Oh dear (holds head in hands)
Your lawyer should have gone through this with you. This makes me worry about what else your lawyer did not go through with you. Do you know the zoning of your land? Whether there are any encumberances (for example, easements)?
I work in the property section of a Sydney council and the amount of people who call up
after they have purchased a place and complain about the zones or encumberances! It's too late!
For next time there are three key questions you need talk to your lawyer for every piece of paper that is required:
- What is this document for?
- What does it mean?
- What are the implications?
Don't worry about sounding stupid - you are not. Make sure the lawyer explains it in a way that makes sense to you (that is, not a lot of jargon)
Stupid is spending a lot of money for no reason and then finding out you've made an easily avoidable mistake. You should also go to the council and ask them the same questions - just in case the lawyer does not explain adequately as well as getting a different point of view.
Council rates can seriously affect the affordability of your property. Not sure in Brisbane, but a lot of Sydney councils have had 'rate pegging' - a process where the state government controls the price of rates so they can get votes, but does nothing for the Council trying to do council works (rates only cover about half of the costs of Council). Historicaly sydney rates have not kept up with inflation, let alone the actual costs of Council (which no longer just do roads and rubbish). Subsequently sydney rates have been raising at a fearsome rate to help cover the shortfall that has developed.
