Author Archives for Peter Mericka

An Unwanted Renovation

June 17, 2007 5:16 am Published by Comments Off on An Unwanted Renovation Imagine coming home from doing the weekly shopping to find a deep chasm where the fish pond and shed used to be. This was the reality Ballarat East resident, Ivan Bolt, faced last Wednesday as reported in The Age 'That Sinking Feeling as Backyard Vanishes'

Non-Standard General Conditions

June 14, 2007 5:22 am Published by Comments Off on Non-Standard General Conditions At Lawyers Conveyancing we check a lot of real estate contracts as part of our pre-purchase legal advice service. Recently we have seen an increase in the number of contracts where the General Conditions have been changed so as to render them non-standard.

Building Permit Hell, Building Commission In Damage Control

June 6, 2007 5:28 am Published by Comments Off on Building Permit Hell, Building Commission In Damage Control 780 permits issued in Victoria between September 2005 and August 2006 could be void or incomplete, potentially affecting thousands of homeowners and sending the Building Commission into major damage control.

Auction Bullying

May 10, 2007 5:41 am Published by Comments Off on Auction Bullying The article describes how police were called to a house auction after a clash erupted between a bidder and the auctioneer.

Contracts – Real Estate Booby Traps!

May 10, 2007 5:32 am Published by Comments Off on Contracts – Real Estate Booby Traps! Most real estate consumers are aware that real estate contracts are biased heavily in favour of the vendor, and contain a minefield of terms and conditions.

The Monkeys In The Cage

May 4, 2007 5:58 am Published by Comments Off on The Monkeys In The Cage So often in my dealings with estate agents discussions reach the point where the estate agent justifies a procedure or behaviour with: “I’ve been in this (real estate industry) for a long time, and I know what you can and can’t do”

Routinely Poor Service From The Real Estate Industry

May 4, 2007 5:54 am Published by Comments Off on Routinely Poor Service From The Real Estate Industry Logan lawyer and columnist Tim O’ Dwyer has, for years, been voicing the shortfalls of the standard conveyancing contract and the lack of disclosure sellers are obliged to make.

Free Appraisals Are Worth What They Cost

May 4, 2007 5:47 am Published by Comments Off on Free Appraisals Are Worth What They Cost It’s known as the “foot in the door”, and it’s been around for decades. Estate agents are always letter-box dropping cards advertising “Free Market Appraisals” or “Find Out What Your Home Is Worth”.

…And Take Away The Number You Started With

May 3, 2007 6:01 am Published by Comments Off on …And Take Away The Number You Started With An informed consumer, whether vendor or purchaser, will never rely on the “appraisal”, or for that matter, the appraisal’s close relatives, the “asking price”, the “price +”, or the “price range”.