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1300 COMLAW (266 529)

02 4704 9991

Suite 11, 354-360 High Street, Penrith NSW 2750
PO Box 1835 PENRITH NSW 2751

Property Transfers

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Transferring Property Following the Breakdown of a Relationship

Are you married or in a de facto relationship that has broken down resulting in the need to transfer real estate from one party to another?

Unfortunately marriages and de facto relationships break down all the time. If following such a relationship breakdown a house that is jointly owned needs to be transferred from one party to another as a result of a property settlement, it is important that you have proper legal advice. Under Section 68 of the Duties Act 1997, a property transfer is exempt from stamp duty if the transfer is the result of the breakup of a marriage, de facto relationship or domestic relationship.

There are important technical requirements that need to be complied with to make sure there is no stamp duty on the transaction, which will save you thousands of dollars:

  • If you are married you must have a Financial Agreement in place under the Family Law Act 1975 or some other form of written agreement evidencing the fact that the breakdown of your marriage is irretrievable and you have decided to split the matrimonial assets;
  • If you are in a de facto relationship you must have a Financial Agreement in place under the Family Law Act 1975 or Court Orders such as Consent Orders. Only a family lawyer can prepare these for you;
  • If you are in a domestic relationship you must have Court Orders in place dividing the assets of each party or a Termination Agreement in accordance with the Property (Relationships) Act 1984.

Similar rules apply in the context of transfers of property between married and de facto couples whereby you can obtain a stamp duty exemption if as a result of the transfer the property will be held by the couple as joint tenants or tenants in common and equal shares.

The most common context where this arises is where one party to the relationship already owns real estate before the relationship commences and later wishes to transfer share of the property to their partner.

If you need family law advice or property law advice, contact one of our lawyers today on (02) 4704 9991.

by

Transferring Property Following the Breakdown of a Relationship

Are you married or in a de facto relationship that has broken down resulting in the need to transfer real estate from one party to another?

Unfortunately marriages and de facto relationships break down all the time. If following such a relationship breakdown a house that is jointly owned needs to be transferred from one party to another as a result of a property settlement, it is important that you have proper legal advice. Under Section 68 of the Duties Act 1997, a property transfer is exempt from stamp duty if the transfer is the result of the breakup of a marriage, de facto relationship or domestic relationship.

There are important technical requirements that need to be complied with to make sure there is no stamp duty on the transaction, which will save you thousands of dollars:

  1. If you are married you must have a Financial Agreement in place under the Family Law Act 1975 or some other form of written agreement evidencing the fact that the breakdown of your marriage is irretrievable and you have decided to split the matrimonial assets;
  2. If you are in a de facto relationship you must have a Financial Agreement in place under the Family Law Act 1975 or Court Orders such as Consent Orders. Only a family lawyer can prepare these for you;
  3. If you are in a domestic relationship you must have Court Orders in place dividing the assets of each party or a Termination Agreement in accordance with the Property (Relationships) Act 1984.

Similar rules apply in the context of transfers of property between married and de facto couples whereby you can obtain a stamp duty exemption if as a result of the transfer the property will be held by the couple as joint tenants or tenants in common and equal shares.

The most common context where this arises is where one party to the relationship already owns real estate before the relationship commences and later wishes to transfer share of the property to their partner.

If you need family law advice or property law advice, contact one of our lawyers today on (02) 4704 9991.

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Property Transfers – Divorce and Separation

Have you or someone you know been through a marriage breakdown?

One of the hardest things about a marriage breakdown is deciding how to divide the matrimonial assets fairly and doing so without incurring tens of thousands of dollars worth of legal costs.

The most significant asset that usually needs to be transferred or disposed of following the breakdown of a marriage is the matrimonial home, and quite often in these circumstances one party will “buy out” the other party (acquire their share).

If the parties are in agreement as to value, this can be done by a property lawyer without the need to go to court and spend thousands of dollars on legal fees. A property lawyer can prepare an agreement that the parties sign setting out how the matrimonial assets are to be split which can then be provided to the Office of State Revenue so that the transfer of the property is exempt from stamp duty (saving you tens of thousands of dollars).

It is important to remember that this option is only available in relation to the breakdown of a marriage.  While this stamp duty exemption also applies to de facto couples, in this context a binding financial agreement pursuant to the Family Law Act 1975 is necessary. This is a much more complex process that requires both parties to seek the advice of a suitably qualified family lawyer.

Another relatively unknown fact in the context of relationships and property ownership is the stamp duty exemption available to couples who want to transfer a property from one name into joint names. Provided that the transfer results in both parties owning an equal share of the property, no stamp duty is payable on this transaction subject to certain conditions. This is one of the few examples where a person can acquire a share in a property and not have to pay stamp duty.

For all of your property law needs, contact the team at Complete Legal & Conveyancing.