Some things never change when it comes to real estate investment opportunities, selling your home, mortgage financing and more.

No matter how much things change in the real estate world, there are at least four rules you can count on, writes Tim O’Dwyer for the Australian Property Investor magazine. Although we clearly live in a rapidly changing world, as a conveyancing solicitor I’ve long recognised and remarked on the “Immutable Laws of Real Estate”.

They’re not really laws but are certainly seemingly unchangeable rules of conduct. Or maybe they’re just ever-present facts of real estate life. There used to be three. Now there are probably four.

1. Real Estate agents move quickly
You can’t really blame them for this. Selling real estate successfully for seller clients is mostly all about timing. So real estate agents, by nature or training or experience, know they should move quickly in response to buyer’s enquiries. More significantly, agents usually move like greased lightning when it comes to sealing deals. In those parts of Australia where real estate agents are permitted by law to prepare sales contracts, sellers and buyers alike often find themselves under more than a little real estate agent pressure to sign up to binding contracts super-fast. Real estate agents seem to believe that if they hesitate in this regard, they’ll lose sales and miss out on commissions.

2. Solicitors move slowly
Or so it seems. Rather, we try to act cautiously. We’re primarily concerned for our clients’ interests and these are often best served by our not rushing in. Hence we usually take our time – to carefully read real estate contracts, check documents and consider the many troublesome issues that can often arise in even the most apparently simple conveyancing transaction. But we often do need to move quickly, especially when it comes to ensuring seller’s documentation is ready for settlement or critical searches are sent and received for real estate home buyers. Why? Because often we find our clients have already signed contracts, usually under speedy agent influence, with dangerously short time limits.

3. People change their minds
This is one of the prime reasons for the first two rules. Real estate agents invariably, and understandably, want consumers locked into legally enforceable contracts before they have time for second thoughts. Competent conveyancing solicitors know from experience how they must always be prepared for their own clients and the other parties getting cold feet and wanting out of apparently done deals. Sometimes when people do change their minds, solicitors have to become “contract killers” on behalf of their cold-footed clients.

4. Holidays happen
We all know that all sorts of things can happen to cause problems and put real estate sales at risk when you’re buying or selling but, for some strange reason, an awful lot of buyers and sellers seem to go on holidays after they’ve entered into serious contracts. They then return home only a week or so before settlement is due. Solicitors by and large have learned to cope with this but, gosh, it can often make things trickier, such as getting essential real estate legal documents prepared, signed and sent where they have to go on time.

The moral
Anyhow, the moral of this story is obviously not to sign anything without first getting sound, independent legal advice and possibly an independent valuation – no matter whether you’re buying or selling real estate. You simply must not let yourself by rushed. Try to be as certain as you can before you commit yourself and, if possible, try to keep your holiday arrangements flexible. After all, your solicitors should be just a quick protective phone call away – except when they’re on holidays. Then you’ll have to hope a legal locum is in place.

Tim O’Dwyer is a Queensland solicitor. Email: todwyer@westnet.com.au