AGENTS are warning property hunters to choose their conveyancer carefully as it could be the difference to scoring the keys to your new home.

In the past few months many Cairns agents have noticed deals falling through because buyers are trying to cut costs and using conveyancing clerks, which in some cases haven’t been able to carry out the correct job.

“In the current climate it is hard enough to get a deal together, however this is just the beginning as it is very often more difficult to keep it together,’’ Powe Property agent Lucas Sexton said.

“For example we’re finding up to 90 per cent of contracts require renegotiation on B/P inspections alone, with buyer remorse also a distinct possibility in these uncertain times it is no longer possible for an agent to forget about the buyer once the contract has been signed and expect to have a settlement occur as many are guilty of.

“One of, if not the, single most important aspects of this process is to ensure that all parties involved in a transaction seek professional and competent legal representation to handle conveyancing from the many options in the market place today.

“An example of this recently happened to one of my colleagues who has been dealing with a overseas buyer on a contract. This buyer organised their finance, had it approved by their chosen lender on time, however the conveyancer failed to send the notice that finance had been approved by 5pm on the finance date. The seller then exercised his right to terminate the next morning at 8.30am.

“I simply can’t stress enough how important it is for all involved to seek adequate legal advice when buying or selling as it very often can make or break a deal. Once the contract has been executed the agent is no longer in control.’’

Source: Weekend Post 13/8/11