Certificate Of Title

A certificate of title (CT) is a legal document that defines the property that you own.

The title will show:

• Owners

• Ownership structure i.e., Jointly, tenants in common

• Mortgages registered against the property

• Caveats; and

• Covenants

Torrens

This is the land registration and land transfer system and is how titles are recorded and issued. This is to ensure that the registration is conclusive and there is no need for chain ownership.

Old law

This is a rare type of registration of title and has in most cases been superseded by the Torrens titles registration system.

Freehold (Torrens)

This is the most common type of title held in Australia, also known as ‘Torrens.’ This means you are buying the house and land, or land only – if the block is vacant.

Strata

Strata title is where you own the unit/property inside a building, but not the outside. These are normally villas, apartments, or town houses. Most of these have common areas such as foyers, driveways, gyms, and / or pools.

Lease Hold (generally on Crown Land)

This is a land hold that is leased to either a company or person by the relevant state. The person or company that purchase the land does not own it; leases can be as long as 100 years.

Stratum Titles

Stratum titles pre-date the strata title. Under a stratum title, the property is subdivided into multiple lots. Each owner of a unit is a registered proprietor of their lot and holds a share in the service company. The service company owns and manages the common areas of the property.