This week in the A – Z of Conveyancing, we’ll go through the commonly used terms in relation to conveyancing, looking at the letter W.

Withdrawal of Caveat

When a caveat is registered on the title of a property it prevents the property from being sold or transferred until it is removed by the caveator. Caveats can be formally withdrawn by lodgement of a ‘Withdrawal of Caveat’ form signed by the caveator and registered with NSW Land Registry Services. Once registered the caveat will be removed from the relevant property and the restrictions placed by the caveat lifted.

66W Certificate

This is a Certificate which is provided to the vendor’s solicitors on behalf of the purchaser which waives their cooling off rights. The Certificate can only be issued by the purchasers’ solicitor or conveyancer once the implications of the certificate have been explained to the purchaser. After the Certificate has been issued, the Contracts for Sale can be exchanged unconditionally, and the parties are bound by the contract terms.

Waterfront Licence

When purchasing a waterfront property which has a device/inclusion such as a jetty, boat ramp or pontoon adjoining, your property will likely be subject to a waterfront licence. A waterfront licence may be transferred by application to the relevant body, usually Crown Lands. The application will contain the details of the vendor, purchaser, the property and the relevant devices/inclusions.