer goes down the gurgler. They refuse to change the covenant and ask what our problem is as no other buyer or solicitor has challenged this clause. I'm close to walking away even though the yield and cap growth look good.
Mandating written consent for all future sales which seems onerous and overly restrictive, although the intent is clearly to protect all other buyers by enforcing the covenant in perpetuity. The same end can be achieved much more reasonably by mandating that the Buyer adhere to a clause that requires all future buyers to likewise adhere to the covenant. What would you do?
3) I've searched the posts regarding strata vs. torrens titling a duplex and, assuming we get past the above concerns, am leaning towards splitting the duplex into adjoining houses on separately titled lots. I've read quotes of up to $8K to get the Torrens title done however does this include stamp duty or just legal, council, and design fees. I would think that although the land is split into 2 lots both are still owned by the same people so there's no transfer of ownership to trigger the stamp duty.
I welcome any and all comments and sorry again for the length.
Cheers,
David
