The fall of the hammer. “The property goes to …”
 By Jack Jacovou, Solicitor
Adapted by Frank Morris
The fall of the hammer for the last time, assuming that the reserve price has been achieved, the highest bidder has just bought the property.
At that point, there is no opportunity to carry out any pre-purchase inspections of the property. The buyer has already bought it! There is no cooling off period.
Prior to auction, it is wise to carry out all relevant inspections.
Consider the following prior to auction –
Finance
Unless you have enough money in the bank to buy the property outright, you should ensure that the bank will lend you what is required. Include stamp duty and allow for adjustments and extras such as bank charges, application and valuation fees and conveyancing fees.
Pre-purchase reports
These include Building Report (approximately $280), Pest Report (approximately $180), and Strata Reports (approximately $280).
The Pest and Building Reports may not be necessary if you intend to demolish the house on the property and  rebuild in the near future.
If not, you should seriously consider these reports to find out whether you may be in for expensive repairs or maintenance in the near future.
In some cases, the underlying condition of the property can be so severe that a purchaser can lose interest in the property and not attend the auction.
Strata Reports will tell you how the Owners Corporation is travelling, including how much money they have in the bank, whether their insurances are up to date, and whether there are any disputes about building matters or strata management.
This is the equivalent of having an accountant check the books of a business you want to buy.
 Inspection of the Contract
Your solicitor should inspect the contract prior to auction and ensure that all is well and that you understand whether the property is affected by any easements, GST implications and the like.
Also, your solicitor may be able to negotiate amendments to the contract such as reduced deposit or longer settlement period with such amendments taking effect only if you are the successful bidder at the auction.
Such costs will vary depending on how much time is spent on the job by your solicitor, however some solicitors will only charge you if you end up buying the property as part of your conveyancing fees.
The above costs are minimal when you consider how much you could save by not buying into a problem. 
Further, not all these reports are always necessary.
Your solicitor will recommend what is required for your particular purchase. Remember though, that if you do not end up buying the property, such reports will be of no use to you, and you may feel that you have wasted your money.
(If you wish to speak about property to Mr Jacovou contact Frank Morris, Grand Years.)
* * *
Dame Elisabeth Murdoch: “I’d like to live forever.”
Adapted by Frank Morris
“I sometimes feel quite astounded to think that I have lived 100 years,” says Dame Elisabeth Murdoch. “ I think that’s been fortunate but that’s something to do with one’s nature. I don’t waste time. I think that’s nothing to be highly praised for, but I think it does enable you to fill your life absolutely to the brim. I think there were two occasions that I applied the slipper (to the young Rupert Murdoch) and they were well-merited and they had their effect and there was never a need for any more. Rupert when he wants to tease me says: ‘You know of course my mother beat me!’” When she was just 18-years-old, she met and married a legendary newspaper journalist 24 years her senior, Keith Murdoch, leaving Melbourne society aghast. “I remember being tremendously attracted because there was something very compelling about his eyes. He had beautiful dark brown eyes and I suppose there was something in the alchemy,” she recalls. How long would you like to live for, she was asked on the Elders program. Dame Elisabeth thought for a moment. “I’d like to live forever.”
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