Going unconditional is a very exciting time for a home buyer!
This means that all of the conditions in your sale and purchase agreement are met, and that you're locking yourself into your purchase. Generally once you go unconditional, you're indicating to the vendor that the transaction is in its home stretch - the next big date will be settlement day, and then after that it'll be the day that you move in.
Going unconditional, or the act of notifying the vendor about satisfying all of the sale and purchase agreement's conditions, is a responsibility for your lawyer. Depending on the conditions in your agreement, your lawyer may have to notify the vendor's lawyer about:
You being satisfied with a building inspection
You being satisfied with a LIM report
Your finance approval being sorted
Your funds being available
Going unconditional also kicks a number of other things into gear. Chiefly, one of those things is the payment of your deposit. This is usually between 5 and 10% of your purchase price, but it can be more depending on the terms of your agreement. You will have to have this sum ready to be paid to the vendor (either to their agent or to their solicitor) on the day that you want to go unconditional. As such, we'd recommend making sure that you have your finance in gear before this time.
Once you’ve gone unconditional you can start thinking more specifically about your home loan situation. There are some finance providers out there on the market who have home loan schemes that cater specifically to first home buyers, so it would be a good thing to investigate if none of the major banks quite have what you need.
Generally you'll already have an idea of what you're eligible for mortgage-wise before even getting to the unconditional stage, but here's when it all really starts to firm up.
You’ll also need to consider what house insurance you want, and your bank will likely require proof of insurance before they release your funds on settlement day to your lawyer. You'll have to submit loan paperwork in advance of settlement through your lawyer, so ensure that any documents you're given are submitted to the bank a week before you have to settle. You're going to have to make any insurance certificates that you receive available to your solicitor in advance of the big day, so make sure that this is all in order.
The important thing about going unconditional is that you have to commit to the transaction! If you feel like you're having doubts or that you don't know enough about the property, then it's good to investigate acquiring things like LIM reports or further legal advice before proceeding. Once you go unconditional, you can't take it back.
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