Property settlement time frames can be one of those elements of a transaction that are often overlooked.
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But is there such a thing as an ideal settlement period in Queensland and what about during times of tighter lending environments such as today?
Hot Property Buyers Agency's Zoran Solano said that settlement periods could be a useful negotiation tool, especially if the seller needed more time to find somewhere else to live.
"Thirty days is the standard time frame and that still remains the case," he said.
"But what buyers need to also do is to ask the question to the seller or the selling agent, because I've had instances in the past where 30 days is entirely too much of a headache for the seller.
"Maybe, in fact, rather than offering more money or a short settlement, you're actually better off to have a longer settlement."
Solano said that tighter lending conditions also made it imperative that home buyers and investors gave themselves enough time to complete all the paperwork.
In days gone by, he said, 30 days would probably do the settlement job, but with more financial hoops to jump through, more time was probably better than less.
"Time frames are really, really important. In an ideal world, 45 to 60 days gives you acres of time. You're not stressed with 45 days or more," he said.
"As a buyer, especially in Queensland, you need to make sure that you're doing everything possible in order to meet settlement so you don't get penalty interest charges or the contract isn't terminated by the seller."
Brett Warren, a property strategist with Metropole, said that negotiating the settlement period was a valid way to improve your chances of success.
In fact, he had been the victor for his clients with less money on the table by understanding the seller's requirements.
"Our clients and most investors are happy to put it out to 60 or 90 days to accommodate someone. It's not always about price," he said.
"People sometimes overlook that and think if they give them a shorter time frame that's better for them. They just assume it is, but in some cases it may not be."
But it was unwise to stretch out settlement periods for too long, he said, because market conditions could change and that can make lenders nervous.
"If you're doing a standard 30, 60 or 90-day settlement, banks are usually OK with that because the conditions are generally within two or three months," Warren said.
"Once you start to get out to six months, the conditions can dramatically change. If you're going for longer than a 60 or 90-day settlement, we'd always check with the financier to say, 'Are we OK to have a six-month settlement?' "
