There may well be more than 30 shopping days until Christmas but don’t count on buying and settling real estate before Santa arrives unless you move very quickly and have the right Conveyancer on board to lead you through the maze.
There are a few things working against achieving the completion of settlements at this time of year, however the Eckermann Steinert team works together with Real Estate Agents and the Banks to keep progressing work for our clients leading up to and also during the holiday season.
Banks get clogged
In our experience, lenders seem to slow down at this time of year and the weeks that follow Christmas, most likely due to staff shortages as end of year parties and annual leave take their toll on productivity. There is also a glut of settlements this time of year due to people trying to be settled in prior to the holiday season.
Settlement processes take time
Of course, we have to remember that the settlement processes take a certain amount of time anyway, due to numerous links in the chain.
The vendor and purchaser will both have different needs and expectations, and progress can drag when ‘subject to’ conditions in contracts include the sale or purchase of other properties.
Plus there is the matter of finalising the settlement statements, documentation checks and other steps that are needed for third parties to toe the line and stay on track.
The benefits of bigger conveyancing firms
There is some good news, though.
We often have clients say they trust Eckermann Steinert because we have a network of conveyancers around South Australia and can back each other up.
In fact, clients, Michael and Tracy A, have given us a public recommendation because:
“Even though our service was during the holiday season with days off, closures and such, I was still kept informed.”
Of course, we can’t force banks and utilities to be open but we can be prepared to progress your conveyancing when services are available during the summer break.
Contact any of the helpful Eckermann Steinert team members if you are concerned about completing a settlement prior to or during the holiday season.