JDF Legal

11/05/2023

It's been a long time coming but our new and improved website is finally up! Check it out now:

https://jdflegal.com.au/

Big thank you to the Web Doc Anthony Huynh for creating such a sharp looking website for us.

JDF Legal Pty Ltd Property and Estate Lawyers and Consultants Learn more about us Welcome to JDF Legal Here at JDF Legal, we offer to you our expertise across a range of different practice areas including property law, conveyancing, wills and estates, retail leasing and many more. Reach out to us to...

23/06/2021

A quick reminder that the State Revenue Office’s Coronavirus relief Stamp Duty concession (for properties with a value under $1 million) is ending soon. The:

• 50% Stamp Duty waiver for new residential premises;
• 25% Stamp Duty waiver for existing residential premises; and
• 25% Stamp Duty waiver for vacant residential land

will no longer be applicable to contracts signed after 30 June 2021.

For further discussion or advice, please do not hesitate to contact us.

P: 03 9435 9997
E: [email protected]
W: www.jdflegal.com.au

JDF Legal Pty Ltd is a boutique general legal practice operating from 37 Were Street, Montmorency VIC 3094. We offer a wide range of services, primarily in the areas of property law, wills and estates.

18/01/2021

We hope everyone had a safe and wonderful Christmas and New Years break.

As we all start to get back into the swing of things, we thought we would start the new year off with a post about the new Coronavirus Stamp Duty relief measures currently in place.

Did you know that purchasers of residential properties may be eligible for up to a 50% reduction to their Stamp Duty bill?
If you:

• entered into a contract of sale after 25 November 2020 and before 1 July 2021; and
• the dutiable value of the property is $1 million or less; and
• the arrangement between you (the buyer) and the vendor is a bona fide purchase for market value,

then you could be eligible for:

• a 50% waiver of your Stamp Duty for new residential premises
• a 25% waiver of your Stamp Duty for existing residential premises
• a 25% waiver of your Stamp Duty for vacant residential land

This waiver is applied on top of any other concessions you are eligible for such as the first home buyer concession or pensioner concession.

For further discussion or advice, please do not hesitate to contact us.

P: 03 9435 9997
E: [email protected]
W: www.jdflegal.com.au

JDF Legal Pty Ltd is a boutique general legal practice operating from 37 Were Street, Montmorency VIC 3094. We offer a wide range of services, primarily in the areas of property law, wills and estates.

10/12/2020

Please be advised that JDF Legal will be closing our office for the Christmas and New Year period on 23 December 2020 at midday until 4 January 2021. However, we will still be contactable by email and telephone during this period so please do not hesitate to reach out with your legal enquiries at any time.
We would like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year. Bring on 2021!!!

22/10/2020

Hopefully not much longer to go now until we can open our doors to you once again. Until then, stay safe and continue to contact us by telephone or email with any queries you may have.

In the meantime, have you ever wondered what the difference was between an enduring and non-enduring power of attorney?

The key difference between an enduring power of attorney and non-enduring power of attorney is that an enduring power of attorney can continue to operate after the principal (the person giving the power) loses capacity, while a non-enduring power of attorney ceases to operate.

One may consider a non-enduring power of attorney in situations where for convenience sake, it would be prudent to appoint someone to be able to sign financial documents on your behalf for a specified period of time. Say for example you were going overseas for an extended period of time, and required someone at home to manage your financial affairs and sign documents on your behalf, however you would not necessarily want that person to be able to continue to do so indefinitely should you lose capacity for whatever reason. A non-enduring power of attorney may be appropriate here.

Alternatively, if your circumstances were such that a loss of capacity was beginning to be of concern to you, then an enduring power of attorney could be explored. An enduring power of attorney can commence upon signing of the document and endure once you have lost capacity, or it can be specified to only commence once you have lost capacity.

For further discussion or advice, please do not hesitate to contact us.

P: 03 9435 9997
E: [email protected]
W: www.jdflegal.com.au

JDF Legal Pty Ltd is a boutique general legal practice operating from 37 Were Street, Montmorency VIC 3094. We offer a wide range of services, primarily in the areas of property law, wills and estates.

17/08/2020

Subject to finance
What does it mean when a purchaser enters into a Contract of Sale of Real Estate, but it is subject to finance? This means that the Contract is conditional upon the purchaser obtaining formal loan approval from a specified financial institution, for a specified amount, by a certain date.
So even though the purchaser has signed a binding Contract, he or she will be able to withdraw from the Contract and receive a refund of their deposit if they are unable to obtain finance by the stated deadline.
It is important to note from a purchaser’s perspective, that should you wish to rely upon the “subject to finance” clause to withdraw from a Contract, you may be asked to provide evidence that you made reasonable and timely endeavours to obtain a loan and you should be prepared to produce such evidence along with evidence that your loan application was in fact rejected, to the vendor or their legal representative.

P: 03 9435 9997
E: [email protected]
W:

JDF Legal Pty Ltd is a boutique general legal practice operating from 37 Were Street, Montmorency VIC 3094. We offer a wide range of services, primarily in the areas of property law, wills and estates.

31/07/2020

Life Interest
The giving of a life interest in ones Will is a way to ensure that a particular person (the life tenant) gets the use and enjoyment of an asset for the duration of that person’s life, before ownership of that asset ultimately passes onto the beneficiary (the remainderman).
A life interest can be granted over any type of personal asset or property, but it is most commonly used with respect to real property.
Consider this scenario. Alex is a member of a blended family, whereby Alex is in a relatively new relationship with Brenda, and they both have children from previous relationships.
As part of Alex’s estate planning needs, Alex wants to ensure that upon his passing, Brenda will be able to use and enjoy the family home (which is in Alex’s sole name) for the duration of her life, but wants the house to eventually pass to his children as opposed to Brenda’s children (who will presumably be provided for under Brenda’s Will). Therefore, Alex can grant a life interest in the family home to Brenda, with the remainderman being his children as tenants in common in equal shares.
If Alex were to simply bequeath the family home to Brenda outright, then upon Brenda’s passing it would go to the beneficiaries under Brenda’s Will, which if Alex’s children were not included in her Will, would mean that they miss out entirely on receiving anything from that particular asset.

For more information about life interests or estate planning in general, please feel free to contact our office for an obligation free discussion.

P: 03 9435 9997
E: [email protected]
W:

JDF Legal Pty Ltd is a boutique general legal practice operating from 37 Were Street, Montmorency VIC 3094. We offer a wide range of services, primarily in the areas of property law, wills and estates.

14/07/2020

Check it out! Our new sign is now up! And while our doors may be closed as we try to do our part to slow the spread of Coronavirus during these difficult times, please rest assured that we are still open for business. You can contact us as usual by telephone or email, and in-person conferences can still be arranged with social distancing protocols in place. Stay safe everyone.

P: 03 9435 9997
E: [email protected]
W: www.jdflegal.com.au

02/07/2020

As a purchaser of real property (real estate), you generally need to pay land transfer duty (previously referred to as stamp duty) to the State Revenue Office. Duty is calculated based on the dutiable value of the property, which is usually the sale price or the market value of the property (whichever is greater).
However, there are a number of concessions and exemptions available to certain classes of purchasers.
These include:
• First time home buyers
• Purchasers of off-the-plan properties
• Pensioners
• Charitable organisations and friendly societies
• Young farmers purchasing their first farmland
Conversely, a land transfer duty surcharge may apply if you are a foreign investor.

For more information about land transfer duty or the conveyancing process as a whole, please feel free to contact our office for an obligation free discussion.

P: 03 9435 9997
E: [email protected]
W:

JDF Legal Pty Ltd is a boutique general legal practice operating from 37 Were Street, Montmorency VIC 3094. We offer a wide range of services, primarily in the areas of property law, wills and estates.

24/03/2020

As a result of the Covid-19 outbreak, we find ourselves in uncertain and unprecedented times. It is important that we all take the necessary precautions to stay safe and play our part in restricting the spread of the virus.
While our doors may be closed from time to time for the next few weeks, please rest assured that we are still open for business. You can contact us as usual by telephone or email.
If a face-to-face meeting is required, please contact us in advance to make an appointment and we will do our best to accommodate while adhering to the Government's mandate on social distancing.

Please stay safe everyone.

P: 03 9435 9997
E: [email protected]
W:

JDF Legal Pty Ltd is a boutique general legal practice operating from 37 Were Street, Montmorency VIC 3094. We offer a wide range of services, primarily in the areas of property law, wills and estates.

05/03/2020

Check out our new brochure which sets out just some of the services on offer at JDF Legal.
The brochure also contains some general information regarding Conveyancing and Estate Planning.
Please do not hesitate to contact us for a more in-depth discussion on your legal needs.

P: 03 9435 9997
E: [email protected]
W: www.jdflegal.com.au

22/01/2020

What is PEXA and how has it affected conveyancing in Victoria?
PEXA stands for Property Exchange Australia, and it is the online property exchange network on which more than 90% of all property transactions in Victoria now take place.
Prior to PEXA and the advent of e-conveyancing, settlements would take place at a physical location whereby each party’s legal representative would attend to exchange funds for a certificate of title and transfer in registrable form.
With the shift to e-conveyancing, the transfer of title and funds now happens electronically, and almost instantaneously.
Since 1 October 2018, Victoria has moved to mandatory use of PEXA for all property transactions save for a few types of transactions which require complex stamp duty assessments by the State Revenue Office.
However, with the increased efficiency and expediency of e-conveyancing also comes new risks and an increased focus on cyber security threats. Incidents of hackers re-directing settlement funds to unauthorised bank accounts have been well publicised in the news, and has prompted the need for the industry to increase security and vigilance surrounding the obtaining of bank account information from clients.

Please do not hesitate to contact our office for an obligation free discussion.

P: 03 9435 9997
E: [email protected]
W:

JDF Legal Pty Ltd is a boutique general legal practice operating from 37 Were Street, Montmorency VIC 3094. We offer a wide range of services, primarily in the areas of property law, wills and estates.